Opinions May 20, 2021

Indiana Court of Appeals
Paul M. Robey v. State of Indiana
20A-CR-2187
Criminal. Affirms Paul M. Robey’s conviction of Class 4 felony child molesting. Finds the video of the victim’s forensic interview was merely cumulative of B.B.’s testimony, so any error in publishing it was harmless.

Ron Whitt, Jeff Roseboom, Abbey Moffitt, Patrick Cicero, and Ron Colpitts v. Town of New Carlisle
20A-CT-2279
Civil tort. Affirms the grant of summary judgment for the town of New Carlisle in a complaint brought by City Hall employees who alleged their conversations were being recorded. Finds the St. Joseph Superior Court properly considered the evidence presented by the town refuting the appellants’ claims. Also finds the appellants failed to designate evidence showing that electronic communications were intercepted or anyone with final decision-making authority acted to violate their rights.

In re: The Adoption of J.A.: T.M. v. A.J. and J.J. (mem. dec.)
20A-AD-2156
Adoption. Affirms the grant of A.J. and J.J.’s petition to adopt J.A. without mother T.M.’s consent. Finds T.M. waived her challenge to the finding that her consent to the adoption was not required. Also finds the evidence supports the juvenile court’s conclusion that adoption is in J.A.’s best interests.

Scott Williamson v. Kasey Van Buren (formerly Williamson) (mem. dec.)
20A-DC-2125
Domestic relations with children. Affirms the grant of mother Kasey Van Buren’s request to relocate and petition to modify custody, and the denial of father Scott Williamson’s petition to modify custody of their son. Finds the Warrick Superior Court did not overlook the child’s relationship with his maternal grandmother and his half sister. Also finds the trial court did not abuse its discretion in finding Williamson’s change of residence to be a substantial change in circumstances pursuant to Indiana Code § 31-17-2-21.

Tonja R. Garr v. State of Indiana (mem. dec.)
21A-CR-136
Criminal. Affirms Tonja R. Garr’s aggregate two-year sentence for her convictions of Level 6 felony possession of methamphetamine and Class C misdemeanor possession of paraphernalia. Finds Garr has not met her burden to demonstrate that her sentence is inappropriate.

Keith Rogers v. State of Indiana (mem. dec.)
21A-CR-40
Criminal. Affirms Keith Rogers’ aggregate six-year sentence for his convictions of Level 5 felony domestic battery resulting in serious bodily injury and Level 6 felony possession of methamphetamine. Finds Rogers has not met his burden to demonstrate that his sentence is inappropriate.

Daniel S. Louvier v. State of Indiana (mem. dec.)
20A-CR-2283
Criminal. Affirms Daniel Louvier’s aggregate 24-year sentence for his convictions of two counts of Level 4 felony child molesting. Finds the Kosciusko Superior Court did not abuse its discretion by imposing the maximum sentence possible for Louvier’s convictions. Also finds the trial court did not abuse its discretion when it did not consider as mitigating circumstances Louvier’s contentions that he was employed, he used his resources to help support his family, and he had not committed a crime in nearly 10 years.

Elisa Jose Costello v. State of Indiana (mem. dec.)
20A-CR-2342
Criminal. Affirms Elias Jose Costello’s 60-year sentence in the Indiana Department of Correction for his convictions of Level 1 felony rape, Level 2 felony burglary and Level 5 felony intimidation. Finds Costello has failed to carry his burden of establishing that his sentence is inappropriate in light of the nature of the offenses and his character.

Joshua Morgan v. State of Indiana (mem. dec.)
20A-CR-960
Criminal. Affirms Joshua Morgan’s aggregate 36-year sentence for his convictions of three counts of Level 1 felony child molestation, two counts of Level 4 felony child molestation and one count of Level 4 felony child solicitation. Finds Morgan waived any claim of error to the LaPorte Circuit Court’s consideration of the psychosexual report prepared in connection with his initial PSI because he did not object to its inclusion in the updated PSI, and the trial court’s consideration of the psychosexual report was harmless. Also finds the trial court did not abuse its discretion in considering Morgan’s criminal history and his behavior wile incarcerated awaiting trial to be aggravating factors. Finally, finds Morgan’s sentence is not inappropriate given the egregious nature of his offenses and his continued criminal behavior after judicial interventions.

In Re the Matter of the Unsupervised Estate of Ray E. Smeltzer; Jamie L. Smeltzer v. Estate of Ray E. Smeltzer and Thomas Smeltzer, Personal Representative (mem. dec.)
20A-EU-2159.
Estate, unsupervised. Reverses the entry of judgment against Jamie L. Smeltzer and in favor of the Estate of Ray E. Smeltzer. Finds Jamie was not given notice that an evidentiary hearing or a hearing on the merits of the allegations in Thomas Smeltzer’s petition to secure judgment of delinquent rent would be held on July 14, 2020, and was not provided an opportunity to present evidence or challenge Thomas’ evidence related to the claims in the petition. Remands for further proceedings.

In the Matter of the Involuntary Termination of the Parent-Child Relationship of H.P. (Minor Child) and M.P. (Mother) v. Indiana Department of Child Services (mem. dec.)
20A-JT-2357
Juvenile termination of parental rights. Affirms the involuntary termination of mother M.P.s parent-child relationships with H.P. Finds M.P. has waived her due process claim, and her due process rights were not violated. Also finds M.P. has failed to establish that the Vanderburgh Superior Court clearly erred in terminating her parental relationship with H.P