Articles

Affirming juvenile DOC placement, COA seeks effective counsel guidance

A 15-year-old who had multiple instances of violent rage and who could no longer be controlled by his parents was properly placed in the Department of Correction, an Indiana Court of Appeals panel found. But judges also used the case to ask the Indiana Supreme Court for guidance on measuring the effectiveness of counsel in similar juvenile cases.

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Elkhart inmate files wrongful conviction petition claiming Elkhart Police coerced his statement

Nearly 13 years after he was found guilty of a murder he claims he did not commit and following a subsequent series of failed attempts at appellate and post-conviction relief, a developmentally disabled man has petitioned the Elkhart Circuit Court to overturn his conviction on the basis of new evidence he says proves his confession was coerced and his counsel was ineffective. Andrew Royer filed a petition to vacate the judgment against him on Wednesday.

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Vanderburgh County murderer loses PCR bid

A Vanderburgh County man convicted of beating his girlfriend to death has lost his bid for post-conviction relief from the Indiana Court of Appeals, which found he did not receive ineffective assistance of trial counsel.

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7th Circuit upholds LWOP sentence for convicted murderer

An Indiana man convicted of murdering his ex-wife with a crowbar will continue to serve his life without parole sentence after the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals denied the habeas relief he sought on the basis of ineffective assistance of trial counsel.

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7th Circuit remands drug conviction for deficient counsel hearing

The U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Indiana must hold a hearing on a convicted drug offender’s motion for collateral relief after the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals determined the offender presented evidence to justify a hearing on deficient counsel performance.

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7th Circuit orders new sentencing hearing for man on death row

A man convicted in a triple homicide and subsequently sentenced to death will get a new sentencing hearing after the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals determined Friday the fact he was wearing a stun belt during the penalty phase of his trial may have impacted his jury.

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7th Circuit affirms denial of sentencing relief

Though his appellate counsel presented an underdeveloped Appellate Rule 7(B) resentencing argument to the Indiana Court of Appeals, a North Vernon man isn’t entitled to relief because his sentence is not inappropriate, the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals ruled Monday.

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Court affirms denial of PCR for drug offender

The Indiana Supreme Court has affirmed the denial of an Elkhart woman’s petition for post-conviction relief, finding her ineffective assistance of counsel argument cannot prevail under Indiana law.

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7th Circuit affirms denial of habeas relief

The 7th Circuit Court of Appeals has affirmed the denial of a man’s petition for habeas relief after finding he waived his argument of ineffective assistance of counsel by not raising that argument in his habeas petition.

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