Appeals court reverses CHINS finding
A trial court erred in declaring a boy in the custody of his father to be a child in need of services on account of his meth-abusing mother, the Indiana Court of Appeals ruled Tuesday.
Indiana Court of Appeals
Articles
Fitness to parent raised in man’s fatal neglect appeal
A man whose 4-month-old son died of malnutrition asked an appeals court to consider whether he was mentally capable of caring for the child while also invoking the jury’s right to question witnesses in contesting his conviction and 37-year sentence.
Paying dues under right-to-work
Drivers claim illegal union withholdings in case where checkoff cards are key.
COA orders new attempted murder trial
The Indiana Court of Appeals has ordered a new trial in a Greene County attempted murder case after finding the trial court incorrectly applied the standard of a “knowing” mens rea, rather than a “specific intent to kill.”
Insurance company wasn’t required to cover late claim
An insurance company was not required to defend an Indiana doctor in a medical malpractice case because the applicable insurance policy had expired before the insurer received notice of the claim.
Teen’s felony murder conviction upheld
An man’s felony murder conviction in Elkhart County will stand after the Indiana Court of Appeals held Thursday there was sufficient evidence to support it and that the trial court did not err in instructing the jury.
COA: Mother denied right to counsel in adoption proceeding
The Indiana Court of Appeals has reversed a Johnson County adoption after finding the mother was denied due process when the adoption court found that she had waived her right to counsel.
COA rejects ineffective counsel claim based on judge’s sentencing practices
A man who pleaded guilty to child molesting cannot prove that he received ineffective assistance of trial counsel, the Indiana Court of Appeals held Wednesday, but the post-conviction court must still address the issue of whether his plea was voluntary.
Woman may amend tortious interference claim against Allison Transmission
A woman who alleges that an Indianapolis company contributed to her employment termination may continue her defamation claim against the company and amend her tortious interference claim pursuant to Indiana trial rules, the Indiana Court of Appeals has ruled.
COA orders post-conviction court to reduce criminal confinement sentence
A man who pleaded guilty to criminal confinement will have his sentence reduced by eight years after the Indiana Court of Appeals held Tuesday that his trial attorney’s erroneous counsel led the man to make the decision to reject a previous plea agreement.
Trial court must reconsider convicted murderer’s PCR petition
A convicted murderer facing life without parole in Franklin County is getting a second chance at post-conviction relief after the Indiana Court of Appeals found Tuesday the trial court did not consider all the post-conviction claims properly before it.
COA reinstates father’s parental rights, terminates mother’s
The Indiana Court of Appeals has allowed a Huntington County father to retain his parental rights to his son but terminated the mother’s parental rights after finding that she has not remedied the circumstances that led to her son’s removal from her home.
Court must reconsider sanction for probation violations
An Indiana trial court must revisit the sanction it imposed pursuant to an agreement on a Washington County woman who violated her probation. The Indiana Court of Appeals held Monday that the trial court had discretion to determine what the appropriate sanction should be.
COA upholds child molesting convictions
The Indiana Court of Appeals upheld a Marion County man’s various convictions for child molesting Monday, finding that the testimony of a pediatrician who examined the victim did not constitute vouching testimony.
Judges uphold dismissal of motion to set aside dissolution decree
The Indiana Court of Appeals has rejected a LaPorte County man’s appeal of the dismissal of his motion to set aside a dissolution decree, finding he did not follow the proper procedure to have his motion heard.
COA denies rehearing in Lake Michigan public trust case
The Indiana Court of Appeals won’t rehear its Dec. 7 decision finding that the public trust doctrine controls the shore of Lake Michigan between the ordinary high- and low-water marks, allowing people to walk the shore.
COA affirms summary judgment to GEICO in parking lot altercation
Summary judgment was properly granted to an insurance company that declined to cover the cost of a judgment entered against one of its clients because the client did not have an “active relationship” with the insured vehicle at the time of the incident, the Indiana Court of Appeals held Friday.
Trial court had no statutory authority to impose second public defender fee
The Marion Superior Court abused its discretion in imposing a second supplemental public defender fee on an indigent litigant because it lacked statutory authority to impose the fee, the Indiana Court of Appeals ruled Friday.
COA orders transfer of state habeas petition to Monroe County
The Henry Circuit Court must transfer a man’s petition for writ of state habeas corpus to Monroe County, where the man was convicted, after the Indiana Court of Appeals held Friday that Indiana Post-Conviction rules require the petition to be considered in the conviction court.
COA orders man to transfer investment accounts to ex-wife
The Indiana Court of Appeals has ordered an Allen County man to transfer total ownership of three investment accounts to his ex-wife after finding that an original court order from 2011 required him to do so.