Court opinions - The Indiana Lawyer

Opinions May 18, 2022

May 18, 2022

Court of Appeals of Indiana
Charles Grays v. State of Indiana (mem. dec.)
21A-CR-2471
Criminal. Affirms Charles Grays’ convictions of Level 2 felony dealing in cocaine, Level 4 felony unlawful possession of a firearm by a serious violent felon, Class A misdemeanor resisting law enforcement and Class A misdemeanor operating while suspended, and his sentence of 33 years, with 25 years executed and eight years suspended to probation. Finds the Elkhart Circuit Court didn’t err when it denied Grays’ motions to suppress evidence, or in instructing the jury. Also finds his sentence isn’t inappropriate.

Marion County inmate discharged after reversal of misdemeanor conviction for jailhouse incident

May 17, 2022 | Katie Stancombe

A Marion County inmate has been discharged after an appellate panel concluded he was wrongly convicted of Class A misdemeanor battery against the facility’s mail clerk.

Reversal: Divorce court violated parents’ 1st Amendment rights via ‘non-disparagement clause’

May 16, 2022 | Katie Stancombe

A non-disparagement clause drafted into a couple’s divorce order to prevent the parents from talking badly about each other even outside of the presence of their child was an unconstitutional prior restraint on speech, the Court of Appeals of Indiana ruled in a partial reversal.

COA: Out-of-state sex offender registration requirement does not violate Indiana Constitution

May 16, 2022 | Marilyn Odendahl

The Court of Appeals of Indiana has upheld a finding that the retroactive application of the state’s sex offender registration requirements does not violate the Indiana Constitution’s ex post facto clause.

On second thought, Carroll Circuit judge erases rant from original order

May 13, 2022 | Marilyn Odendahl

The Carroll County judge who claimed insurance companies have broken Indiana’s civil litigation system and begged the parties to appeal his ruling to the Indiana Supreme Court has scrubbed his original order of all but two paragraphs that state summary judgment is granted in favor of the defendants.

Indiana Supreme Court grants transfer to wage dispute case, 2 other cases

May 13, 2022 | Marilyn Odendahl

A dispute between a dentist and her former employer, which split the Court of Appeals over the award of damages, is now headed for the Indiana Supreme Court.

New trial denied for man convicted in fatal Gary shooting

May 12, 2022 | Katie Stancombe

Despite allegations of prosecutorial misconduct during closing arguments, a man convicted of murder could not convince the Court of Appeals of Indiana to grant him a new trial.

7th Circuit: No disability discrimination in former Lake Co. officer’s pension plan

May 12, 2022 | Katie Stancombe

A disabled former Lake County police officer who claimed that his disability pension plan should provide the same cost-of-living increases that nondisabled retirees receive did not sway the 7^th Circuit Court of Appeals.

7th Circuit denies convicted murderer’s habeas petition after admission of absent witness’s prior testimony

May 12, 2022 | Jordan Morey

A man convicted of murdering his drug dealer more than a decade ago has again been denied habeas relief after the 7^th Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed that the admission of prior testimony from an absent, but key, witness wasn’t done in error.

Justices to meet for 1st time since leak of draft Roe ruling

May 12, 2022 | Associated Press

The U.S. Supreme Court’s nine justices will gather in private Thursday for their first scheduled meeting since the leak of a draft opinion that would overrule Roe v. Wade and sharply curtail abortion rights in roughly half the states.

Senate bid to save Roe v. Wade falls to GOP-led filibuster

May 12, 2022 | Associated Press

The U.S. Senate fell far short Wednesday in a rushed effort toward enshrining Roe v. Wade abortion access as federal law, blocked by a Republican filibuster in a blunt display of the nation’s partisan divide over the landmark court decision and the limits of legislative action.

Opinions May 11, 2022

May 11, 2022

Court of Appeals of Indiana
Marquis David Young v. State of Indiana
21A-CR-2341
Criminal. Reverses Marquis Young’s conviction of murder and two counts of attempted murder. Finds insufficient evidence to support the convictions. Judge Terry Crone dissents with separate opinion.

Split appellate panel reverses murder conviction in Gary shooting for insufficient evidence

May 11, 2022 | Katie Stancombe

In a “seldom” reversal of a murder conviction based on insufficient evidence, the Court of Appeals of Indiana split in a Wednesday decision, with the majority concluding the evidence used to support a defendant’s guilt came “nowhere close to proof beyond a reasonable doubt.”

COA has ‘little doubt’ state violated discovery rule in child molesting case

May 11, 2022 | Marilyn Odendahl

Bungled communications by law enforcement officials over whether a polygraph was admissible in court has resulted in the Court of Appeals of Indiana affirming the exclusion of the evidence against a defendant in a child molestation case and sanctions against the state.

7th Circuit finds for insurance company in adjuster’s game of chess

May 11, 2022 | Marilyn Odendahl

A public adjuster who assured an Indiana homeowners association that the way to get a claim for storm damage processed was to play a game of chess with the insurance company, got checkmated when he failed to heed the deadline for filing a lawsuit, prompting the 7^th Circuit Court of Appeals to make this observation: “Such is the price of gamesmanship.”

Indiana Court Decisions – April 21-May 4, 2022

May 11, 2022

Read Indiana appellate court decisions from the most recent reporting period.

IN justices to consider discovery case involving ‘problematic’ precedent

May 5, 2022 | IL Staff

Indiana Supreme Court justices this month will hear oral arguments on petition to transfer in a case in which the Court of Appeals of Indiana, despite “problematic” precedent, upheld the denial of a defendant’s motion to compel evidence of unredacted copies of the police report in his case.

COA: Trial court had ‘good cause’ for failing to meet 120-day deadline in CHINS case

May 5, 2022 | Marilyn Odendahl

Because a mother remained quiet in a CHINS hearing, the Court of Appeals of Indiana has affirmed that the trial court had good cause for failing to hold a factfinding hearing within the statutorily required 120-day time frame.

What’s next in the investigation of the Supreme Court leak?

May 5, 2022 | Associated Press

Chief Justice John Roberts, in ordering an investigation into an “egregious breach of trust” in the leak of a U.S. Supreme Court draft opinion on abortion, tasked a relatively unknown court official to carry out what could be one of the most high-profile investigations in decades.

Opinions May 4, 2022

May 4, 2022

Court of Appeals of Indiana
Joel Williams, Jr. v. State of Indiana
21A-CR-1581
Criminal. Affirms the denial of Joel Williams Jr.’s motion to dismiss charges of two counts each of rape and criminal deviate conduct, all Class A felonies, 35 years after the incidents occurred. Finds Williams has not proven that he will suffer actual and substantial prejudice to his right to a fair trial.

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