Judge rejects sex abuse plea deal for suspended Indy priest
A judge rejected a proposed plea agreement for a suspended Catholic priest accused of sexually abusing a teenage boy in 2016 and instead set a trial date for the cleric Thursday.
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Former Seven Corners employee sentenced for role in fraud scheme
A former employee of Carmel-based Seven Corners Inc. has been sentenced to 30 months in federal prison for her role in a scheme that defrauded the insurance company out of more than $588,000.
Reversal: THC candy packages wrongly admitted under hearsay exception rule
A woman has been cleared of a drug-related charge after the Court of Appeals of Indiana concluded two packages of THC candies seized from a search warrant of her bedroom were wrongly admitted under the market reports exception to hearsay.
COA: Trial court didn’t properly instruct jury in drug-induced homicide case
A trial court’s erroneous decision to reject a defendant’s proposed preliminary instructions has led to the reversal of the defendant’s drug dealing conviction. But the Court of Appeals of Indiana left open the possibility of a retrial due to other significant evidence, including evidence of text messages sent and received by a man who died of a drug overdose.
Applications sought to replace retiring Judge Bardach on Hamilton Superior Court
Hamilton Superior Judge Gail Bardach, who was first elected to the court in 2007, will be stepping down from the bench July 1, creating a new vacancy in the Hamilton County judiciary.
Judge rejects blocking Indiana online school fraud lawsuit
A judge is allowing state officials to continue with a lawsuit against several people and companies linked with two now-closed Indiana online charter schools facing allegations of a fraud scheme that cost the state more than $150 million.
Several accused in Indiana school fraud want suit dismissed
Several people and companies linked with two now-closed Indiana online charter schools have asked a judge to dismiss claims against them in a lawsuit alleging a fraud scheme that cost the state more than $150 million.
COA: Oral agreement between former couple unenforceable by Statute of Frauds
A man who gave his ex-wife nearly $230,000 was unsuccessful in convincing the Court of Appeals of Indiana that they had previously agreed to use the money for a specific purpose and that their oral agreement wasn’t unenforceable under the Statute of Frauds.
Buckingham named IPAC president, others honored at winter conference
The Indiana Prosecuting Attorneys Council honored numerous individuals at its annual winter conference this month and named Hamilton County Prosecutor Lee Buckingham as president of the Association of Indiana Prosecuting Attorneys for 2022.
Prosecutors ask for eight-year prison sentence for former financial exec
Prosecutors are asking for an eight-year prison sentence for former financial executive Kerri Agee of Noblesville, who was found guilty in August of four counts of wire fraud and one count of conspiracy.
State secures reversal in Carmel residents’ inverse condemnation action
No settlement agreement was reached between the state of Indiana and two Carmel landowners who brought an inverse condemnation action costing the state more than $200,000, the Court of Appeals of Indiana ruled in a Wednesday reversal.
COA: Trial court didn’t err in denying drug dealing sentencing modification
A trial court didn’t err when it summarily denied a drug dealer’s request to modify his sentence, the Indiana Court of Appeals has ruled.
Brownsburg man waived right to appeal restitution in plea agreement, COA rules
A Brownsburg man waived his right to appeal a restitution order after he signed a plea agreement leaving all terms of his sentence to the trial court’s discretion, the Indiana Court of Appeals has affirmed.
Pinegar named managing partner of Church Church Hittle & Antrim
Church Church Hittle and Antrim has announced that Alexander Pinegar has become managing partner of the Hamilton County law firm. He succeeds David Day, who will continue to work with clients as a senior partner at the firm.
COA says defendant has to pursue claims through post-conviction proceedings
A man who represented himself at his probation revocation hearing for driving without a license hit a roadblock when he tried to go directly to the Indiana Court of Appeals and argue he did not knowingly, intelligently and voluntarily waive his right to counsel.
COA: $475k purchase price reasonable for Hamilton County utility acquisition
Two Hamilton County wastewater companies can move forward with their acquisition deal costing the significantly larger entity hundreds of thousands of dollars, the Indiana Court of Appeals has affirmed.
COA: State cannot change adopted female’s age
While the state failed in its attempt to reinstate criminal charges against a couple who adopted then abandoned a female who they believed was actually an adult, the Indiana Court of Appeals has another option for prosecuting the defendants.
Westfield’s latest lawsuit against clerk-treasurer alleges she compromised city data
The city of Westfield is once again suing Clerk-Treasurer Cindy Gossard, this time for giving an outside information technology contractor unauthorized access to the city’s computers.
Census shows many rural Indiana counties lost population
More than half of Indiana’s counties lost population during the last decade, according to U.S. Census figures released Thursday showing the state’s growth around Indianapolis and its other largest cities.
COVID-19 cases, hospitalizations, deaths surging in Indiana
The Indiana State Department of Health reported 2,234 new cases of COVID-19, the highest number of new cases since Feb. 6, when 2,855 were reported. The state said more than 2.98 million Hoosiers had been fully vaccinated against COVID-19 as of Tuesday at 5 a.m.