Placement of juvenile in DOC stands after appeal
A teenager now under the wardship of the Indiana Department of Correction lost arguments Wednesday that the decision to declare him a ward of the DOC was an abuse of discretion.
Juvenile Case
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Legislative study committee hears juvenile offender concerns
Numerous stakeholders offered input and answers Thursday during a legislative committee meeting addressing laws and policies concerning the adjudication and rehabilitation of juvenile offenders.
Video hearings did not result in unfair or harmful juvenile proceedings
Two juveniles will remain wards of the Indiana Department of Correction after the Indiana Supreme Court found that while their participation in their modification hearings through Skype violated an administrative rule, it did not cause a fundamental error.
Indiana boy, 15, sentenced in uncle’s death after house fire
A 15-year-old southern Indiana boy has been sentenced to 17½ years in prison after pleading guilty in a house fire that resulted in his uncle’s death.
Appellate court affirms TPR case involving drug abuse
A mother struggling with drug abuse did not convince the Indiana Court of Appeals on Tuesday that her parental rights for her two sons should not be terminated.
Porter County to offer genetic tests for juvenile offenders
The juvenile court for northwestern Indiana’s Porter County is partnering with a laboratory to offer genetic testing for young offenders to help see what psychiatric medications might help them.
Teen declared delinquent after in fire at warehouse complex
A teenager charged with arson in a fire that swept a vacant warehouse complex in western Indiana nearly four months after another blaze damaged the same site has been declared a delinquent child.
Indiana boy, 15, to be tried as adult in 2 siblings’ deaths
An Indiana boy who was 13 when he allegedly killed his two young siblings will be tried as an adult in their suffocation deaths.
Last of 4 women charged as teens in torture slaying released
The last of four women charged as teenagers with the 1992 torture murder of a southern Indiana 12-year-old has been released from prison.
COA: 100-year sentence for juvenile not a constitutional violation
A DeKalb County man who as a juvenile pleaded guilty to two murders and was sent to prison for an aggregate 100 years was denied post-conviction relief after the Indiana Court of Appeals found his sentence did not violate constitutional protections against cruel and unusual punishment because he will be eligible for parole in 2040.
Prosecutors want boy, 15, tried as adult in slayings
Prosecutors want to try a 15-year-old Indianapolis boy as an adult in last week’s fatal shootings of two teenage siblings.
Teen murder wavier to adult court affirmed; police custody issue splits COA
A juvenile court’s rulings in a murder case implicating a 15-year-old boy who had gone to the police station to answer questions after he had been treated for stab wounds were upheld Monday by the Indiana Court of Appeals.
Student with gun stopped outside Muncie Central High School
Muncie police say a 15-year-old student in possession of a gun was arrested outside a city high school on Wednesday.
Boy who shot trooper dad to get mental health treatment
An Indiana boy who authorities say shot and wounded his state-trooper father because he was upset that his parents took away his video games will get mental health treatment at a secure facility.
Man accused of labor trafficking Indiana minors in Kentucky
An Indianapolis man has been charged with child labor law violations after allegedly bringing 12 children from Indiana to Kentucky to sell candy for him.
Lawsuit claims DCS failing to protect children and inflicting further harm
Children going into the state’s child welfare system end up more broken, attorneys suing the Department of Child Services say, because they are not being provided with therapy and treatment to help them heal. Rather, the lawyers contend, DCS is just finding beds to stick the kids in and forgetting about their other needs.
Juvenile incarceration, crime falling nationwide
Advocates say alternatives to detention are benefiting kids, and Indiana is in line with statistics showing that across the country, youth incarceration and juvenile crime are declining.
DCS director claims lawsuit is ‘misleading and harmful’
Claiming outside advocates were relying on “an inflammatory and outdated account,” Indiana Department of Child Services director Terry Stigdon released a video statement Monday in response to the lawsuit filed last week charging the state agency with inflicting further harm on children entering the foster care system.
Introduced, debated but not passed in the General Assembly
Not every bill introduced gains the traction needed to get to the governor’s desk. Many times, a proposed new law fails to get a committee hearing, or it stalls once it reaches the floor. Other times, as a measure progresses through the Statehouse, it ignites disagreements that are ultimately too much to overcome.
Witness against Gary teen in mom’s slaying gets time served
A young man who was a key witness in the case against a Gary teenager accused of stabbing her mother more than 60 times has been sentenced to time served.