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Justices rule in favor of county

Elkhart County is immune from losses resulting from temporary weather-related road conditions in 2001, the Indiana Supreme Court ruled today.The 4-1 decision came in Marvin Hochstetler v. Elkhart Co. Highway Dept., et al., 20S05-0703-CV-97, a case it heard arguments in May 10. The case involved a motorcycle driver, Hochstetler, who struck a fallen tree on a county road after a storm and sued the county departments and officials for negligence. The Elkhart Superior Court entered summary judgment in favor of the…

Supreme Court sets execution date

The Indiana Supreme Court has set the execution date for a death row inmate whose requests for successive post-conviction proceedings were denied Monday.David Leon Woods is set for execution by injection before sunrise May 4. He is being put to death for the stabbing of an elderly DeKalb County man during a robbery in 1984.A Boone County jury convicted Woods of murder and robbery in the 1980s. He was found guilty of the murder of 77-year-old Juan Placenia, who was an…

New jobs to get case management system running

Five new positions with the Indiana Supreme Court have been created to help kick-start a statewide case management system.The court ;s Judicial Technology and Automation Committee has posted the five openings and is accepting applications until March 30 for staff attorney, configuration and modification analyst, software quality assurance (SQA) lead analyst, court reporter SME, and a training and help desk specialist.Each position is dedicated to designing, developing, and implementing the largest technology project in the history of Indiana courts, according to…

Attorneys cannot agree to settlements for clients

The fact a party authorizes an attorney to enter settlement negotiations and knows the negotiations are occurring does not mean that the attorney has authority to approve a settlement, according to a ruling today by the Indiana Court of Appeals. In Carol and David Bay v. Michael Pulliam and Cardinal Transportation, LLC, 49A05-0612-CV-704, the Court of Appeals reversed a Marion Superior Court decision that granted a motion to enforce settlement agreement in favor of Pulliam and Cardinal Transportation. At issue was whether…

Indiana Judicial Center: test validators needed

The Indiana Judicial Center is notifying the legal community that August is the time to apply to help validate a new written test for the Court Substance Abuse Management Specialist credential.A public notice Wednesday set an Aug. 30 deadline for contractors to apply for consideration for this contracting opportunity. A credential is needed for anyone wanting to work for a court-administered alcohol or drug program, and the test gauges substance abuse knowledge.The application and procedure can be found online at http://www.in.gov/judiciary/notices/docs/ijc-pnco-080107.pdf….

Court rules checkpoint unconstitutional

Indiana police officers are not allowed to target specific people when setting up roadblocks and checkpoints, ruled the Indiana Court of Appeals. The court overturned a trial court’s denial of the defendant’s motion to suppress evidence from two police roadblocks created after breaking up a party. In Kenneth Scott King v. State of Indiana, No. 58A01-0704-CR-159, King was at a party to which the police were called. After breaking up the party, police set up two checkpoints to search for impaired drivers…

Court administrator selection nears

Marion County judges are close to deciding who the next court administrator will be, according to presiding Superior Judge Gerald Zore. The four-judge executive committee received about 20 applications for the position and have interviewed five in recent weeks, Judge Zore said. The judges have narrowed the choice to a final applicant and Judge Zore said this morning an offer could be presented as soon as today. The person chosen would likely start in early July, he said. The executive…

Howard County Courthouse to get new security

Two decades after a bomb exploded in the Howard County Courthouse, new security measures are being implemented.County commissioners earlier this week passed new security rules requiring photo identification badges for employees, and metal detectors and X-ray machines at the public entrance. This comes after a decision last fall to use $29,295 of homeland security money for the upgrades and security officers. Certain visitors, including attorneys, can obtain a frequent visitor pass for $50 that allows them to bypass the detectors.Workers will…

Circuit judges commend attorney in opinion

The 7th Circuit Court of Appeals granted an attorney’s motion to withdraw his client’s notice of appeal because the attorney couldn’t find a non-frivolous basis for an appeal. The court also commended the attorney for how he handled the appeal.In U.S.A. v. Alan R. King, Jr., No. 07-2143, King pleaded guilty to stealing government property, loan fraud, false representation of Social Security numbers, and federal student financial aid fraud. The District Court sentenced him to 105 months imprisonment, five years of supervised…

Allen County hosts historic documents

Historic documents in American history are on display this week at the Allen County Courthouse. The original documents, which include the Articles of Confederation, the Lincoln/Douglas debates, and the Habeas Corpus Act, were brought to the courthouse this week in conjunction with the annual conference of state judiciary. The documents are on display in the rotunda of the courthouse, which is a spectacular place to have the works, said Court of Appeals Judge Paul Mathias, who helped to bring the documents…

