‘Prison mailbox rule’ applies to direct appeals
The "prison mailbox rule," which the Indiana Court of Appeals had previously determined applies in post-conviction proceedings, also is applicable in direct appeals, the appellate court decided today.
Jennifer Nelson
Articles
Transfer granted to probation search case
The Indiana Supreme Court granted transfer Thursday to a motion to suppress case involving a search by a probation officer.
‘Fireman’s rule’ prevents officer from filing suit
The "fireman's rule" doesn't allow a professional emergency responder to file a claim for the negligence
that creates the emergency to which he or she responds, the Indiana Supreme Court upheld today. As a result of its ruling,
the high court unanimously ruled a police officer's complaint against an adult showclub must be dismissed.
COA: University should get summary judgment
The Indiana Court of Appeals ruled in favor of the trustees of Indiana University, finding the trial court erred when it denied summary judgment for the school and concluded a provision in an agreement between the school and a fired professor was ambiguous.
COA: Policy doesn’t cover car in accident
The Indiana Court of Appeals ruled in favor of an insurance company in a suit seeking compensation for damages by the insured's grandson after a car accident. The appellate court also used the opinion to remind counsel of the rules for filing appendices.
High court rules on issue preclusion in tax case
In an opinion handed down March 6, the Indiana Supreme Court had to decide whether a previous ruling barred the Indiana Department of Revenue from raising new contentions in support of a different method of allocation of income to the state.
COA: State must prove violation of statute
The Indiana Court of Appeals addressed for the first time today whether under Indiana Code Section 35-48-4-16(b) a defendant only has the burden of placing the issue in question where the state's evidence hasn't done so.
First impression on residential entry issue
Since a man who had permission to be in his ex-girlfriend's garage did not have permission to be in her house, he committed residential entry as a Class D felony when he kicked in her locked kitchen door to use the phone.
COA: Firefighter’s e-mail didn’t harm department
A firefighter shouldn't have been fired for his e-mail commenting on the financial situation of the township's fire department because the e-mail didn't impact the effectiveness of the department, the Indiana Court of Appeals ruled today.
Indicted judge to be suspended
The Indiana Commission on Judicial Qualifications has filed a notice with the Indiana Supreme Court for a request of suspension of LaPorte Superior Judge Jennifer Koethe, who was indicted Thursday for attempted obstruction of justice stemming from a shooting incident at her home in December.
Lawyer, school board president dies
Stephen A. Backer, an Indianapolis attorney and current president of the Carmel Clay School Board, died March 15 after a brief illness.
Town court judge publicly admonished
The Indiana Commission on Judicial Qualifications issued a public admonition of the Walkerton Town Court judge today for employing his wife as court clerk for more than 10 years and for participating in an ex parte conversation with a defendant about her traffic infractions.
COA: ‘Serious deficiency’ in treating mentally ill
A panel of the Indiana Court of Appeals used an opinion today to highlight what it considered a “serious deficiency” in the statutes for the treatment of developmentally disabled and mentally ill people in the state’s criminal courts. “Simply said, the Indiana statutory framework allows courts to recognize the mental illness of a criminal defendant only in terms of guilt for the crime alleged, rather than as a condition that prevents the defendant’s ability to form a punishable intention to…
Attorney’s kidnapper nets 60-year sentence
The man who abducted his attorney in July 2008 has been sentenced to 60 years in the Indiana Department of Correction.
Tax exemption doesn’t apply to hotel utilities
The Indiana Supreme Court was split today in its ruling on whether a hotel was entitled to a sales tax exemption on utilities it purchased during 2004 and 2005.
Trial court erred in denying motion to continue
A Marion Superior trial court should have granted a woman's motion to continue the day of her bench trial because she had a constitutional right to present a defense to support her involuntary intoxication argument, the Indiana Court of Appeals decided today.
2 attorneys suspended over real estate deal
Two attorneys have been suspended by the Indiana Supreme Court for their representation of a client in a real estate contract in which one of the attorneys had a financial interest.
Court upholds out-of-state juvenile placement
The Indiana Court of Appeals affirmed the placement of a juvenile delinquent in an out-of-state shelter care facility over the objection of the Indiana Department of Child Services, finding the trial court complied with statutes that allow it to place the juvenile in a non-Indiana facility. A recent change to one of those statutes now shifts the burden of payment to out-of-state facilities from DCS to the counties.
Former public defender sentenced
A former Marion County public defender arrested during an undercover child sex sting was sentenced Wednesday for child solicitation, a Class C felony.
COA reverses decree award of military benefits
The Indiana Court of Appeals reversed a portion of a divorce decree awarding some of the husband's military benefits and housing allowance to his wife because the separation agreement excluded granting the wife any rights to them.