When those in the legal community look back at 2019, they may turn their heads and look forward instead. While the year had bright spots, several sordid sagas dominated the headlines.
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Christina Kovats and Kristina Byers previously served time at the Indiana Women’s Prison, and this year they became advocates who worked to draft Indiana legislation aimed at dismantling the black-and-white mentality regarding termination of parental rights for incarcerated mothers. A new law now gives judges discretion in TPR cases involving parents behind bars.
Read MoreAn Indianapolis mother convicted of felony battery after striking her son with an electrical cord failed to convince the Indiana Court of Appeals that the charges against her could be defeated by the concept of parental privilege.
The admission of positive drug test results under the business-records exception was affirmed by the Indiana Court of Appeals in a Monday child in need of services case, despite a father’s argument that admission of the evidence was erroneous.
A man seeking to adopt his ex-wife’s child had his case dismissed by the Indiana Court of Appeals on Monday after it found no indication that he sought certification from the trial court or permission from the appellate court to file a discretionary interlocutory appeal, among other things.
A lawsuit filed by 10 Hoosier children who argued Indiana should be required to provide legal counsel to youngsters involved in children in need of services proceedings was dismissed Tuesday in federal court. Attorneys who filed the case, however, indicated the matter is far from over.
Hoosiers who volunteer their time and energy advocating on behalf of kids in the child welfare system will have a chance next week to celebrate more than three decades of effort.
A father will have his parental rights restored after an Indiana Court of Appeals ruling that reiterated the Department of Child Services does not have the authority to set policy inconsistent with the law.
A Virginia woman accused of abducting her four children and leading authorities on a nationwide chase for several months was taken into custody Wednesday morning in Plainfield, authorities said.
A mother and father whose parental rights were terminated did not persuade the Indiana Court of Appeals to reverse the termination because they were deprived of the right to determine their child’s adoptive placement.
A new report shows that 65 Indiana children died from abuse or neglect during 2018, the same number as its last year-long review. The Indiana Department of Child Services said it investigated 242 child fatalities that happened in 2018, determining 26% of those deaths were from abuse or neglect.
The former DCS worker facing criminal charges is scheduled to be in Madison Circuit Court Friday, arguing the indictment against him should be dismissed because not only are the allegations too vague to comply with state law and constitutional guarantees, but also because he is protected by immunity.
A federal appeals court’s reversal of Madison County killer Fredrick Baer’s death sentence was the most-read story on the Indiana Lawyer’s digital edition, www.theindianalawyer.com. Indiana Lawyer readers clicked on stories on our website more than 2.6 million times between Jan. 1 and Dec. 10, 2019, according to Google Analytics. Here are the 50 most-viewed story headlines during that time.
The termination of a father’s parental rights has been reversed after a panel of the Indiana Court of Appeals found insufficient evidence proved he would threaten the wellbeing of his daughter.
Despite the attention the Statehouse has given to the Indiana Department of Child Services in the past two years – hiring outside consultants to review the agency and passing numerous laws regarding policies and practices within the department – an arrest of a former caseworker on neglect charges is bringing another call for more changes.
A caseworker for Indiana’s child welfare agency faces criminal charges stemming from the alleged neglect of a 4-year-old boy under his supervision. An arrest warrant was issued Monday for 26-year-old Spencer Day Osborn after prosecutors charged him with four felony counts of neglect of a dependent resulting in serious bodily injury on the recommendation of a Madison County grand jury.
The Indiana Court of Appeals on Thursday reversed the termination of a father’s parent-child relationship after concluding his due process rights had been violated. The Department of Child Services, the appellate court found, did not make reasonable efforts to reunify the father and child.
A Martinsville attorney who tried to intervene in a CHINS case and wore a body camera into the courtroom has been cleared of ethical wrongdoing after the Indiana Supreme Court concluded he did not engage in professional misconduct.
A father’s erratic fit of rage at the hospital following the birth of his second child supported the Indiana Court of Appeals’ affirmation of a divorce order sought by his wife. However, that order was remanded to clarify the man’s participation in a domestic violence program and a psychological evaluation, as well as a child support recalculation.
Lawyers for Indiana’s Department of Child Services are pushing to seal records in a federal class action lawsuit accusing the child welfare agency of inadequately protecting thousands of children in its care.
A pro se prisoner and serial litigator has been barred from making additional civil filings in the Southern District of Indiana unless he pays nearly $5,000 in filing fees. A judge also raised the possibility of a perjury referral for any future violations.
The Indiana Court of Appeals has affirmed the CHINS adjudication of an infant who was bruised by suspected physical abuse less than a week after his birth, denying his parents’ appeal of the order.