Articles

COA: Accused murderer entitled to bifurcated trial

A man accused of murdering a Mitchell woman is entitled to a bifurcated trial — a first phase on the murder-related charges before a second phase in which the state may introduce evidence of a prior conviction to satisfy a charge of possession of a firearm by a serious violent felon.

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COA upholds termination of officer who slapped detainee

A former Starke County sheriff’s deputy will not get his job with the Sheriff’s Department back after the Indiana Court of Appeals ruled Tuesday the sheriff’s merit board considered sufficient evidence under the proper standard to support the deputy’s termination.

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Sentence, probation conditions confirmed for man convicted of incest

The Indiana Court of Appeals has affirmed the three-year advisory sentence imposed on a man convicted of committing incest with his teenage niece and the imposition of sex offender probation conditions against the man, though one appellate judge found one of those conditions to be unduly intrusive.

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7th Circuit rules on long-running dispute between Volvo, Andy Mohr

The 7th Circuit Court of Appeals has reversed the denial of judgment as a matter of law to Volvo Trucks North America in a dispute with an Indiana franchisee Andy Mohr Truck Center, finding Andy Mohr failed to prove Volvo treated it disparately and unfairly compared with other franchisees. However, the court affirmed judgments in favor of both parties on other claims raised in the 5-year-old complaint.

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Appeals court reaffirms man’s convictions for 2002 crime

Though a northern Indiana man convicted of multiple felonies 15 years ago was granted a new appeal by a federal judge, the Indiana Court of Appeals reaffirmed the man’s convictions on Friday, finding he failed to show he was prejudiced by his counsel’s actions.

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Appellate court orders IURC to consider reasonableness of Avon ordinance

The Indiana Utility Regulatory Commission must consider the reasonableness of an Avon ordinance seeking to force a utility company to pay for the cost of moving power lines for a road construction project after the Court of Appeals ruled the commission erred in dismissing a complaint challenging the ordinance.

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COA: Federal, state meth prosecutions not double jeopardy

A woman convicted and sentenced in federal court on a charge of conspiring to distribute meth lost her appeal seeking to dismiss state court charges, both of which referenced the same police raid of the hotel where she lived and where the drugs were found.

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COA judge cites to Kenny Rogers in voided tax sale case

A judgment for owners of a property wrongly redeemed after a tax sale was affirmed in part by the Indiana Court of Appeals Wednesday, with Judge Terry Crone appropriating a Kenny Rogers classic to introduce a 31-page decision that reduced the attorney fees and other relief to which owners were entitled.

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COA: Attack on wrestling event attendee was unforeseeable

A woman who was injured in an attack while walking from a Bartholomew County wrestling event to her car cannot succeed on her negligence claim against the wrestling company because the attack was not foreseeable, so the company did not owe a duty to her, the Indiana Court of Appeals has ruled.

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Appeal of legal fees in frivolous case results in more fees

A father who appealed an award of attorney fees in a long-running dispute over the use of funds in a family limited partnership now must pay appellate legal fees as well, the Indiana Court of Appeals ruled. The court found the appeal “merely another attempt to harass the parties involved.”

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