Justices order modification of sentence of convicted child caseworker to comply with plea agreement

A former child protective services caseworker convicted of sex crimes in Hamilton and Elkhart counties should have his sentence modified to comport with his plea agreement, the Indiana Supreme Court ordered.

In an order published Dec. 13 and posted on the court’s website on Monday, justices unanimously remanded Cory Heinzman v. State of Indiana, 29S02-1212-CR-678, to Hamilton Superior Court. That court had sentenced Heinzman to three years executed on a conviction of Class D felony sexual battery for an Elkhart County crime to be served concurrently with a 24-year sentence imposed after a jury convicted him of 16 counts, including official misconduct and various sexual offenses involving minors.

The Indiana Court of Appeals noted that entering the executed sentence was error, but that it was harmless because the sentences were to run concurrently. “We agree with the first issue in Heinzman’s transfer petition that the case should have been remanded for resentencing consistent with the plea agreement,” Chief Justice Brent Dickson wrote for the court.

“The case is remanded to the Hamilton Superior Court with instructions to impose sentence in cause number 20D02-0805-FC-46 consistent with the terms of the plea agreement. In all other respects, the decision of the Court of Appeals is summarily affirmed.”