COA: Despite driver’s admission to smoking meth, state failed to prove OWI
A man who told Indiana State Police that he had smoked methamphetamine hours before he was pulled over has had his operating while intoxicated conviction reversed.
Indiana Court of Appeals
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Indiana Court Decisions: June 16-28, 2022
Read Indiana appellate court decisions from the most recent reporting period.
‘I am grateful’: Najam recounts rich judicial career ahead of COA retirement
Court of Appeals of Indiana Judge Edward Najam recently sat down with Indiana Lawyer to reminisce about his lengthy judicial and legal career ahead of his retirement this summer.
Fort Wayne attorney loses sanctions appeal
An Indiana attorney who didn’t show up for a rescheduled deposition because he was “fully booked” has failed to convince the Court of Appeals of Indiana that the sanctions imposed against him were improper.
COA rejects challenge to meth conviction, sentence
A man found sitting on a container of meth has failed in his appeal of both his possession conviction and his eight-plus-year sentence.
Justices split on whether unruly defendants must be told they can return to court if they behave
A split Indiana Supreme Court has denied transfer in a case involving an unruly defendant, disagreeing on whether trial courts are required to inform disruptive individuals who have been removed from the courtroom that they can reclaim their right to be present if they behave.
COA awards city of Carmel attorney fees in dispute over mayor’s emails
A lengthy legal dispute over obtaining emails from Carmel’s mayor stemming from a local summer camp incident has led to the city winning attorney fees twice.
COA revives ‘new intervenors’ challenge in South Bend police phone call recording litigation
Describing the litigation as taking a “convoluted procedural path” through state and federal courts, the Court of Appeals of Indiana remanded the yearslong dispute in South Bend over surreptitiously recorded phone conversations of certain police officers after finding the fundamental question of whether the state or federal wiretap laws were violated had never been answered.
Appellate court adopts new-crime exception, partially reverses for motorist who wasn’t read Miranda rights
A motorist who denied hitting a police officer’s car but who offered the officer money to pay for the damages won a partial reversal after the Court of Appeals of Indiana found he was subject to custodial interrogation without being given Miranda warnings. But the COA did not allow the suppression of the alleged bribery based on the federal new-crime exception.
COA rejects evidentiary challenges, upholds murder conviction
With the dying words of his victim and cellphone records against him, an Indiana murderer failed to get his conviction overturned by the Court of Appeals of Indiana on Thursday.
Grant of PCR petition upheld after lawyer withheld disciplinary actions
Despite being “caught at the scene of the crimes,” the Court of Appeals of Indiana has affirmed post-conviction relief for a man who pleaded guilty to burglary based on the advice of an attorney who was hiding the fact that he was planning to resign from the Indiana bar for disciplinary reasons.
COA upholds involuntary mental health commitment
A man who challenged his involuntary mental health commitment after he had already been released failed to convince the Court of Appeals of Indiana that he shouldn’t have been held against his will.
Judge’s comment doesn’t require reversal of 15-year sentencing enhancement, COA rules
Despite a judge’s comment that a defendant “dodged a bullet” in avoiding a murder conviction, the St. Joseph County man cannot avoid a 15-year sentencing enhancement on his conviction of reckless homicide with the use of a firearm, the Court of Appeals of Indiana has concluded.
COA: Volunteered evidence shouldn’t be suppressed despite officer’s Miranda violation
The Court of Appeals of Indiana has reversed an order to suppress drug evidence found after a Miranda violation, finding state and federal constitutions don’t require suppression of the physical fruits of evidence obtained through the violation after the suspect volunteered the information.
Armed robber loses appeal of conviction, sentence
A man convicted of one armed robbery based in part on his ties to another potential robbery has failed to secure relief from either his conviction or sentence.
COA reverses mother’s neglect conviction after 13-year-old was left alone for weekend
A mother convicted of neglect of a dependent after she left her son home alone for the weekend did not actually commit that crime, the Court of Appeals of Indiana ruled in a Friday reversal.
Justices split, find ‘jurisdictional gap’ in child molesting offense committed by minor who is now an adult
Neither the juvenile court nor the criminal court has jurisdiction over a man who allegedly committed child molesting while still a minor but whom the state did not attempt to criminally charge until he was over 21, creating a “jurisdictional gap” in cases where an offender ages out of the juvenile system, according to the Indiana Supreme Court. But the court’s majority holding was challenged by two dissenting justices, who argued the Indiana Legislature “would never have intended” for the alleged criminal act to go unpunished.
Inmate sanctioned by COA for continued filing of frivolous lawsuits
Fed up with the increasing burden an Indiana inmate has placed on the courts with frivolous lawsuits, the Court of Appeals of Indiana has instructed trial courts to not put up with the prisoner’s misconduct any longer.
Indiana justices reverse ruling permitting deposition of child sex abuse victims
The Indiana Supreme Court has swiped at a Court of Appeals of Indiana ruling that allowed a defendant accused of child sex crimes to take the deposition of his accuser, concluding that a disputed state statute preventing such depositions does not conflict with the Indiana Trial Rules.
COA reverses new trial order, reinstates jury verdict against YMCA in personal injury case
The Court of Appeals of Indiana has reversed the grant of a new trial in a personal injury case involving a local YMCA and has reinstated a jury verdict against the YMCA after it determined the trial court abused its discretion.