Conviction upheld in robbery after iPhone exchange
The Indiana Court of Appeals affirmed an Elkhart student’s robbery conviction after concluding there was sufficient evidence to support that she stole money in the presence of the cash’s owner.
Robbery
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Officers use OnStar to disable stolen SUV, recapture inmate
The Marion County Sheriff’s Department says it used OnStar technology to track down and disable a stolen vehicle and recapture a jail inmate who escaped custody about an hour earlier Wednesday morning.
Double murder-robbery convict avoids life sentence
A 24-year-old Evansville man convicted of two counts each of murder and robbery for killing two people has avoided a life sentence but still could spend his remaining years in prison. Tippecanoe Superior Judge Randy Williams ruled Friday a life sentence for Deshay Hackner would contradict the penal system’s goals of rehabilitation.
Jurors deadlock on life sentence for 2 slayings in Indiana
Jurors have deadlocked on whether to recommend a sentence of life in prison for a 24-year-old Evansville man convicted of murder and robbery in the 2017 slayings of two people in southwest Indiana. Jurors were dismissed Thursday after deadlocking on the question. They convicted Deshay Hackner on Wednesday in the deaths of 29-year-old Dewone Broomfield and his girlfriend, 28-year-old Mary Woodruff.
Woman pleads guilty to role in killings tied to Prada purse
A Fort Wayne woman has pleaded guilty to her role in a double-slaying that occurred during an attempt to retrieve a Prada purse worth nearly $10,000. Kyra Frost, 25, pleaded guilty Friday to assisting a criminal. She’ll face a maximum 8-year prison sentence when she’s sentenced July 16.
Appeals court rejects belated post-conviction appeal
A post-conviction petitioner who failed to timely file a notice of appeal has permanently extinguished his opportunity to appeal and cannot invoke Post-Conviction Rule 2(1) to file his belated notice of appeal, the Indiana Court of Appeals ruled Thursday.
On rehearing, COA reaffirms dismissal of promissory note default litigation
The Indiana Court of Appeals has reaffirmed the dismissal of a complaint brought for missed payments on a promissory note, granting rehearing for the limited purpose of addressing the issue of waiver.
Unauthenticated cell records lead to reversal of robbery-related conviction
The state must now decide whether to retry a woman previously convicted of aiding a robbery after the Indiana Court of Appeals reversed her conviction, finding the state failed to properly authenticate cellphone records it said tied the woman to the crime.
Man’s murder conviction upheld in tax preparer slaying
Finding his crime “serious and disturbing,” the Indiana Court of Appeals on Tuesday affirmed the 71-year sentence and robbery conviction in the death of an Indianapolis tax preparer who kept cash in a safe beneath his desk at his west side Indianapolis office.
Justices: Admission of warrantless cell location data was harmless
Even though law enforcement conducted a warrantless Fourth Amendment search when they accessed of a man’s cellphone location data, the admission of the data does not warrant a new trial because any error was harmless beyond a reasonable doubt, the Indiana Supreme Court ruled Friday, upholding a man’s four convictions in a case heard on remand from the U.S. Supreme Court.
Judge rejects Elkhart’s subpoena for newspaper records
A federal judge has rejected the City of Elkhart’s attempt to force a newspaper to turn over records of its reporting on a Chicago man who was pardoned after a decade in prison and is suing the Indiana city for wrongful conviction.
7th Circuit affirms man’s phone store robbery conviction
The 7th Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed a man’s conviction and sentence Thursday for conspiracy to commit robbery, finding the denial of his motion to change venue and suppress evidence was not erroneous.
Appeals court heads to Terre Haute to hear murder case
A panel of the Indiana Court of Appeals traveled to Terre Haute today hear oral argument in a case involving murder, attempted murder and armed robbery.
‘Bonnie and Clyde’ bank robber loses 7th Circuit appeal
An Indiana man convicted of “Bonnie and Clyde-style” bank robberies lost his appeal before the 7th Circuit, which ruled Monday that the defendant’s rights weren’t violated when he was tracked from Indiana to California or when evidence of other robberies he wasn’t charged with were admitted at his trial.
Judge: Exonerated man’s suit against Elkhart police may proceed
A civil rights lawsuit filed by pardoned ex-prisoner Keith Cooper has been allowed to continue, with a federal judge ruling Tuesday that Cooper’s federal malicious prosecution and related claims are not time-barred. However, the judge also raised questions as to whether the relevant statute of limitations should be revised.
Excluded witnesses, admitted photos affirmed in murder trial
A man who murdered a woman in order to rob her of prescription drugs lost an appeal of his convictions when the Indiana Court of Appeals found there was sufficient evidence and that a trial court did not deprive him of a defense.
‘Meager weight’ of mitigating factors could not overcome attorney’s deficient performance
Although the Indiana Court of Appeals agreed the relationship had broken between a Fort Wayne criminal defense attorney and his client, it did not find that the 130-year sentence handed down would have been significantly less if defense counsel had offered mitigating circumstances.
Armed robber loses appeal of denied jury instruction on duress defense
The Indiana Court of Appeals affirmed the denial of a man’s tendered jury instruction after finding the defense included in the proposed instruction was not available to the defendant.
Judge denies new trial in off-duty officer’s 1980 death
A judge has denied a request for a new trial for an alleged getaway driver convicted in the 1980 shooting death of an off-duty northwestern Indiana police officer. James Hill was sentenced to 47 years in prison in October after a jury earlier convicted him of murder in perpetuation of robbery and attempted robbery, and Judge Salvador Vasquez determined there was no need for a new trial.
Murder charges filed in Thanksgiving attack that killed 3
Prosecutors have filed three murder counts and other charges against a man in connection with a drug-related robbery that left three men dead and two others wounded at a Fort Wayne home.