Court opinions - The Indiana Lawyer

Opinions Aug. 15, 2019

August 15, 2019

Indiana Court of Appeals
John Laboa v. State of Indiana
18A-CR-00951
Criminal. Finds the Floyd Superior Court erred in the procedure it used to dispose of John Laboa’s petition for post-conviction relief. Finds the trial court’s judgment was not decided as provided by the post-conviction rules. Remands with instructions to either order the cause to be submitted by affidavit, allowing Laboa time to gather and submit affidavits he feels are relevant to his allegations, or hold an evidentiary hearing.

COA continues terms of justice center lease in Floyd County

August 15, 2019 | Marilyn Odendahl

Although the city of New Albany argued holdover tenants should not be given “another bite at the apple,” the Indiana Court of Appeals affirmed its original ruling that continued occupancy of the criminal justice center maintains the terms and conditions of the lease even after the agreement as expired.

Grandma’s visitation order vacated after parents’ marriage

August 15, 2019 | Katie Stancombe

A grandmother fighting to keep a visitation order for her out-of-wedlock grandchildren failed to persuade an Indiana Court of Appeals panel to rule in her favor. Instead, the panel concluded grandparent visitation orders do not survive the subsequent marriage of the natural parents of a child born out of wedlock.

Reversal: Drugs found in sock not admissible

August 15, 2019 | Olivia Covington

Three Clark County drug convictions were overturned Thursday after the Indiana Court of Appeals determined drug evidence found in a suspect’s sock should not have been admitted.

COA: Court disregarded procedures in PCR case

August 15, 2019 | Katie Stancombe

The Indiana Court of Appeals has reversed a man’s denied petition for relief from what he alleged as conspiracy to wrongfully convict and confine him, among other things, after finding a post-conviction court erred in the procedure it used to dispose of his petition.

Indianapolis’ Oaktree Apartments demolition order affirmed

August 15, 2019 | Dave Stafford

A demolition order for a northeast-side Indianapolis apartment complex vacant for more than five years was affirmed Thursday by the Indiana Court of Appeals, which stopped short of ordering the dilapidated property’s owners in England to pay the city’s legal fees in long-running nuisance litigation.

Receiver for million-dollar Corvette affirmed but bond required

August 15, 2019 | Dave Stafford

Long-running litigation over the fate of a legendary Corvette racecar appears slightly closer to the finish line, as an appeals court Thursday gave the green flag to a receivership appointed to sell the car. However, the appellate panel instructed the trial court to require the receiver be bonded as required by law.

Felony drug conviction affirmed, but public defender fee reversed

August 15, 2019 | Dave Stafford

A man’s felony drug convictions were affirmed Thursday, but a trial court’s order requiring him to pay a $250 public defender fee and reimburse a northern Indiana county for his medical expenses were struck down by the Indiana Court of Appeals.

Opinions Aug. 14, 2019

August 14, 2019

The following 7th Circuit Court of Appeals opinions were posted after IL Deadline Tuesday.
Dustin Higgs v. United States Park Police
18-2826, 18-2937
Appeals from the United States District Court for the Southern District of Indiana, Terre Haute Division. Chief Judge Jane Magnus-Stinson.
Civil. Finds the Southern District Court erred in finding that the public interest prevailed over the privacy interests of the individuals involved in evidence for Dustin Higgs’ murder of three women and should have refused disclosure of those documents pursuant to Freedom of Information Act Exemptions 6 and 7(C). Affirms that certain documents were properly withheld under FOIA Exemption 7(D).

7th Circuit rules against inmate’s FOIA requests in triple-murder

August 14, 2019

A Southern District Court judge’s order that the federal government disclose personal information stemming from a triple murder it had previously refused to turn over has been reversed. The 7^th Circuit Court of Appeals found that public interest does not support the information’s disclosure, simultaneously affirming that certain documents were protected by an exception of the Freedom of Information Act.

