Indiana Court Decisions – Oct. 10-23, 2019
Read Indiana appellate court decisions from the most recent reporting period.
Court opinions
Articles
Opinions Oct. 29, 2019
Indiana Court of Appeals
Natoami Riley, et al. v. St. Mary’s Medical Center of Evansville, Inc.
19A-CT-844
Civil tort. Reverses the Vanderburgh Circuit Court’s grant of summary judgment to St. Mary’s Medical Center of Evansville Inc. on a medical malpractice claim brought by Natoami and Frank Riley. Finds a radiologic technician who wrote an affidavit on behalf of the Rileys is qualified to render an expert opinion on proximate causation, and that a genuine issue of material fact exists regarding that issue. Remands for further proceedings.
Woman with nerve damage wins reversal in med-mal case against hospital
A woman who suffers from nerve damage after dye was negligently injected into her arm for a medical scan has won a reversal against the southern Indiana hospital that administered the procedure.
Opinions Oct. 28, 2019
Indiana Supreme Court
State of Indiana v. Tyson Timbs
27S04-1702-MI-70
Miscellaneous. Vacates and remands for the Grant Superior Court to determine, based on the Indiana Supreme Court’s framework, whether Tyson Timbs has cleared the hurdle of establishing gross disproportionality in the civil forfeiture of his Land Rover. Finds a use-based in rem fine is excessive if (1) the property was not an instrumentality of the underlying crimes, or (2) the property was an instrumentality, but the harshness of the punishment would be grossly disproportional to the gravity of the underlying offenses and the owner’s culpability for the property’s misuse. Also finds that Timbs’ Land Rover was an instrumentality of the underlying offense of drug dealing. Justice Geoffrey Slaughter dissents with separate opinion.
Tax Court reversal: Low-income apartments qualify for charitable exemption
The Indiana Tax Court on Monday reversed an Indiana Board of Tax Review’s final determination that concluded a low-income apartment complex owner failed to prove it qualified for a charitable purposes exemption.
COA grants mom partial victory in irregular child support dispute
The Indiana Court of Appeals has found a father in contempt for failing to pay years’ worth of irregular child support, reversing a lower court’s denial of his ex-wife’s petition to show cause for his failure to pay.
Opinions Oct. 25, 2019
The following 7th Circuit Court of Appeals opinions were posted after IL deadline Thursday:
John W. Kimbrough v. Ron Neal
18-3145, -3153
Appeals from the United States District Court for the Southern District of Indiana, Indianapolis Division. Judge William T. Lawrence.
Civil. Reverses the grant of John Kimbrough’s petition for writ of habeas corpus after he was denied post-conviction relief in state court on his 80-year sentence for child molesting. Finds a federal court considering a habeas petition under 28 U.S.C. § 2254(d) cannot disagree with a state court’s resolution of a state law issue.
7th Circuit overturns habeas relief for child molester
A convicted child molester’s 80-year sentence has once again been reinstated after the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals overturned the grant of a habeas petition. The appellate panel on Thursday reversed habeas relief that had been granted at the district court.
Fired INDOT employee loses appeal claiming political firing
A former Indiana Department of Transportation supervisor who claimed his firing was motivated in part by his defense of a Democratic employee and a letter to the editor that the supervisor’s mother wrote criticizing former Gov. Mike Pence’s immigration policies failed to prove he was discriminated against, the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals ruled.
Opinions Oct. 24, 2019
Indiana Supreme Court
William Clyde Gibson, III v. State of Indiana
22S00-1601-PD-00009, 22S00-1608-PD-00411
Post conviction. Affirms the Floyd Superior Court’s denial of post-conviction for William Clyde Gibson III from his two murder convictions resulting in death sentences, finding he did not receive ineffective assistance of counsel.
Drug evidence found from drone video admissible, COA rules
Video of suspected drug activity from a drone aircraft a woman found in her yard is admissible in court to try her neighbor on charges including dealing methamphetamine, the Indiana Court of Appeals ruled Thursday.
Opinions Oct. 23. 2019
The following 7th Circuit Court of Appeals opinions were issued after IL deadline Tuesday.
USA v. Anthony Shockey
19-1308
Appeal from the United States District Court for the Northern District of Indiana, South Bend Division. Judge Robert L. Miller, Jr.
Criminal. Affirms an order revoking Anthony Shockey’s supervised release and imposing a 15-month prison sentence after he tested positive for methamphetamine. Finds the court could reasonably infer possession from use.
Man’s drug convictions tossed for speedy trial rule violation
A man who was convicted of drug-dealing charges and sentenced to 12 years in prison won a reversal Wednesday because his trial was wrongly continued when the state could not timely produce lab results. The appellate court noted a lengthy prosecutorial delay in providing the evidence for lab testing was to blame.
Chew on this: Positive meth test sufficient to affirm possession
A federal offender on supervised release argued that just because he tested positive for meth didn’t mean he had possessed it. The 7th Circuit Court of Appeals had a bite-sized, easy-to-digest ruling Tuesday.
Judgment for hospital affirmed in blood draw after drunken-driving crash
A man who was seriously injured in a car crash lost his appeal claiming his Fourth Amendment rights were violated when Fort Wayne hospital staff ordered a blood draw that was provided to police, leading to criminal drunken driving charges.
Opinions Oct. 22, 2019
Indiana Court of Appeals
Andrew Patrick v. Painted Hills Association, Inc.
19A-SC-936
Small claims. Affirms Morgan Superior Court rulings in favor of Painted Hills Association, Inc., seeking to enforce restrictive covenants and collect unpaid dues for 2017 and 2018 against Andrew Patrick, who obtained tax deeds to three unimproved properties in the neighborhood. Holds statutes are unambiguous and the restrictive covenants survive the tax sale. The court did not err in ruling for the association or denying Patrick’s motion to correct error.
Faegre team’s gerrymandering win vacated by U.S. Supreme Court
The fight over Michigan’s redistricting, litigated in part by a team from the Indianapolis office of Faegre Baker Daniels, ended Monday with an order from the U.S. Supreme Court vacating a lower court’s ruling that gerrymandering based on political affiliation violates the Constitution.
Transgender man wins appeal after judge denies gender-marker change
A transgender man who was granted a name change but denied his petition for a gender-marker change won on appeal Tuesday, with the Indiana Court of Appeals finding the trial court lacked sufficient cause to deny the petition.
Man who killed officer in hit-and-run loses appeal for driver’s license
A Lake County man convicted in a hit-and-run that killed a correctional officer and injured three others in 2012 will not be getting his driver’s license back anytime soon, the Indiana Court of Appeals ruled Tuesday.
Convicted molester loses appeal over barred internet search history
A man convicted and sentenced to 40 years in prison for molesting his 11-year-old daughter failed to convince the Indiana Court of Appeals that evidence of sexual internet searches he attributed to the victim was wrongly excluded from his trial.