Articles

Defendant’s testimony makes admission error harmless

Although unauthenticated videos and photos showing a defendant appearing to make methamphetamine should not have been admitted at trial under the silent-witness theory, the Indiana Court of Appeals found the error was harmless because of the defendant’s own testimony.

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COA tosses conviction after unlawful arrest

Testimony of police officers who stopped a man for walking on the wrong side of the road, then arrested him for intimidation and resisting law enforcement should not have been admitted at trial, the Indiana Court of Appeals has ruled.

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COA upholds denial of IRA garnishment

The Elkhart Superior Court was within its discretion when it asserted a garnishment exemption on a debtor’s behalf because there are exceptions that allow a debtor to receive the benefit of an exemption without asserting it, the Indiana Court of Appeals decided Tuesday.

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Woman exonerated in murder loses appeal over fingerprint errors

The 7th Circuit Court of Appeals declined to allow a plaintiff to seek money damages against an Elkhart County detective who incorrectly identified latent fingerprints as those of a woman convicted of murder in 2002. The panel ruled that despite his training, the detective was still considered an expert on fingerprint identification.

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Supreme Court upholds man’s life sentence

An Elkhart County man who smoked synthetic marijuana then stabbed his girlfriend to death was unable to convince the Indiana Supreme Court that his sentence of life without parole was unconstitutional.

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COA: Clinics that gave tainted steroid must face suit

After a widespread fungal meningitis outbreak killed nearly a dozen Hoosiers, the Indiana Court of Appeals decided Monday that the providers who injected the injured parties with a contaminated steroid that was purchased from a third party can be found to be negligent under the Indiana Medical Malpractice Act.

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Indiana prosecutor seeking life for mom in kids’ deaths

A prosecutor announced Thursday that he's seeking a sentence of life without parole for an Indiana woman accused of smothering her two children after abducting them, saying such a sanction was appropriate "given the gravity of this horrible crime."

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Elkhart County judgment exceeds med-mal cap

A northern Indiana judgment in favor of a man ruled to have suffered a catastrophic medical malpractice injury that left him paralyzed is the latest case challenging the state’s cap on malpractice damages.

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