Justices order COA to consider man’s appeal
A man’s appeal of his aggravated battery convictions should proceed to the Indiana Court of Appeals even though the issue of restitution remains unresolved, the Indiana Supreme Court ruled Thursday.
Indiana Supreme Court
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Elected official loses appeal in voter registration removal
A Roseland Town Council member couldn’t convince the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals that a District judge was incorrect in dismissing his lawsuit filed after he was removed from the voter registration list while incarcerated.
Mental health statute limits state’s use of juvenile statements
Indiana’s Juvenile Mental Health Statute’s limited immunity prohibits both use and derivative use of a juvenile’s statements to prove delinquency, the Indiana Supreme Court ruled. The justices were able to come to the conclusion without addressing the question of the statute’s constitutionality.
Supreme Court: Father’s consent not needed in adoption
A father who had been incarcerated and failed to keep up with support payments wasn’t denied due process when the children’s mother remarried and her new husband adopted the children.
Medmal claim sent via FedEx before deadline was timely filed
A medical malpractice complaint was timely filed when an attorney delivered it to Federal Express a day before the statutory deadline, the Indiana Supreme Court ruled, reversing lower court orders and remanding the complaint to the trial court.
ADA violations in bar admission catch attention of Indiana BLE
The U.S. Department of Justice has found Louisiana discriminated against bar applicants with mental health problems.
Divided Supreme Court reinstates parental termination order
The Indiana Court of Appeals impermissibly reversed termination of a father’s parental rights, a majority of the Indiana Supreme Court ruled Friday in reinstating a trial court order.
Highway supervisor’s termination not subject to judicial review
Because the decision by the Fayette County Board of Commissioners to not reappoint its county highway supervisor was a ministerial decision, the Indiana Supreme Court held it was not subject to judicial review.
Judge Kimberly Brown removed from bench by justices
The Indiana Supreme Court removed Marion Superior Judge Kimberly Brown from the bench Tuesday after finding she “engaged in significant judicial misconduct.” The judge had been on paid suspension since Jan. 9 pending final discipline.
Indiana Supreme Court awards more than $232,000 in grants to counties
The Indiana Supreme Court has awarded $232,470 in grant money to 23 counties to support local family court projects. Since the Family Court project began in 1999, the Supreme Court had distributed more than $3 million in “seed money” to support family court projects.
Justices suspend David Wyser, former Brizzi deputy prosecutor
Former Marion County Deputy Prosecutor David Wyser, who pleaded guilty last year to bribery in a federal public-corruption probe, has been suspended from the practice of law.
Elkhart attorney suspended for ‘lack of respect’ for clients and courts
The Indiana Supreme Court has suspended an Elkhart County attorney for at least two years after finding he committed numerous violations of the Indiana Professional Rules of Conduct, including throwing away client files that contained confidential information.
Campus fraternity chapter may be liable for alleged hazing injury
A Wabash College fraternity pledge’s injury claim resulting from alleged hazing, ruled on recently by the Indiana Supreme Court, turned not on whether he was hazed inside the frat house, but on who may be liable.
Justices to review sanctions in false emergency detention report
The Indiana Supreme Court will review a case in which the Court of Appeals tossed an indirect civil contempt of court finding but let stand fines against a nurse accused of making false statements about the mental health of a co-worker that led to emergency detention.
Justices reconcile conflicting trial rules
In reversing an order granting a company’s motion to vacate partial summary judgment in an environmental cleanup lawsuit, the Indiana Supreme Court tackled the apparently conflicting Indiana Trial Rules 54(B) and 56(C).
Justices: Man with Alzheimer’s must be committed per statute
Noting the trial court had the best of intentions when it did not order a man with Alzheimer’s disease committed, the Indiana Supreme Court pointed out the trial court had to order his commitment under Indiana Code 35-36-3-1(b) after he was found not competent to stand trial.
Justices decline to take Holiday World dispute
The Indiana Supreme Court will let stand the ruling that the widow and children of the late William Koch Jr. can keep their shares in the southern Indiana theme park Holiday World and Splashin’ Safari. The justices declined transfer to the legal dispute which arose in the Koch family following Will Koch’s death.
Wabash fraternity must face alleged hazing-injury claim
A freshman pledge’s personal-injury claim resulting from what he alleged was a hazing incident at Wabash College may proceed against the campus fraternity, and he may seek compensatory and punitive damages, the Indiana Supreme Court ruled Thursday, overturning lower court rulings.
Justices: Facts don’t justify subjecting family to CHINS proceeding
The Indiana Supreme Court reversed the finding that a child with special needs is a child in need of services after ruling that the circumstances of this case don’t support that the mother needed the court’s coercive intervention to address concerns in the CHINS petition.
Explanation as to the spirit of the law was harmless error
Although a trial court’s words to a jury about the spirit of Indiana’s criminal law was improper and an error, it was harmless and could not overturn a defendant’s sentence of life without parole.