Judge: Federal courts lack general expungement power
A woman who twice petitioned to have a federal theft of bank funds conviction expunged lost in her second bid, and the judge denying the motion said district courts lack such authority.
Court opinions
Articles
Appeal of legal fees in frivolous case results in more fees
A father who appealed an award of attorney fees in a long-running dispute over the use of funds in a family limited partnership now must pay appellate legal fees as well, the Indiana Court of Appeals ruled. The court found the appeal “merely another attempt to harass the parties involved.”
Life without parole affirmed for second brother in Richmond Hill explosion
A man convicted as one of the masterminds of a deadly conspiracy to blow up a home on the south side of Indianapolis and collect the insurance money will spend the rest of his life in prison after the Indiana Supreme Court affirmed his murder convictions and the constitutionality of Indiana’s life without parole statute.
Former deputy prosecutor won’t be disciplined for misconduct
A former Marion County deputy prosecutor will not be discipline for alleged misconduct that led to the reversal of a child molesting conviction, though the Indiana Supreme Court noted in a Friday opinion that the lack of disciplinary action was not an endorsement of the attorney’s conduct.
Probation revocation affirmed for man convicted of raping 92-year-old woman
An Indiana trial court was not required to hold a competency hearing before revoking a man’s probation on a rape conviction because the man did not request such a hearing and did not prove that his mental illness was so severe as to relieve him of criminal responsibility for violating his probation, the Indiana Court of Appeals ruled Thursday.
Felony syringe conviction reversed for lack of evidence
An Indiana’s man felony syringe conviction has been overturned after the Indiana Court of Appeals determined the evidence was insufficient to prove the man was in possession of the syringe for an unlawful purpose.
Trial court, not Tax Court, to hear case involving both annexation, tax law
An Indiana trial court has jurisdiction to hear a dispute between Allen County fire departments that is grounded in both annexation and tax law as the facts of the case do not require the interpretation of “substantive tax law,” the Indiana Court of Appeals has ruled.
COA: Transgender individuals don’t have to publish intent to change gender marker
Transgender individuals in Indiana seeking to change their gender markers on their birth certificates are not required under Indiana law to publish notice of their intent to change, as there is currently no statutory authority requiring such notice, the Indiana Court of Appeals ruled Thursday.
7th Circuit: Man convicted in Gary shooting entitled to habeas relief
A man convicted in the 2010 shooting of a Gary man is entitled to conditional habeas corpus relief for Sixth Amendment Confrontation Clause violations, the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals ruled Wednesday.
Delinquent adjudication partially reversed for student who planned to attack school
A high school student who was adjudicated as a delinquent after he sent Facebook messages about a plan to attack his school had one of his adjudications reversed after a divided Indiana Court of Appeals found insufficient evidence for a true finding of attempted aggravated battery.
Challenged statements protected by absolute privilege, COA affirms
The Indiana Court of Appeals has affirmed partial summary judgment for an Indianapolis law firm in a defamation case, finding the challenged statements made by the firm were protected by absolute privilege.
COA reverses dismissal of PCR petition
An Indiana man will get a second chance at post-conviction relief after the Indiana Court of Appeals determined Wednesday that his petition for relief was erroneously dismissed as an improper successive petition.
COA affirms finding injured employee had a change of condition
The Indiana Worker’s Compensation Board did not err when it ruled in favor of an injured employee of an Evansville media company, the Indiana Court of Appeals decided Wednesday, as the medical opinion offered by the employee was not contrary to a settlement agreement.
Alleged victim of child molesting won’t testify in abuser’s presence
An 8-year-old girl who is alleged to be the victim of sexual abuse will not have to testify in the presence of her alleged abuser after the Indiana Court of Appeals determined the trial court erred in denying motions to allow the victim to testify via closed circuit television.
7th Circuit upholds anti-spoofing conviction
A commodities trader who was the first person to be convicted of a kind of illegal trading dubbed spoofing failed to convince the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals that the anti-spoofing statute in the Dodd-Frank Act is unconstitutionally vague.
Fired black officer can take racial discrimination case to trial
A black former Whitley County merit officer who raised a racial discrimination claim after he was fired will present his case to a jury after the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals determined Tuesday he had evidence of possible racial discrimination by the Whitley County Sheriff’s Department.
‘Wholly indefensible system’ owes nothing to victims
Lawyer calls the ruling against Clark County drug court plaintiffs jailed without hearings or legal representation ‘manifestly unjust.’
Plaintiffs to appeal loss in bid to restrict use of license info
Lawyers and the public may continue to buy crash report information online after an Indiana judge ruled against plaintiffs who argued information gathered from their driver’s licenses was protected from disclosure by federal law. But that won’t be the last word on the matter.
Man’s arguments supporting motion to suppress rejected by 7th Circuit
An Indiana man who ended up being criminally charged as a result of a Michigan-issued warrant placing a GPS locator on another man’s car lost his appeal challenging the validity of the Indiana warrant used to search his home.
7th Circuit orders new sentencing hearing for man on death row
A man convicted in a triple homicide and subsequently sentenced to death will get a new sentencing hearing after the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals determined Friday the fact he was wearing a stun belt during the penalty phase of his trial may have impacted his jury.