Court upholds imposition of court costs
The Indiana Court of Appeals found a man’s pro se motion to correct erroneous sentence was not the proper channel to challenge the imposition of court costs following his murder trial.
Murder
Articles
Appellate court upholds life sentence
Duane Turner will spend the rest of his life in prison for murdering a Ball State student in 1994. The Indiana Court of Appeals rejected his claims that his sentence was unconstitutional and that his attorney was ineffective.
Arguments for pretrial release found to be ‘unquestionably inappropriate’
The Indiana Supreme Court has dismissed without prejudice a request by a defendant to be released from jail while awaiting his third murder trial.
Attorneys ask justices to release Camm while awaiting retrial
Attorneys for David Camm, a former Indiana State Trooper twice convicted of killing his wife and two children, are asking the Indiana Supreme Court to order a special judge to release Camm from his pre-trial detention.
Previous testimony allowed in murder trial
A witness’s testimony from a man’s murder trial and the deposition testimony of another unavailable witness were correctly allowed at the man’s second murder trial, the Indiana Court of Appeals held Tuesday.
7th Circuit vacates habeas petition, orders further proceedings
Although a District Court’s grant of the habeas petition of a man claiming he didn’t have an impartial jury was reversed by the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals, the case was sent back to the lower court for the state to show that the jury was not prejudiced.
Bunch freed after 16 years in prison
Kristine Bunch, the woman who claimed she was wrongfully convicted of killing her son in a fire in 1995, was released from prison following a bond hearing Wednesday in Decatur County. The Indiana Court of Appeals reversed her convictions and ordered a new trial on the murder charge.
The case against Bei Bei Shuai
Marion County Prosecutor Terry Curry never expected the prosecution of Chinese immigrant Bei Bei Shuai to become a cause célèbre. It also has become a battleground over prosecutorial discretion and how far a defense attorney can go in representing her client.
Woman unable to prove attorney actions were prejudicial
A woman’s petition for post-conviction relief on the grounds her trial counsel was ineffective was denied by the Indiana Court of Appeals.
Justices decline to take Decatur County arson case
The Indiana Supreme Court Wednesday unanimously decided to deny the state’s petition for transfer of Kristine Bunch v. State, in which a divided Court of Appeals ruled Kristine Bunch is entitled to a new trial. Bunch was convicted of the murder of her son, who died in a fire in their mobile home.
Judges uphold 11-year-old’s reckless homicide adjudication
The Indiana Court of Appeals affirmed a Morgan County boy’s adjudication for shooting his younger brother while the two were home alone. The 11-year-old claimed that the juvenile court abused its discretion in admitting his statement to the investigating officer at the evidentiary hearing.
Divided court affirms life without parole for 17-year-old who killed younger brother
A 3-2 decision of the Indiana Supreme Court upheld a sentence of life without parole for a 17-year-old who killed his 10-year-old brother while babysitting and later dumped his body near a school in Rising Sun.
Justices reduce caregiver’s sentence in child’s killing
The Indiana Supreme Court reduced the sentence of a woman who, along with her boyfriend, was convicted in the events that led to the murder of the woman’s 2-year-old cousin while in her care.
245-year sentence affirmed in Hovey Street slayings
The gunman who pleaded guilty to four murders in the 3200 block of Hovey Street in Indianapolis was properly given and deserved a 245-year sentence for the crimes, the Indiana Court of Appeals ruled Friday.
Judges affirm 65-year murder sentence
Nothing about the defendant’s “extremely violent character” merited the Indiana Court of Appeals to reduce his murder sentence, the appellate judges ruled Friday.
Man who killed girlfriend may be retried for reckless homicide
The post-conviction court erred in denying Andrew McWhorter relief when he challenged his conviction of voluntary manslaughter in connection to the death of his girlfriend, the Indiana Court of Appeals concluded. McWhorter may not be retried on the same charge, but may face retrial for reckless homicide.
Judges disagree over impact of mental illness label at sentencing
7th Circuit Court of Appeals Judge Diane Wood believed that Michael Dean Overstreet, who was convicted of killing Franklin College student Kelly Eckart in 1997, was prejudiced by his attorneys’ decisions at sentencing regarding which experts should testify about his mental illness.
Judges deny bail for man charged with killing 2 children
The Evansville man accused of setting fire to a home he shared with his girlfriend and her two children – which killed the children – and then fleeing will remain in jail awaiting his August trial, the Indiana Court of Appeals held.
Supreme Court affirms death sentence in 2001 rape, murder
A man whose death sentence and murder and rape convictions previously were reversed on appeal to the Indiana Supreme Court remains condemned after the justices on Thursday affirmed a trial court’s denial of post-conviction relief.
Man loses insanity defense appeal
A Marion County court correctly rejected the insanity defense entered by a man who suffers from bipolar disorder and alcoholism in his attempted murder bench trial, the Indiana Supreme Court ruled.