COA follows sentencing-statement ruling

The first consequence of an Indiana Supreme Court decision three weeks ago relating to sentencing statements can be found in a ruling today from the state’s Court of Appeals.In Sergio Ramos v. State of Indiana, 49A04-0609-CR-482, the court reversed and remanded a Marion Superior case relating to the sentence imposed following a guilty plea to attempted sexual misconduct with a minor. The trial court sentenced Ramos to 10 years executed, but it did not address aggravating or mitigating circumstances.That was wrong,…

COA reverses conviction in trash-search case

The Indiana Court of Appeals reversed a conviction of possession of marijuana with intent to deal, citing an Indiana Supreme Court case that prohibits introducing evidence at trial that was obtained following a police search of trash. The court also ruled the good faith exception does not apply. In Ralph Belvedere v. State of Indiana, 48A05-0611-CR-669, Belvedere appealed his conviction of possession of marijuana with intent to deal and maintaining a common nuisance, arguing the Indiana Supreme Court decision in Litchfield…

Court answers question on subcontractors’ ability to recover

The Indiana Supreme Court today delved into the meaning of “subcontractor” and determined that performance bond coverage for third parties only goes so far.Stemming from a certified question from the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Indiana, justices considered: “Does a performance bond required by and issued in accordance with Ind. Code §8-23-9-9 afford coverage to a third-tier claimant?”Chief Justice Randall T. Shepard wrote the opinion saying the statute does not afford that coverage, noting that a subcontractor is…

Judges have flexibility on probation violations

If someone violates their probation, trial courts have the authority to modify a part of those probation terms and can add new conditions as they see necessary.The Indiana Supreme Court ruled today in Russell Prewitt v. State of Indiana, No. 10S04-0707-CR-294, arising out of Prewitt’s previous attempted cocaine possession conviction and subsequent probation starting in mid-2005. The state moved to revoke his probation twice within four months for alleged violations, and the trial court determined Prewitt had violated the probation. Clark Superior…

Prosecutors talk about Nifong disbarment

Indiana prosecutors worry about heightened suspicion of charging decisions they make as a result of the high-profile disbarment of a North Carolina prosecutor over the weekend.Talk started months ago as the situation escalated, but banter took a new surge this morning following Michael Nifong’s nationally televised disciplinary proceeding Saturday. He was disbarred for violating professional conduct rules in his prosecution of three Duke University lacrosse players falsely accused of rape.”Around the country and here, prosecutors are talking about the Nifong effect,”…

Committee ready to explore new home for ISBA, ICLEF, IBF

A committee of 10 people is now tasked with finding a new, common home for three pillar organizations of the Indiana legal community.The mission is to find a single facility that the Indiana State Bar Association, Indiana Continuing Legal Education Foundation, and the Indiana Bar Foundation can share.Prior to 2003, all three shared a roof. But the ISBA moved to the fifth floor of One Indiana Square to be on its own, leaving ICLEF and the IBF at 230 E. Ohio…

Justices rule on death penalty case involving stun belt use at trial

The Indiana Supreme Court today affirmed the convictions and post-conviction relief denial for a death row inmate convicted of murdering three people in Evansville in 1996.The 43-page ruling in Stephenson v. State, No 87S00-0106-PD-285 (http://www.in.gov/judiciary/opinions/pdf/04260701trb.pdf), affirms the post-conviction court ;s denial of relief for John Matthew Stephenson, who is sentenced to die for the 1997 convictions of burglary, theft, and the murders of John “Jay” Tyler, his wife, Kathy Tyler, and Brandy Southard relating to a drug-ring operation. He was sentenced…

School-fee case comes to a close – again

Parents who successfully challenged the constitutionality of Evansville school fees have won another victory in Indiana appellate courts, this time relating to attorney fees.The Indiana Court of Appeals issued a 21-page decision today in Frank Nagy, et al. v. Evansville-Vanderburgh School Corporation, No 82A05-0609-CV-488, which involves a new issue stemming from an Indiana Supreme Court ruling last year. The case arose after the local district began charging every student a $20 student-services fee in fall 2002 as a way to make…

Appeals court affirms battery conviction of man who murdered his wife

A man appealed his Class A misdemeanor battery conviction claiming that his wife, who reported to police that her husband hit her and was murdered before the scheduled trial date, was no longer around for him to confront as his accuser and was the only witness to the battery.In Albert Boyd v. State of Indiana, No. 03A01-0701-CR-1, the three-judge panel affirmed the trial court’s conviction. The battery charges stemmed from a physical altercation that the defendant-appellant’s wife, Ruth Boyd, reported against her…

7th Circuit affirms tossing ‘unreliable’ testimony

The 7th Circuit Court of Appeals has upheld a Terre Haute judge’s decision in throwing out expert witness testimony relating to a product liability suit involving the prescription medication Remicade.