Articles

Justices order new trial for Ripley County man

A Ripley County man convicted of conspiring to commit burglary is entitled to a new trial due to ineffective assistance of his trial counsel and prosecutorial misconduct, the Indiana Supreme Court held.

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7th Circuit certifies questions for Kansas Supreme Court

The 7th Circuit Court of Appeals was unable to determine under Kansas law how that state’s Supreme Court would rule on whether FedEx drivers are employees or independent contractors, so the court sent two certified questions to the Kansas justices.

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Man who killed girlfriend may be retried for reckless homicide

The post-conviction court erred in denying Andrew McWhorter relief when he challenged his conviction of voluntary manslaughter in connection to the death of his girlfriend, the Indiana Court of Appeals concluded. McWhorter may not be retried on the same charge, but may face retrial for reckless homicide.

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42 members of Indianapolis motorcycle club indicted

In what has been described by Southern District U.S. Attorney Joseph Hogsett as the largest federal organized crime prosecution in Indianapolis history, 42 members of the Outlaws Motorcycle Club in Indianapolis have been indicted on various offenses, including extortion and drug charges.

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Deadline to accept State Fair settlement extended

The Office of the Indiana Attorney General, at the request of attorneys representing claimants in lawsuits stemming from the stage collapse at the Indiana State Fair in August 2011, has moved the deadline to respond to a settlement offer to Aug. 1. The original deadline was Friday.

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Judges disagree over impact of mental illness label at sentencing

7th Circuit Court of Appeals Judge Diane Wood believed that Michael Dean Overstreet, who was convicted of killing Franklin College student Kelly Eckart in 1997, was prejudiced by his attorneys’ decisions at sentencing regarding which experts should testify about his mental illness.

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COA rules trial court should have allowed DCS to withdraw adoption consent

The Department of Child Services’ failure to investigate a child’s aunt as a possible adoptive parent – and a trial court’s refusal to allow DCS to withdraw consent for foster parents to adopt after acknowledging its failure – prompted the Indiana Court of Appeals to reverse a trial court order granting the foster parents’ petition to adopt.

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Shepard joins Old National board

Retired Indiana Chief Justice Randall Shepard has been appointed to the board of directors of Old National Bancorp, the Evansville-based company announced Monday.

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State to defend Planned Parenthood ban after adverse Medicaid recommendation

The Office of the Indiana Attorney General continues to defend a 2011 state law that denies Medicaid funding for health care services to Planned Parenthood because the organization performs abortions.  A federal hearing officer recommended that the Department of Health and Human Services disapprove the state Medicaid plan amendment in the law.

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7th Circuit affirms life sentences in prostitution ring

Two men sentenced to life in prison on an assortment of federal charges related to a prostitution ring involving underage girls that operated in northwest Indiana failed in their appeal before the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals on Friday, but judges asked the trial court to clarify the sentence for a third defendant.

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