Justices split over reducing meth sentence
Justices Brent Dickson and Mark Massa disagreed with their colleagues Wednesday that a Tippecanoe County man’s 40-year sentence for Class A felony dealing in methamphetamine needed to be revised.
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Court affirms probation revocation, total time ordered in DOC
A Vigo County man lost his argument before the Indiana Court of Appeals that his term of informal probation should not have been revoked by the trial court after he violated terms of his placement in a home detention program.
Online Extra: Judicial Roundtable 2014
When Loretta Rush was named chief justice of the Indiana Supreme Court in August, Indiana hit a milestone. For the first time, all of our state’s appellate courts were being led by women. Indiana Lawyer recently invited Rush, Indiana Court of Appeals Chief Judge Nancy Vaidik, Indiana Tax Judge Martha Wentworth and Chief Judge Robyn Moberly of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Indiana’s Bankruptcy Court to discuss their career paths as well as opportunities and challenges today’s courts and lawyers face.
Appeals court upholds teen’s 55-year sentence for murder
In a case of first impression, the Indiana Court of Appeals affirmed the 55-year sentence imposed on a juvenile waived into adult court for the murder of a friend. The teen claimed he should have been sentenced under the alternative sentencing scheme available for juveniles.
IBM, state enter mediation over failed welfare contract
IBM Corp. and the state have agreed to mediation as a lawsuit between the parties over the failed billion-dollar contract to privatize welfare services awaits a ruling from the Indiana Supreme Court.
Reservist entitled to full longevity pay despite time away from police force
The 7th Circuit Court of Appeals held Tuesday that a Plymouth, Indiana, patrolman should receive the $2,700 in longevity pay he is entitled to from the city under an ordinance. The city cut the payment by two-thirds because the man served eight months on activity duty in the U.S. Air Force.
Court hears ex-Indiana elections chief’s appeal
An attorney for former Secretary of State Charlie White faced tough questioning Tuesday from Indiana's three-judge appeals court during White's latest bid to overturn the voter fraud convictions that forced him from office.
Prosecutor to seek death penalty for mutilator
A prosecutor intends to seek the death penalty for a southern Indiana man who has confessed to fatally stabbing his girlfriend and mutilating her body, including cooking and eating some of her organs.
Indiana high court to hear accomplice death appeal
The Indiana Supreme Court will hear the appeal of three Elkhart men convicted of murder after an accomplice was fatally shot by a homeowner during a break-in.
State declines to appeal Overstreet competency ruling
The Office of the Indiana Attorney General announced Tuesday it will not appeal a special judge’s ruling that a man on death row is not competent and therefore cannot be executed.
Liquor store owners argue state has Constitutional right to regulate cold beer
The Indiana Association of Beverage Retailers Inc., arguing that the state’s interest in regulating alcohol trumps an Equal Protection challenge, has filed an amicus brief in support of Indiana’s law prohibiting convenience stores and gas stations from selling beer cold.
COA reverses marijuana conviction based on illegal traffic stop
A police officer was mistaken when he pulled over a vehicle that, due to a broken tail light, emitted more white light than red light, the Indiana Court of Appeals ruled Tuesday. The statute only requires that some red light be visible, which occurred in this case.
Court upholds serious violent felon finding, despite not using term ‘SVF’
The Indiana Court of Appeals rejected a man’s claim that because a stipulation to being a serious violent felon did not use the term “serious violent felon,” the state didn’t establish that as his status.
COA reverses syringe possession conviction due to lack of evidence
Because the state couldn’t prove that a man intended to use a syringe to inject a legend drug, as is required by the statute to convict him of possession of a syringe, the Indiana Court of Appeals reversed the man’s conviction. The man intended to use the syringe to inject heroin, which is not covered by the statute.
Appeal hearing set for ex-Indiana elections chief
The Indiana appeals court is set to take up former Secretary of State Charlie White's fight to overturn the voter fraud conviction that forced him from office.
Lawyer says no plea deal in Mellencamp son’s case
The defense attorney for the oldest son of rock star John Mellencamp says she is seeking a pretrial hearing but no agreement has been reached for him to plead guilty to charges that he badly beat a man.
Supreme Court inadvertently sends email to thousands of attorneys
Because of a human error, the Indiana Supreme Court accidently sent an email intended for a small group of attorneys to thousands of attorneys through its notification system.
DOC credit-time policy does not result in disparate treatment
The Indiana Court of Appeals rejected an inmate’s argument in his lawsuit challenging the constitutionality of the Department of Correction’s policy concerning the restoration of credit time for inmates. Because the policy does not result in disparate treatment, the judges affirmed the lower court ruling in favor of the DOC.
Justices take molestation case that divided Court of Appeals
The Indiana Supreme Court has granted transfer to a Marion County case that split the Court of Appeals as to whether the man’s Class A felony conviction for molesting his girlfriend’s daughter should be upheld.
COA reverses convictions based on ineffective appellate counsel
The Indiana Court of Appeals reversed a man’s convictions of Class A felony child molesting and Class B felony sexual misconduct with a minor based on his sexual advances toward his stepdaughter when she was in junior high and high school. The judges acknowledged as a result of their decision, the stepfather won’t face any legal consequences for those actions, but the state had a duty to present sufficient evidence to support those convictions.