Opinions June 26, 2018

7th Circuit Court of Appeals
The following opinion was issued after IL deadline Monday.
Peter Deppe v. NCAA
17-2275
Appeal from the United States District Court for the Southern District of Indiana, Indianapolis Division. Judge Tanya Walton Pratt.
Civil plenary. Affirms dismissal of Peter Deppe’s proposed class-action against Indianapolis-based National Collegiate Athletic Association seeking an antitrust challenge of the NCAA’s “year in residence rule” requiring Division I student athletes to wait one year before they can play for their new school. Finds the requirement is an eligibility rule clearly meant to preserve the amateur character of college athletics and is therefore presumptively procompetitive under NCAA v. Board of Regents of University of Oklahoma, 468 U.S. 85 (1984) and Agnew v. NCAA, 683 F.3d 328 (7th Cir. 2012). 

Tuesday's opinions
Indiana Court of Appeals
Russell McCallister v. Angela McCallister
49A02-1704-DR-887
Domestic relation. Affirms the Marion Superior Court’s finding of contempt against Russell McCallister. Finds the reinstatement of Angela McCallister as beneficiary of Russell’s SBP cannot be accomplished under applicable federal law. Reverses and remands for the trial court to fashion an appropriate remedy to compensate Angela for the loss of her portion of Russell’s survivor benefit plan.

Marcus K. Baxter v. State of Indiana
49A04-1707-CR-1608
Criminal. Affirms the Marion Superior Court’s order denying Marcus Baxter’s motion to suppress evidence. Finds the trial court did not err in denying his motions to suppress.

Larry P. Prouse, III v. State of Indiana
84A04-1710-CR-2270
Criminal. Affirms Larry Prouse’s aggregate 70-year sentence for conviction of Level 1 felony murder, Level 4 felony arson and Level 6 felonies abuse of a corpse and altering the scene of death. Finds Prouse’s dual convictions for arson and altering the scene of death does not constitute double jeopardy in violation of Article 1, Section 14 of the Indiana Constitution. Finds no fundamental error in respect to testimony of a deputy fire marshal.

Robin Kraemer v. State of Indiana (mem. dec.)
84A01-1711-CR-2703
Criminal. Affirms in part, reverses in part and remands with instructions. Affirms Robin Lee Kraemer’s aggregate 36½-year sentence for conviction of Level 1 felony neglect of a dependent resulting in death, three counts of Level 6 felony neglect of a dependent and Level 6 felony maintaining a common nuisance. Reverses and vacates Kraemer’s convictions of  failure to report, visiting a common nuisance and one count of neglect of a dependent. Federal and state constitutions render invalid Kraemer’s conviction for failure to report her own abuse; the other vacated convictions are double jeopardy.

Frank Dangerfield v. State of Indiana (mem. dec.)
49A05-1711-CR-2544
Criminal. Affirms Frank Dangerfield’s 20-year sentence for conviction of Level 2 felony dealing in a narcotic drug and six-year enhancement for being a habitual offender. Finds the trial court did not abuse its discretion in admitting evidence obtained as a result of Dangerfield’s arrest.

Heather M. (Varner) France v. Mary Sparling (mem. dec.)
85A02-1710-PL-2472
Civil plenary. Reverses the Wabash Circuit Court’s dismissal of Heather France’s complaint against Mary Sparling. Finds judgment should not have been entered in Sparling’s favor, concluding France should have been allowed to present her evidence and make her case. Remands for further proceedings.

Amanda Jo Baker v. State of Indiana (mem. dec.)
42A01-1710-CR-2510
Criminal. Affirms Amanda Jo Baker’s conviction of Level 6 felony domestic battery. Finds there was sufficient evidence to support the conviction.

Justin Dennis Altwein v. State of Indiana (mem. dec.)
18A-CR-243
Criminal. Affirms Justin Dennis Altwein’s three-year executed sentence for conviction of Level 5 felony carrying a handgun without a license and Class A misdemeanor resisting law enforcement. Finds Altwein’s sentence is not inappropriate in light of the nature of the offenses or his character. Remands to vacate the Tippecanoe Superior Court’s reference to the Department of Correction in relation to the Class A misdemeanor conviction.

Paul W. Calloway v. State of Indiana (mem. dec.)
18A-CR-186
Criminal. Affirms Paul Calloway’s 12-year sentence for conviction of Level 3 felony attempted aggravated battery. Finds Calloway’s character does not warrant a revision of his sentence.

E.C. v. State of Indiana (mem. dec.)
18A-JV-76
Juvenile. Affirms the juvenile court’s decision to place E.C. in a juvenile detention facility operated by the Department of Correction. Finds the juvenile court did not violate E.C.’s due process right to be heard during the hearing.

Kevin E. Bell v. State of Indiana (mem. dec.)
40A05-1712-CR-2977
Criminal. Affirms Kevin Bell’s four-year sentence for conviction of Level 5 felony driving while suspended. Finds that Bell’s sentence is not inappropriate. Finds the Jennings Circuit Court did not abuse its discretion in failing to find certain mitigating factors.

Donald E. Ware v. State of Indiana (mem. dec.)
49A02-1710-PC-2499
Post conviction. Affirms the Marion Superior Court’s denial of Donald Ware’s successive petition for post-conviction relief. Finds the court did not err in denying his petition without a hearing. Finds Ware had previous opportunities to litigate issues raised in his successive petition but did not raise any new issues of material fact.

James Timothy Spears v. State of Indiana (mem. dec.)
40A04-1708-CR-2022
Criminal. Affirms James Spears’ conviction of Class B misdemeanor battery and disorderly conduct. Finds the Jennings Superior Court properly denied Spears’ motion to dismiss, concluding the evidence is sufficient to sustain his convictions.

Christopher Rondeau v. Dushan Zatecky (mem. dec.)
48A02-1709-MI-2348
Miscellaneous. Affirms the Madison Circuit Court’s grant of a transfer of Christopher Rondeau’s writ of habeas corpus to Marion Superior Court. Finds the Madison Circuit Court did not err when it transferred Rondeau’s Writ to the same county where he was convicted and sentenced.

Stephen Levendoski, Karen Levendoski, and Kathleen (Jensema) Gross v. Stanley Stevens (mem. dec.)
18A-PL-360
Civil plenary. Affirms summary judgment in favor of Stanley Stevens, finding the Allen Superior Court did not err in so ruling or in denying the Levendoski children’s motion to strike insufficient defense.

Diana Gilkey v. Mac's Convenience Stores, LLC d/b/a Circle K (mem. dec.)
40A01-1712-CT-2823
Civil tort. Affirms the Jennings Superior Court’s grant of summary judgment to Circle K after Diana Gilkey filed a negligence claim against the store when she fell and injured herself while attempting to cross the parking lot. Finds that designated evidence established Gilkey fell but does not know why, where or how, concluding her claim is based on mere speculation.  

James Crawford v. State of Indiana (mem. dec.)
32A01-1710-PC-2487
Post conviction. Affirms the Hendricks Superior Court’s denial of James Crawford’s petition for post-conviction relief. Finds the counsel did not fall below an objective standard of reasonableness.