Articles

COA upholds dismissal of adoption petition after ‘fraud on the court’

The Indiana Court of Appeals has upheld a trial court ruling setting aside a Lawrence County adoption, finding the child’s mother and grandfather committed fraud on the court by falsely claiming they did not know who the child’s biological father was in an effort to allow the grandfather to adopt the child.

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COA: Angry shopper wrongly convicted of resisting

A Kroger shopper upset by the store’s refusal to cash her check without ID became disorderly and refused to leave, but the evidence against her did not support her conviction of resisting law enforcement, the Indiana Court of Appeals ruled Wednesday.

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Darmstadt apartment zoning approval splits appellate court

A controversial proposed apartment complex in the Vanderburgh County community of Darmstadt is poised to proceed after a divided panel of the Indiana Court of Appeals upheld the trial court’s rejection of two petitions contesting the zoning board’s approval.

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Nonsupport case divides COA on right to be present

The Indiana Court of Appeals affirmed a father’s sentence for failing to pay child support when it found he failed to meet his burden of proof. However, the court split on whether the defendant had a right to be physically present at his sentencing.

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COA reverses regular commitment for lack of evidence

The Indiana Court of Appeals reversed and remanded a trial court’s decision to order a mentally ill woman to regular commitment at Indiana University Health Bloomington Hospital, finding there was not clear and convincing evidence to prove commitment was necessary.

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COA upholds adoption without mother’s consent

In a case a judge said represents “how substance abuse is savaging the familial bonds within Indiana and around the country,” the Indiana Court of Appeals upheld the adoption of a southern Indiana child without the mother’s consent after finding the mother’s substance abuse made her unfit.

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Dissenting COA judge seeks to double molester’s sentence

A dissenting Indiana Court of Appeals judge Wednesday said he would use the court’s authority to double the sentence of a man ordered to serve four years in the Indiana Department of Correction for his conviction of two counts of Class C child molesting.

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COA reverses woman’s fine for defying no-animals order

Finding the $1,000 fine imposed for indirect contempt of court after a woman continued to have animals at her home after ordered by a court not to do so was punitive in nature and impermissible, the Indiana Court of Appeals reversed Wednesday.

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Justices take intoxicated motorist case that divided COA

The Indiana Supreme Court will decide whether any answer short of an “unqualified, unequivocal assent” to a chemical test constitutes a refusal resulting in a driver’s license suspension, as the Indiana Court of Appeals concluded in September.

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Lake County man warned against disparaging bench

A Lake County man with a history of filing unsupported allegations and derogatory comments in pleadings was rebuffed on his latest appearance before the Indiana Court of Appeals, which warned him against disparaging the bench.

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