COA heads to northern Indiana for ‘Appeals on Wheels’
The Indiana Court of Appeals will travel to northern Indiana Wednesday to hear arguments in Lake and St. Joseph counties involving two criminal cases.
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Suspended lawyer warned against ‘frivolous’ pleadings
A federal judge has warned a suspended attorney to stop filing frivolous motions in an unsuccessful suit alleging police misconduct against the city of Gary and other defendants.
Indy picks former GM site for new criminal justice complex
The city of Indianapolis announced April 25 that it is asking development teams to use part of the former GM Stamping Plant property west of downtown in its proposals for a new criminal justice center.
Gambler scores partial victory before Tax Court
The Indiana Tax Court Thursday granted an alleged professional gambler’s motion to compel the Department of State Revenue to comply with nearly all of his discovery requests in his quest to deduct certain business expenses.
Judges decline to revise man’s 60-year molestation sentence
The Indiana Court of Appeals rejected a man’s argument to revise his sentence for molesting the daughters of his ex-girlfriend to be served concurrently instead of consecutively because of his age and he is paraplegic.
Bankruptcy filings drop in Indiana
Bankruptcy filings in the U.S. Bankruptcy Courts, Northern and Southern Districts of Indiana, fell for the 12-month period ending March 31 as compared to the same time in 2013, according to the United States Courts.
COA reissues expungement opinion
The Indiana Court of Appeals reissued its decision finding the trial court should have granted a man’s petition for expungement. The court originally handed down the opinion in Taylor v. State, 45A03-1310-CR-406, April 17.
Woman’s conviction for threatening apartment manager upheld
The Indiana Court of Appeals upheld a woman’s intimidation conviction Thursday, finding the evidence supports the charge that she threatened the manager of the apartment complex where she lived.
Court upholds man’s molestation convictions
Finding no juror misconduct or any fundamental error in the admission of certain testimony during a man’s trial for molesting his daughter, the Indiana Court of Appeals upheld his multiple molestation convictions. He will also have to file a petition for post-conviction relief to challenge his habitual offender adjudication.
ABA: Lawyers should not contact jurors through social media
Attorneys can look at a juror’s public Facebook page but shouldn’t message the juror through the Internet or social media and try to access a private account, according to a formal opinion released Thursday by the American Bar Association.
Justice Department outlines new clemency initiative
The U.S. Department of Justice Wednesday announced its initiative to encourage qualified federal inmates to petition to have their sentences commuted or reduced by the president of the United States.
Judges uphold man’s conspiracy conviction
Although the state charged a man with the non-existent crime of “conspiracy to commit attempted armed robbery,” the record shows Matthew Wilhoite was actually convicted of conspiring to commit armed robbery. As such, the Indiana Court of Appeals rejected his claim he was convicted of a crime that doesn’t exist.
COA adopts rule allowing for partial subordination of 1st lienholder’s interest
The Indiana Court of Appeals Wednesday decided the state should follow the majority rule on agreements to modify the priority of liens securing interests in a borrower’s assets.
Judges affirm ex-wife’s cut of lottery winnings
The Indiana Court of Appeals rejected a woman’s contention that she should be entitled to more than 2.5 percent of her ex-husband’s lottery winnings based on his admission that 70 percent distribution would be “fair and equitable.”
COA: Search of passenger not unconstitutional
The Indiana Court of Appeals rejected a woman’s claim that drugs found in her possession should not have been admitted at trial because a police search of her after a traffic stop violated the federal and state constitutions.
SCOTUS upholds Michigan affirmative-action ban
The Supreme Court of the United States by a vote of 6-2 Tuesday upheld Michigan’s constitutional amendment banning the use of affirmative action by its public universities.
Motions in marriage lawsuits attack non-recognition of same-sex unions
Claiming they have a fundamental right to marry, same-sex couples married outside of Indiana have filed separate motions asking the court to grant summary judgment in favor of their challenges to Indiana’s marriage law.
Assertion of state’s rights may not support same-sex marriage ban
Indiana is contenting that states have the authority to define marriage, but the federal court and the ACLU of Indiana have given little merit to the state’s arguments for maintaining a ban on same-sex marriage.
Defender’s trial strategy trumps inmate’s pro se early-trial request
A prison inmate who asked for a public defender then said at an initial hearing he wanted to “file for fast and speedy trial too” lost his appeal that argued the court erred by not ruling on his request and his trial counsel was ineffective.
Hogsett: Machine gun case most ‘egregious,’ ‘dangerous’ he’s seen
Joe Hogsett on Tuesday announced the maximum penalty was warranted in a felony firearm case he called the most “egregious and dangerous” he’s seen during his time as U.S. attorney for the Southern District of Indiana.