Trial in Boone deputy’s shooting death delayed until 2020
The possible death penalty trial for the man charged with fatally shooting a Boone County sheriff's deputy is being delayed for more than two years.
Death Penalty
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Mom of Fort Wayne girl killed in ’88 hopes defendant gets death
The mother of an 8-year-old Fort Wayne girl who was raped and killed in 1988 wants prosecutors to seek the death penalty against the man accused of the crimes. Prosecutors on Tuesday declined to discuss whether they’ll seek the death penalty for 59-year-old John Miller in the killing of April Tinsley. But the girl’s mother, Janet Tinsley, told the Journal Gazette that she wants to be present if Miller is put to death.
Supreme Court enjoys relatively high public confidence
The next Supreme Court justice will join the bench at a time when the public has more confidence in the high court than in Congress or the presidency. A Gallup survey in June found 37 percent of Americans have a great deal or quite a lot of confidence in the court, while another 42 percent have “some” confidence. Only 18 percent have little or no confidence in the court.
Supreme Court rejects appeal from gay inmate in South Dakota
The U.S. Supreme Court has rejected an appeal from a gay death row inmate in South Dakota who says jurors were biased against him because of his sexual orientation. Charles Rhines tried to persuade the court to take an interest in his case after the justices last year ruled that evidence of racial bias in the jury room allows a judge to consider setting aside a verdict.
Man charged with shooting Boone deputy seeks change of venue
A man charged with murder in the fatal shooting of a Boone County sheriff’s deputy wants his trial moved. Prosecutors are seeking the death penalty against Anthony Baumgardt, who is charged in the fatal shooting of deputy Jacob Pickett.
Gary man facing death in slayings of wife, 2 kids loses PCR bid
A Gary man sentenced to death for killing his wife and two teenage stepchildren has lost his latest attempt to overturn his conviction – a post-conviction relief petition. Lake Superior Judge Samuel Cappas and Magistrate Judge Natalie Bokota determined in a ruling issued Friday that Kevin Isom of Gary failed to establish he had ineffective counsel at his murder trial or during the appeals process.
Private attorneys in death penalty cases create dilemmas for judges, public defenders
Capital cases are entering what one judge calls uncharted territory, faced with determining whether an accused killer is entitled to court-appointed counsel of his choice or must be represented by a lawyer certified to defend death penalty cases.
State secret: DOC presses lethal injection confidentiality
A law slipped into the 2017 budget bill during the General Assembly’s final hours declared that information about drugs that the state would use to execute someone was confidential. The last-minute law was written into the bill even though a judge had ruled months earlier that the very same information was a matter of public record and had ordered the Department of Correction to provide it.
Gary man receives life term in 7 women’s deaths
A former Marine who admitted to killing seven women in a plea deal with Indiana prosecutors has been sentenced to seven life sentences.
Supreme Court rules for inmate whose lawyer conceded guilt
The Supreme Court ruled Monday that a lawyer for a criminal defendant cannot override his client’s wish to maintain his innocence at trial, even if the lawyer’s aim is to avoid a death sentence.
Supreme Court to hear appeal of Missouri death row inmate
The Supreme Court of the United States agreed Monday to review the case of a Missouri death row inmate who says his rare medical condition could cause him to choke on his own blood during an execution.
Man charged with shooting deputy hears death penalty charge
A man charged with murder in the fatal shooting of a Boone County sheriff’s deputy heard a death penalty charge read to him Friday. Anthony Baumgardt of Lebanon is accused in the March 2 fatal shooting of Jacob Pickett.
Indiana prosecutor seeking death penalty in deputy’s slaying
A prosecutor says he will seek the death penalty against the man charged with fatally shooting a central Indiana sheriff’s deputy during a foot chase last month.
Alleged DOJ misconduct spreads to Indiana death penalty case
Accusations of sexual harassment and prosecutorial misconduct at the U.S. Department of Justice’s Capital Case Section have ensnared a death penalty case in the Southern District of Indiana against a federal inmate charged with killing his cellmate.
Indiana justices to rule on lawyer in death penalty case
The Indiana Supreme Court will consider an appeal that challenges a ruling to remove a Fort Wayne defense attorney from a death penalty case. Allen Superior Judge Fran Gull removed defense attorney Nikos Nakos from Marcus Dansby’s death penalty case, citing his lack of training.
Holcomb orders flags lowered to honor slain Boone deputy
Indiana Gov. Eric Holcomb is directing that flags be lowered to half-staff in four counties in honor of slain Boone County sheriff’s Deputy Jacob Pickett on the day of his funeral.
Hill asks full 7th Circuit to reinstate death penalty for Baer
Indiana Attorney General Curtis Hill has asked the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals to reinstate the death penalty for an Indiana man convicted of the “heinous” murders of a Madison County mother and her 4-year-old daughter after a 7th Circuit panel overturned the man’s death penalty sentence last month.
Supreme Court upholds DOC’s lethal injection protocols
The Indiana Department of Correction can alter its lethal injection protocols without going through a rule-making process because such protocols are internal procedures without the effect of law, the Indiana Supreme Court ruled in a decision affirming the dismissal of a death row inmate’s challenge to Indiana’s lethal injection cocktail.
7th Circuit reverses death sentence for murderer Baer
Despite the “atrocious” nature of a murderer’s crimes, the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals reversed his death sentence in a habeas petition, finding prosecutorial misconduct and misleading jury instructions likely influenced the jury’s decision to sentence him to death.
Top 10 legal stories of 2017 focus on law schools, court changes
The closing of 4-year-old Indiana Tech Law School in Fort Wayne, and the revelation that 138-year-old Valparaiso University Law School faced an uncertain future, made law school troubles the top legal news story of 2017, as determined by the staff of Indiana Lawyer. Changes on the federal and state bench also were among the year’s top stories.