Fifth Amendment - The Indiana Lawyer

Creating options: SCOTUS lets inverse condemnation suits in federal courts

October 30, 2019 | Olivia Covington

The June 21 decision in Knick v. Township of Scott, Pennsylvania, 588 U.S. ___ (2019), overturned precedent requiring property owners to file inverse condemnation actions in state court before bringing a federal action. Instead, the 5-4 majority opinion, written by Chief Justice John Roberts, determined the Fifth Amendment Takings Clause is triggered as soon as the government takes land without compensating the property owner.

Conviction affirmed for driver who stalked woman almost 70 miles

July 25, 2019 | Katie Stancombe

A man who followed a woman by car from Valparaiso to Warsaw has lost an appeal of his conviction and sentence for stalking. The Indiana Court of Appeals rejected his right-to-travel jury instruction arguments as well as his challenge to the evidence against him.

Contempt finding, 180-day sentence upheld against man who refused to testify

July 16, 2019

A man who was sentenced to six months in prison after refusing to testify at a theft and conspiracy trial has failed to convince the Indiana Court of Appeals to overturn the contempt finding against him.

9th Circuit weighs if climate change violates children’s rights

June 5, 2019

In a Portland, Oregon, courtroom packed with environmental activists, federal judges wrestled Tuesday with whether climate change violates the constitutional rights of young people who have sued the U.S. government over the use of fossil fuels.

Double jeopardy violation prompts reversal of man’s child molesting conviction

April 30, 2019

A man convicted for child molesting was granted relief from one of his convictions after an appellate panel agreed that his double jeopardy rights were violated when the state was permitted to amend a charge for which he had already been acquitted.

7th Circuit rules DOC sex offender program violates Constitution

April 26, 2019

Finding the disclosures provide information that any law enforcement agent “would love to have,” the 7^th Circuit Court of Appeals has ruled Indiana’s requirement that sex offender inmates give detailed accounts of their past actions violates the Constitution’s protections against self-incrimination.

5th Amendment smartphone privacy case goes before Supreme Court

April 18, 2019

It began in July 2017, when Katelin Seo was arrested on stalking-related charges and ordered to unlock her cellphone as part of the criminal investigation. Seo refused, invoking her Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination, and a flurry of constitutional and technology-related questions ensued.

Justices lengthen smartphone arguments, urge counsel to discuss mootness

March 18, 2019

A woman found in contempt for refusing to unlock her smartphone in a criminal investigation has informed the Indiana Supreme Court that her criminal cases have been resolved. Now, the high court wants to hear arguments over whether her ongoing appeal is moot.

Father’s assertion of Fifth Amendment rights splits COA

February 18, 2019

Even though the Indiana Court of Appeals had previously affirmed that the youngsters in this case were children in need of services, in part because of allegations of a father’s sexual abuse, it has reversed the termination of parental rights because the requirement that the father participate in a sex offender treatment program violated his Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination.

Supreme Court to travel, invites amici in smartphone privacy case

December 20, 2018

The Indiana Supreme Court will hit the road early next year to hear oral argument in a first impression case involving smartphone privacy. Justices also have invited amicus parties in the case as they seek to determine whether law enforcement can force a woman to unlock her phone as part of a criminal investigation.

Justices grant transfer to smartphone self-incrimination appeal

December 12, 2018

The Indiana Supreme Court granted one petition to transfer last week, agreeing to hear a case of first impression in which law enforcement officers were barred from forcing a woman to unlock her smartphone as part of a criminal investigation.

Admitted evidence won’t be suppressed in OWI case, COA affirms

November 16, 2018

The Indiana Court of Appeals affirmed the denial of a Columbus woman’s motion to suppress evidence admitted related to her driving while intoxicated charges.

Judge: White House must return CNN’s Acosta’s credential

November 16, 2018

A federal judge Friday ordered the Trump administration to immediately return the White House press credentials of CNN reporter Jim Acosta, saying Acosta suffered “irreparable harm” from the decision to bar him.

Amish couple sues 2 agencies over photos their faith forbids

September 6, 2018

An Amish couple with 13 children sued the federal government on Wednesday, accusing officials of violating their constitutional rights by insisting that they provide photographs of themselves before the Canadian wife’s request to become a permanent U.S. resident can be approved.

Smartphone privacy ruling tests how technology affects rights

September 4, 2018

A consequential Indiana Court of Appeals ruling on an issue of first impression last month marked one of the first times state courts have been asked to reconcile civil rights with advancing technology. The question: considering the personal nature of the contents of a person’s smartphone, can an individual be forced to unlock a smartphone without violating the Fifth Amendment?

Smartphone privacy first impression case splits COA

August 21, 2018

Law enforcement cannot force a Hamilton County woman to unlock her smartphone as part of criminal investigation because doing so would violate Fifth Amendment rights against self-incrimination, a divided panel of the Indiana Court of Appeals held on an issue of first impression that combined constitutional law with technological advancements.

Mueller seeks immunity for 5 witnesses in Manafort case

July 18, 2018

The special counsel in the Russia investigation is seeking immunity for five potential witnesses in the upcoming trial of President Donald Trump’s former campaign chairman, Paul Manafort. The five individuals have indicated they won’t testify or provide other information “on the basis of their privilege against self-incrimination,” special counsel Robert Mueller’s office told a federal judge in Virginia in a court filing Tuesday.

SEO Pleading the 5th mode (IL Illustration/Brad Turner)

Court order to access smartphone stirs 5th amendment concerns

May 15, 2018

When does an action become testimonial? What role do technological advances play in Fifth Amendment analyses? When can law enforcement compel people to unlock their cellphones without infringing on constitutional rights? The Indiana Court of Appeals is grappling with those questions as it considers a Fifth Amendment case of first impression.

DOC sex offender program faces Fifth Amendment test

October 31, 2017

The question of whether Indiana’s treatment program for convicted sex offenders is constitutional is not only providing a case of first impression for the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals but could also give the U.S. Supreme Court the opportunity to clear the confusion over when a prison violates an inmate’s Fifth Amendment rights against self-incrimination.

Cross-border slaying: Can dead teen’s family sue US agent?

September 21, 2017

Whether and when constitutional rights afforded American citizens extend to non-citizens outside the nation's boundaries were at issue Wednesday when a federal appeals court heard arguments about the cross-border shooting death of a Mexican teenager by a U.S. Border Patrol agent.

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