Articles

Competition concludes at finals

Following the We the People: The Citizen and the Constitution mock congressional hearing state finals, which took place Dec. 12-13 for high school students and Dec. 14 for middle school students, organizers announced that a team from Munster High School will represent Indiana at the national competition held in Washington, D.C., in April 2011.

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Judges: DNA admittance was harmless error

The Indiana Court of Appeals addressed for the first time today the admissibility of DNA evidence when a defendant can’t be excluded from a possibly infinite number of people matching the crime-scene DNA.

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Judges affirm complaint is time-barred

Although a trial court shouldn’t have adhered to its local rule because it failed to achieve “the ultimate end of orderly and speedy justice,” the Indiana Court of Appeals affirmed the lower court’s finding that a woman’s claim against her deceased husband’s former employer was time-barred.

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Judge Mathias recognized for civics education

Indiana Court of Appeals Judge Paul D. Mathias received the Indiana Bar Foundation’s William G. Baker Award Dec. 12 for his work with civics education. Judge Mathias was cited for his work with the We the People program at the state level and in the 3rd Congressional District in Northeast Indiana.

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Appeals court recalls OWI decision

The Indiana Court of Appeals vacated a decision handed down Dec. 9 in which the court was split on the dismissal of a man’s operating while intoxicated charges. The issue was whether the charges should have been dismissed because the defendant didn’t know what vehicle he needed to defend against operating based on the charging information.

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COA rules in favor of town on breach of contract claim

The Indiana Court of Appeals reversed partial summary judgment to a city that collected a lower monthly bill rate than what was required for wastewater treatment from a town for 15 years and then sued to recover more than $500,000 it believed was owed to it. The city never informed the town the sewage treatment rate increased or that it was embroiled in a lawsuit over the matter.

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Justices grant two civil cases, deny 27 appeals

The Indiana Supreme Court has accepted two cases, one involving how public safety officials notify the driving public about icy road conditions and a second case delving into what state law requires when it comes to property tax changing land annexations.

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COA divided on dismissal of OWI charges

The Indiana Court of Appeals split on whether a defendant’s operating while intoxicated charges should have been dismissed because the charging information didn’t let the man know what vehicle he needed to defend against operating.

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Appellate court to hear arguments in Fishers

The Indiana Court of Appeals hits the road Friday to visit Hamilton Southeastern High School in Fishers for oral arguments in an interlocutory appeal involving the denial of a motion to suppress.

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Appellate court rules traffic stop legal

A police officer had reasonable suspicion to stop the car of a man who parked illegally in a handicapped spot after the car made it on to the street, ruled the Indiana Court of Appeals.

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COA: student loan funds exempt from garnishment

The Court of Appeals today found that student loan funds that had been deposited in a personal account were exempt when it came to whether those funds could be taken from a defendant’s bank account to satisfy a judgment regarding legal fees the defendant owed to the plaintiff.

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Court reverses because of DCS notification policy

The Indiana Court of Appeals has reversed the parental right termination decision made by a trial court, ruling that both the court and Indiana Department of Child Services in Porter County denied a biological father his due process by not notifying him of CHINS proceedings that ultimately led to his paternal rights being taken away.

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Judges uphold denying visitation to ex-partner

The Indiana Court of Appeals ruled today that lawmakers didn’t intend to allow parents to establish joint custody with third parties under Indiana Code Section 31-17-2-3 by simply filing a joint petition with a trial court. Doing so would allow parents and third parties to circumvent the requirements of the Adoption Act.

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