Friedlander to resign from Court of Appeals
Indiana Court of Appeals Judge Ezra Friedlander will retire in August, the court announced Monday, about a year-and-a-half before he would have faced mandatory retirement.
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Articles
Justices won’t give lawyers access to secret court records
The Supreme Court of the United States will not consider giving a man accused of trying to ignite a bomb in downtown Chicago access to secret intelligence-court records.
Report: Ex-Purdue chancellor’s forced retirement bungled
A newly released report that Purdue University had fought in court to keep secret concluded that school officials bungled the forced retirement of Indiana-Purdue Fort Wayne's former chancellor, causing his departure to turn into an “ugly situation.”
Lawmakers poised to vote on allowing Sunday alcohol sales
State lawmakers are poised to vote on bills to legalize Sunday carry-out alcohol sales and repeal Indiana's law that sets wages for public construction projects.
7th Circuit reverses denial of disability benefits
An administrative law judge’s denial of Social Security disability benefits for a man who the Veterans Administration determined was totally disabled cannot be sustained, the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals ruled Friday.
COA finds dual conviction violated double jeopardy
On a sua sponte review, the Indiana Court of Appeals overturned one conviction of a Hamilton County woman who was found guilty of charges surrounding the death of an infant in her care.
Appeals court opens RX database to defendant’s subpoena
A woman charged with possession of a controlled substance who claimed she had a prescription may seek information from the state prescription database, the Indiana Court of Appeals held in a reversal.
Opinions Feb. 20, 2015 ILD
Indiana Court of Appeals
Kevin Watson v. State of Indiana (mem. dec.)
49A02-1408-CR-536
Criminal. Affirms Watson’s conviction of Class A misdemeanor battery after a fight with his half-sister. Concludes that evidence is sufficient to rebut his self-defense claim.
In the Matter of: E.A., Jr., Child in need of Services, and E.A., Sr. (Father) and N.A. (Stepmother) v. The Indiana Department of Child Services (mem. dec.)
20A03-1410-JC-360
Juvenile CHINS. Remands to the trial court for more specific findings regarding its reasoning for the adjudication of E.A. as a child in need of services.
Larry Marshall v. State of Indiana (mem. dec.)
48A02-1406-CR-459
Criminal. Affirms the revocation of Marshall’s two-year work-release placement and two-year suspended sentence and the order for him to serve his sentence in the Indiana Department of Correction.
Danny Lewis v. State of Indiana (mem. dec.)
29A04-1409-CR-440
Criminal. Affirms conviction of one count of invasion of privacy, as a Class A misdemeanor.
Keytron W. Johnson v. State of Indiana (mem. dec.)
02A05-1408-CR-370
Criminal. Reverses and remands the trial court’s denial of Johnson’s pro se petition seeking credit time for completing various education programs. Concludes the denial was premature and contrary to the procedure established in the post-conviction rules.
David A. Brewster v. State of Indiana (mem. dec.)
01A02-1408-CR-559
Criminal. Affirms four-and-a-half-year sentence for pleading guilty to domestic battery, a Class D felony; disorderly conduct, a Class B misdemeanor under Cause Number 138; domestic battery, a Class D felony; and invasion of privacy, a Class A misdemeanor under Cause Number 184.
Troy Shawn Meyers v. State of Indiana (mem. dec.)
45A03-1405-CR-176
Criminal. Affirms conviction of Class C felony involuntary manslaughter.
Jesse Edward Atwood v. State of Indiana (mem. dec.)
73A01-1407-CR-324
Criminal. Affirms conviction of Class B misdemeanor disorderly conduct stemming from a physical altercation between Atwood and another jail inmate.
Imari Butler v. State of Indiana (mem. dec.)
49A04-1406-CR-284
Criminal. Affirms Butler’s adjudication as a habitual offender.
Charles M. Woolsey v. State of Indiana (mem. dec.)
19A01-1407-CR-301
Criminal. Reverses summary denial of Woolsey’s petition for post-conviction relief. Finds Woolsey pleaded sufficient facts to raise an issue of possible merit. Remands for further proceedings on his ineffective assistance of counsel claim.
Opinions Feb. 20, 2015
7th Circuit Court of Appeals
Timothy W. Austin v. Andrew Pazera
14-2574
United States District court for the Northern District of Indiana, Hammond Division,
Judge James Moody.
Criminal. Reverses the denial of Austin’s petition for federal habeas corpus and remands with instructions to order the relief sought by the appellant. Austin was punished in a prison disciplinary proceeding for having attempted to traffic in tobacco. However, he appealed and the 7th Circuit agreed that he had been denied due process of law by being convicted without sufficient evidence.
