The Court of Appeals of Indiana has split on an internet-related issue in a case involving harmful content for minors after an ex-band director was handed a felony charge for text messages he sent to a former student.
While the Court of Appeals of Indiana didn’t overturn a Logansport man’s convictions for attempting to rape his granddaughter, the Cass Circuit Court will need to go back and clarify the record on his judgment and sentencing.
Ketanji Brown Jackson, President Joe Biden’s nominee for the U.S. Supreme Court, worked for seven years as a judge on the federal trial court in Washington, D.C., before Biden appointed her to the appeals court that meets in the same courthouse.
7th Circuit Court of Appeals
Instituto Mexicano del Seguro Social v. Zimmer Biomet Holdings, Inc.
21-1224
Appeal from the United States District Court for the Northern District of Indiana, South Bend Division. Judge Damon R. Leichty.
Civil. Affirms the Northern Indiana District Court’s ruling, granting the motion to dismiss filed by Zimmer Biomet Holdings Inc. Finds the district court did not abuse its discretion in dismissing the case for forum non conveniens because the Mexican courts presented a viable alternative forum and the bulk of the witnesses and evidence are located in Mexico. Also finds Instituto Mexicano del Seguro Social’s argument regarding the United Nations Convention Against Corruption fails because Congress did not implement the treaty.
A seven-story, mixed-use development that makes up a large chunk of Indianapolis’ Massachusetts Avenue can keep its charitable exemption for the 2010 tax year despite opposition from the Marion County assessor, the Indiana Tax Court has ruled.
Allegations that Zimmer Biomet Holdings Inc. engaged in a bribery scheme of Mexican government officials led to an “unusual twist” of Zimmer and the Mexican plaintiff each arguing against trying the case in their respective home courts, but the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals agreed with the medical device manufacturer that under the forum non conveniens doctrine, the case should be dismissed from the Northern Indiana District Court.
The Indiana State Police, including its superintendent in his individual capacity, has secured a win in a wrongful death case after the Court of Appeals of Indiana reversed in the civil rights lawsuit filed by the estate of a Black man who was shot and killed by a trooper nearly a decade ago.
A man who claimed local news outlets defamed him with inaccurate details after he was convicted of child molesting couldn’t convince the Court of Appeals of Indiana that his lawsuit wasn’t frivolous.
Court of Appeals of Indiana
Latuwan Anthony Partee v. State of Indiana
21A-CR-1529
Criminal. Affirms Latuwan Partee’s conviction and 27 ½-year aggregate sentence for dealing in cocaine, a Level 2 felony, and possession of marijuana, a Class B misdemeanor, along with being found to be a habitual offender. Finds the Marion Superior Court did not commit fundamental error by failing to explicitly tell the defendant he could be present at his own trial if he behaved. Also finds the trial court’s sentence order contains a scrivener’s error. Remands with instructions for the scrivener’s error to be corrected.
A so-called sovereign citizen who was removed from his own trial because of his disruptive behavior, then tried to get his conviction overturned by arguing he was not told he could remain in the courtroom if he behaved, did not get any sympathy from the Court of Appeals of Indiana, which instead commended the trial court for its patience in handling such a difficult defendant.
Finding state statute does not require a professional license to be renewed after an expungement, the Court of Appeals of Indiana has upheld a refusal by the Medical Licensing Board of Indiana to amend the disciplinary records and lift the sanctions imposed on a physician who was convicted of a misdemeanor.
A woman who injured herself after tripping over a curb at a Speedway convenience store did not convince the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals that the gas station was liable for her injuries.
An Indiana woman’s efforts to keep her child’s biological father from communicating with their daughter for a year has resulted in a reversal by the Court of Appeals of Indiana on a petition to adopt.
Read Indiana appellate court decisions from the most recent reporting period.
Indiana Supreme Court
Elizabeth Roetter v. Michael P. Roetter, Jr.
21S-DC-568
Domestic relation with children. Affirms the Hendricks Superior Court’s award of spousal maintenance to Elizabeth Roetter and the division of property between her and ex-husband Michael P. Roetter Jr. Finds the trial court didn’t err in its spousal maintenance award and that Elizabeth’s request is for rehabilitative maintenance. Also finds the trial court didn’t err in its division of property and that it was not required to follow a rigid, technical formula.
The Indiana Supreme Court has determined a trial court didn’t err in its method of dividing up assets between a divorced Hendricks County couple, parting ways with the opinion of the Court of Appeals of Indiana.
Indiana Supreme Court justices were divided on an issue of first impression brought by Duke Energy and the Indiana Utility Regulatory Commission, ultimately ruling that the utility cannot recover past coal-ash cleanup costs adjudicated under a prior rate order by treating the costs as a capitalized asset.
Like the Court of Appeals of Indiana did before the case was transferred, the Indiana Supreme Court has reversed summary judgment granted to United States Steel Corp. over a mechanic’s lien dispute regarding a now-defunct industrial project in Gary.
7th Circuit Court of Appeals
United States of America v. Mark Price
20-3191
Appeal from the United States District Court for the Southern District of Indiana, Indianapolis Division. Judge Jane Magnus-Stinson.
Criminal. Affirms Mark Price’s conviction of unlawfully possessing firearms and ammunition as a felon, as well as his enhanced sentence. Rejects Price’s “stalking horse” theory on first impression and finds the parole search wasn’t a violation of Price’s Fourth Amendment rights. Also finds Price’s terms as a parolee lessened his privacy status. Finally, finds the district court didn’t err as to the sufficiency of the evidence or in giving Price three sentencing enhancements.
A woman who spent roughly a decade in a legal battle with her employer has had her case dismissed for a lack of appealable issues.