High court declines to overrule cases on federal regulatory powers
The U.S. Supreme Court is declining to overrule two past cases that had been criticized by conservatives as giving unelected officials vast lawmaking power.
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Court: Stealing official’s husband can’t gain from fraudulent land transfer
The husband of the former Owen County auditor, who was found to have purchased about $346,000 worth of personal items with county-issued credit cards, must repay the full amount of money he received from the sale of land that his wife fraudulently transferred to him.
Harassment charges over man’s calls to lawmakers, state agency upheld
A man accused of repeatedly making harassing phone calls to Indiana lawmakers’ aides and staff members at the Secretary of State’s Office must face multiple misdemeanor charges, the Indiana Court of Appeals ruled Wednesday.
7th Circuit: German company lacks evidence to support yacht-related damages
A German company has failed to convince the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals that it should be awarded more than $1 million in damages for a yacht it purchased from an Indiana boat manufacturer.
Landlord can’t obtain attorney fees from security deposit, COA rules
A South Bend landlord is not entitled to double recovery or attorney’s fees from a former tenant’s security deposit, an appellate panel ruled Tuesday. The landlord had taken hundreds from the woman’s deposit to cover its legal fees in a suit it filed against her.
Indiana Court Decisions — June 5-19, 2019
Read Indiana appellate court decisions from the most recent reporting period.
Subpoena showdown: Congressional fights highlight differences from court processes
The back-and-forth between Congress and the Trump administration over subpoenas might seem like a telltale sign of the political tension dividing Washington, but it’s historically not that uncommon. Subpoena fights, however, are much less common in state and federal courts.
AG Hill accusers file harassment, retaliation lawsuit against him, state
Another chapter has been opened in the ongoing saga surrounding allegations that Attorney General Curtis Hill drunkenly groped four women at a bar more than a year ago. The four women, who up to this point have pursued action within the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, have now taken their complaint to the Southern Indiana District Court.
DCS lawsuit details harm to children
An 81-page lawsuit filed Tuesday against the Indiana Department of Child Services claims the agency is failing to protect children and further inflicting trauma by placing foster children in inappropriate, unstable or overly restrictive facilities and not providing the necessary medical and mental health care.
New laws for 2019
The following enrolled acts, followed in parentheses by their corresponding public law numbers, take effect July 1 unless otherwise noted below.
Census, redistricting top remaining Supreme Court cases
The Supreme Court enters its final week of decisions with two politically charged issues unresolved: whether to rein in political line-drawing for partisan gain and allow a citizenship question on the 2020 census.
Gary mom must get education, job after daughter’s shooting death
A northwestern Indiana woman who pleaded guilty to a reduced neglect charge stemming from her 2-year-old daughter’s shooting death has been ordered to take parenting classes, get an education, stay off drugs and find a job. Dashana Fowler of Gary was sentenced Monday to three years in a Community Transition Court for the Sept. 4 death of Jayla Miller.
Zipping into statutes: Overview of new laws for 2019
Although the $34 billion budget dominated the session, legislators introduced and considered more than 600 bills each in both the Senate and the House. The ones they passed covered a variety of matters, including hate crimes, hemp, gambling, foster parents, electricity generation and, of course, electric scooters.
Officials remain tight-lipped about judges’ shooting
Since Clark Circuit Judges Andrew Adams and Bradley Jacobs returned to their southern Indiana homes in mid-May to recuperate from being shot, few updates on their conditions and announcements regarding the prosecution of their case have been provided, leaving some in the community wondering.
Trial and error: Attorneys navigate e-filing errors, but clerks say rejections infrequent
Lawyers and paralegals largely agree that electronic filing has improved their work, cutting the time and cost of printing and distributing hundreds or even thousands of paper documents. But enjoying the full benefits of the electronic system, they say, is a matter of trial and error.
Complex questions about justice center site safety concern prosecutor, public defender
Since the Marion County judges hired their own environmental consultant to review the remediation plans for the property where the new justice center is slated to be built, the Marion County prosecutor and public defender offices have started raising their own concerns about the level of contamination and safety of their workers.
Indiana death row inmate denied SCOTUS appeal of sentence
An Indiana death row inmate whose request for a new sentencing hearing split the Indiana Supreme Court and drew a 40-page dissent from Chief Justice Loretta Rush has failed to convince the U.S. Supreme Court to review his case.
Supreme Court rejects early challenge to Trump steel tariffs
The U.S. Supreme Court is rejecting an early challenge to President Donald Trump’s authority to impose tariffs on imported steel based on national security concerns.
Justices deny transfer to 2 cases that split COA
The Indiana Supreme Court considered and denied 18 petitions for transfer last week, including two cases that drew concerns from members of the Indiana Court of Appeals.
Justices side with business, government in information fight
The Supreme Court of the United States sided with businesses and the U.S. government Monday in a ruling about the public’s access to information, telling a South Dakota newspaper it can’t get the data it was seeking.