Tax Court affirms denial of exemptions on lake property
A Lake Wawasee homeowners association failed to persuade the Indiana Tax Court to overturn Board of Tax Review denials of exemptions for waterfront property it claimed was maintained to retain and preserve the natural characteristics of land and water.
Absence of evidence douses tobacco charge
An Indiana inmate’s punishment for allegedly trafficking in tobacco was snuffed out when the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals found he was convicted without evidence of guilt.
Texas attorney general argues gay couple’s marriage is void
As a newlywed lesbian couple in Texas celebrate defying a statewide ban on gay marriage, the state's Republican attorney general is preparing to tell a court Friday why it should rule their nuptials invalid.
House rejects changes to Sunday alcohol sales bill
An effort to dial back proposed restrictions on grocery, convenience and drug stores in a bill that would legalize Sunday carryout alcohol sales was narrowly defeated Thursday in the Indiana House of Representatives.
Opinions Feb. 19, 2015 ILD
Indiana Court of Appeals
Malcom Cobb, Jr. v. State of Indiana (mem. dec.)
48A02-1404-CR-228
Criminal. Affirms Cobb’s convictions of murder, a felony; and robbery, a Class B felony. Finds the state presented sufficient evidence for the murder conviction.
Eddie Long v. State of Indiana (mem. dec.)
49A02-1406-CR-419
Criminal. Affirms Long’s conviction of invasion of privacy, a Class A misdemeanor.
Forrest Brown v. State of Indiana (mem. dec.)
48A02-1405-CR-309
Criminal. Affirms sentence for 18 months executed and 54 months suspended to probation following Brown’s conviction for nonsupport of a dependent child, a Class C felony.
Gregory Schweisthal v. State of Indiana (mem. dec.)
75A04-1403-CR-141
Criminal. Affirms convictions and 64-month sentence for Class D felony invasion of privacy and Class A misdemeanor domestic battery.
Alandus D. James v. State of Indiana (mem. dec.)
20A03-1405-CR-173
Criminal. Affirms 30-month sentence for Class D felony residential entry and two consecutive 18-months sentences for Class D felony battery on a child and Class D felony strangulation.
Herbert Sheese v. State of Indiana (mem. dec.)
84A01-1405-CR-195
Criminal. Affirms Sheese’s convictions of two counts of Class A felony child molesting and consecutive sentences of 30 and 45 years on each count, resulting in an aggregate executed sentence of 75 years.
Larry Anderson v. State of Indiana (mem. dec.)
49A04-1407-CR-304
Criminal. Affirms conviction of murder. Despite inconsistencies in witnesses’ testimony, finds the evidence is sufficient to support Anderson’s conviction since three individuals did independently identify him as the person who shot the victim.
Opinions Feb. 19, 2015
Indiana Court of Appeals
In re the Paternity of Snyder, M.S. v. D.A.
79A02-1407-JP-497
Juvenile. Affirms in part, reverses in part and remands. The trial court erred when it denied father M.S.'s motion to permit him to tell his daughter that he is her father. Because a finding of physical endangerment or emotional impairment was not made prior to imposing the restriction, the trial court erred in denying father's request, and that portion of the trial court's orders is reversed. Affirms trial court ruling on modification of parenting time order, holding that father has not demonstrated there was a change in circumstances to warrant a change in the parenting time that now permits him to talk with his daughter once weekly in 15-minute supervised Skype sessions.
COA returns housewares theft case to trial court
A department store sales clerk who was convicted of two counts of theft is entitled to a rebate on her convictions and restitution amount, the Indiana Court of Appeals has ruled.
COA looks to Illinois for guidance on admission of naprapath’s testimony
In a case of first impression, the Indiana Court of Appeals found that a naprapath licensed in Illinois could testify about a woman’s injuries following a slip and fall.
Judges rule father may tell daughter he’s her dad
An out-of-state father may tell his 6-year-old daughter that he is her dad, the Indiana Court of Appeals ruled Thursday in reversing that part of a trial court's orders.
Bill banning abortion due to gender, disability advances
Indiana would prohibit abortions based on fetal disabilities such as Down syndrome under a bill endorsed Wednesday by an Indiana legislative committee, after women who faced such pregnancies spoke on each side of the issue.
Greenfield seniors have identities stolen
Two Indiana law enforcement agencies are investigating an identity theft ring that has made off with more than 100 identities and about $100,000.