NIPSCO loses appeal in damaged gas line small-claims suit

August 14, 2019 | Katie Stancombe

An excavation company found at fault for the destruction of a new home’s gas line will still have to pay up to the Northern Indiana Public Service Company despite the latter’s assertion that the company could not be held liable for a landscaper’s failure to mark the gas lines.

Opinions Aug. 13, 2019

August 13, 2019

The following 7th Circuit Court of Appeals opinion was posted after IL deadline Monday.
USA v. Lindani Mzembe, et al.
16-4258, 17-1060, 17-1412, 17-2268 & 17-2269
Appeals from the United States District Court for the Northern District of Indiana, South Bend Division. Senior Judge Robert L. Miller Jr.
Criminal. Affirms Ivan Brazier’s 444-month sentence for conviction of kidnapping and making a ransom demand. Reverses and vacates Lindani Mzembe and Derek Fields’ 18 U.S.C. § 924(c) convictions and sentences for discharging a firearm in furtherance of a crime of violence, remanding their cases for resentencing based on later decisions issued by the U.S. Supreme Court and 7th Circuit Court of Appeals.

7th Circuit reverses, remands two kidnapping enhancements

August 13, 2019 | Katie Stancombe

Three men who kidnapped and tortured a South Bend man have received different rulings from the 7^th Circuit Court of Appeals, which affirmed a 37-year prison sentence for one defendant and vacated 10-year firearm enhancements for the other two.

Random drug screen requirement reversed for mom in CHINS case

August 12, 2019 | Katie Stancombe

A mother found driving intoxicated with her three minor children in the car lost her appeal of a determination that they are children in need of services, but won a reversal of a requirement that she submit to random drug screens as part of her parental participation order.

Opinions Aug. 9, 2019

August 9, 2019

The following 7th Circuit Court of Appeals opinions were posted after IL deadline Thursday.
Rita Boucher v. United States Department of Agriculture, et al.
16-1654
Appeal from the United States District Court for the Southern District of Indiana. Judge Tanya Walton Pratt.
Civil. Reverses the district court’s affirmance of the USDA’s final determination that the removal of nine trees in the 1990s by the late David Boucher converted several acres of wetlands into farmlands, rendering the Bouchers’ entire farm ineligible for certain USDA benefits. Finds the final determination was arbitrary and capricious. Remands to the district court to enter judgment and grant appropriate relief to Rita Boucher.

Justices affirm parental rights for homeless mother of six

August 9, 2019 | Katie Stancombe

A mother who fought to be reunited with her six minor children secured the Indiana Supreme Court’s favor after justices unanimously affirmed a finding that the termination of her parental rights due to her homelessness was not in the children’s best interests.

In contamination case, 7th Circuit cleans up messy preclusion fight

August 9, 2019

Even though none of the businesses disagreed over who contaminated a manufacturing site, the question of who should pay for the cleanup became a fight over claim preclusion that ended with the 7^th Circuit Court of Appeals offering instructions on how the lawsuit should have been defended.

Ruling for insurer in $78K hacking case reversed in part

August 9, 2019 | Katie Stancombe

The Indiana Court of Appeals partially affirmed an insurance company’s first award of judgment in a computer hacking theft but reversed on the second after finding no conflict between the appellant’s deposition testimony and a statement in his affidavit.

Reversal: USDA farm wetlands ruling arbitrary and capricious

August 9, 2019

A Hancock County farm family denied U.S. Department of Agriculture benefits since the removal of nine trees from their farm in the 1990s prevailed in litigation against the agency. The 7^th Circuit Court of Appeals entered judgment for the family, finding USDA’s rulings in the case arbitrary and capricious.

Order enabling grandparents to determine father’s visitation reversed

August 9, 2019 | Katie Stancombe

A father who feared his hostile relationship with his children’s grandparent guardians would prevent him from having visitation with his kids won a reversal of an order stating parenting time would be “agreed upon by the parties.”

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