A Hoosier child with several intellectual limitations is not considered disabled and therefore doesn’t qualify to receive benefits from the Social Security Administration, the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals has ruled.
7th Circuit Court of Appeals
City of Fishers, Indiana v. DIRECTTV
20-3478
Appeal from the United States District Court for the Southern District of Indiana, Indianapolis Division. Judge Jane Magnus-Stinson.
Civil. Affirms the Southern Indiana District Court’s abstention under the teachings of Levin v. Commerce Energy, Inc., 560 U.S. 413 (2010) from a case brought by several Indiana cities against Netflix and other video streaming platforms alleging they owe the cities past and future franchise fees under an Indiana statute. Finds the district court properly abstained and that it did not err by applying the Levin abstention factors.
In a guest column, retired lawyer Kent Hull reflects on his experience as a lawyer with a disability.
Read Indiana appellate court decisions from the most recent reporting period.
Does the definition of “patient” in Indiana’s Medical Malpractice Act encompass third parties? The Indiana Supreme Court, in considering a certified question from the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals, has decided the answer is “yes.” But not every justice was convinced.
Shelly Fitzgerald and Lynn Starkey, former guidance counselors at Roncalli High School, and Joshua Payne-Elliott, a former foreign language and social studies teacher at Cathedral High School, all filed separate lawsuits against the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Indianapolis after they were all terminated from their jobs because they are in same-sex marriages. This month’s decision from the 7th Circuit in Demkovich v. St. Andrew the Apostle Parish, 19-2142, could change the trajectory of each of those cases.
Indiana Court of Appeals
In Re: The Paternity of B.G.H.; Kelsey Morrison v. Aaron Harmon
20A-JP-2387
Juvenile paternity. Affirms the Delaware Circuit Court’s orders in a paternity action involving Kelsey Morrison and Aaron Harmon that determined Indiana was a more convenient forum than Michigan; awarded the parties joint legal custody of their son, two-year-old B.H.; awarded father parenting time in Indiana on alternating weekends; and ordered father to pay $85 per week in child support. Finds the Delaware Circuit Court did not err or abuse its discretion. Judge Elizabeth Tavitas concurs in result with separate opinion.
A stepfather seeking to vacate a paternity determination and adopt his wife’s child was not permitted to do so after the Indiana Court of Appeals concluded that the biological father’s consent to the adoption was required.
A Vanderburgh County man convicted of multiple felonies including murder has convinced the Indiana Court of Appeals to overturn his habitual offender adjudication because, in admitting his prior convictions, he did not waive his right to a jury trial.
The 7th Circuit Court of Appeals has affirmed the preliminary injunction against the enforcement of an Indiana law that allows election officials to remove voters from the state’s voting rolls without getting consent from the individuals themselves.
The following 7th Circuit Court of Appeals opinion was posted after IL Deadline on Friday.
Peggy Jo Smith v. Professional Transportation and Ronald D. Romain
20-2046
Appeal from United States District Court for the Southern District of Indiana, Evansville Division. Judge Richard L. Young.
Civil. Vacates the Southern District Court’s summary judgment order in part and remands with instructions to permit Peggy Jo Smith’s individual claims to proceed against Professional Transportation Inc. Finds that the district court erred by refusing to allow Smith to proceed on her individual claims and that she is entitled to proceed individually, regardless of what happens to the collective action.
Immigrants and advocates are urging Democrats and President Joe Biden to quickly act on legislation to protect young immigrants after a federal judge in Texas on Friday ruled illegal an Obama-era program that prevents the deportation of thousands of them brought into the U.S. as children.
Indiana Court of Appeals
Carl Eugene McDonald v. State of Indiana
21A-CR-363
Criminal. Dismisses in part, affirms in part, reverses in part. Finds Carl McDonald may not challenge on direct appeal the validity of his convictions for operating a vehicle while intoxicated, endangering a person with a passenger less than e18 years old, a Level 6 felony; three counts of Level 6 felony neglect of a dependent; operating a motor vehicle without ever receiving a license, a Class C misdemeanor; and for being a habitual vehicular substance offender. Also finds that the Cass Superior Court abused its discretion in sentencing McDonald but that remand to the trial court is only necessary so that the HVSO enhancement may be attached to a specific felony. Dismisses McDonald’s double jeopardy claims without prejudice so that they may be brought through a petition for post-conviction relief. Remands with instructions to correct the abstract of judgment.
The Indiana Court of Appeals has reversed a trial court’s order vacating a nearly decade-old default judgment in a debt collection dispute, finding the debtor’s delay in bringing his fraud allegation was not reasonable.
A man who drove drunk with his three young grandchildren in the car cannot challenge the validity of his convictions on direct appeal, but the Indiana Court of Appeals remanded Friday so that his habitual vehicular substance offender enhancement could be attached to a specific felony.
A federal appeals court has rejected a challenge to a policy that requires lawyers to join the State Bar of Michigan.
An Indianapolis college student suspended for an act of sexual misconduct has lost his bid to stop the two-year suspension from taking effect. The ruling also implicates the student’s immigration status.
Days after the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals found the ministerial exception protects a Chicago Catholic Church from a lawsuit brought by a fired employee, the Indianapolis Archdiocese is citing the decision to bolster its argument that the employment lawsuit filed by former Roncalli High School counselor Lynn Starkey should be dismissed.
Indiana Court of Appeals
Stephen M. Davis v. State of Indiana (mem. dec.)
21A-CR-52
Criminal. Affirms Stephen M. Davis’ sentence to five years executed in the Department of Correction for his conviction of Level 5 felony attempted overpass mischief. Finds the Madison Circuit Court did not abuse its discretion when it sentenced Davis. Also finds Davis’ sentence is not inappropriate in light of the nature of the offense and his character. Judge Elizabeth Tavitas concurs in result with separate opinion.
Twenty states including Indiana are supporting South Carolina’s defense of a new abortion law, arguing in an amicus brief that a federal judge was wrong to pause the entire measure instead of just the provision facing a court challenge.