Longtime Marion County judge set to retire
One of the first women elected as a trial judge in Indiana is preparing to leave the bench after 30 years.
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Child Advocates set lunchtime orientations
Child Advocates Inc. is offering additional downtown orientation sessions this month for those interested volunteering as a child advocate for Marion County youth in child services and the foster care system.
Mass. chief justice to speak at law school
The Indiana Supreme Court Lecture, “Anatomy of Freedom: John Adams on a Global Scale,” will feature as speaker the first female chief justice of the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court. The lecture begins at 5 p.m. March 25 at the Wynne Courtroom at Indiana University School of Law – Indianapolis. Margaret H. Marshall was appointed chief justice of the Supreme Judicial Court of Massachusetts in 1999. Originally from South Africa, she came to the U.S. to pursue her master’s degree at Harvard…
Court agrees on ID standard, split on ‘injury’
Requiring police identifications to be recorded isn't a standard the Indiana Court of Appeals is willing to adopt at the moment. A three-judge appellate panel agrees on that issue, but in a ruling today those judges disagree on a separate appeal claim about a victim's punch to the face. In Henry Lewis v. State, No. […]
New St. Joseph Superior judge appointed
Gov. Mitch Daniels has appointed South Bend attorney Margot Fisher Reagan to St. Joseph Superior Court to replace the retired Judge William T. Means.
Circuit Court finds no age discrimination
A doctor whose job was terminated as part of hospital restructuring didn’t provide enough evidence to show he was let go based on his age, the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals ruled today. In Laverne Tubergen v. St. Vincent Hospital and Health Care Center, Inc., No. 06-4304, Dr. Tubergen filed a discrimination complaint against St. Vincent under the Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967. In an effort to streamline its operations and become more efficient, the hospital hired James Houser as…
Former commissioner testifies against judge
A former Marion County commissioner took the stand against the judge she once worked for, hinting at a pattern of disorganization in his courtroom. However, she took most of the blame for an almost two-year delay in releasing a man who had been cleared of rape charges.
Volunteers needed for Talk to a Lawyer
The Indiana State Bar Association needs attorneys to volunteer for the Pro Bono Committee's annual "Talk to a Lawyer Today" effort on Jan. 19, which is Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Day.
Lawrence sworn in as District Judge
Just days after being unanimously confirmed by the U.S. Senate, Judge William T. Lawrence took the oath Tuesday to become a judge in the United States District Court, Southern District of Indiana. Chief Judge David F. Hamilton administered the oath in Judge Lawrence’s courtroom in the Birch Bayh Federal Building and U.S. Courthouse in Indianapolis.Judge Lawrence had served as a United States Magistrate Judge in the Southern District of Indiana since November 2002, and is the first magistrate judge in the…
SCOTUS denies 2 Indiana cases
The U.S. Supreme Court has declined to take two Indiana cases, including one that inspired the law requiring child molesters to register their addresses on a public database.In a list of certiorari denials released May 12, the nation’s high court announced it wouldn’t review the Hoosier cases Christopher Stevens v. Ed Buss, No. 07-7745, and Christopher J. Stephens v. Indiana, No. 07-9858. Both had been reviewed at the court’s private conference last week.Stevens is the case that inspired Zachary’s Law. He…
Court reverses Pelley convictions
The Indiana Court of Appeals has reversed the murder convictions of a Lakeville man accused of murdering his family almost 20 years ago as a teenager.But in doing so, the three-judge panel all but directly asked the Indiana Supreme Court to take on this issue of first impression and clarify an earlier ruling justices made. That ruling specifically refused to dismiss the case on Robert Pelley’s argument that a delay between charging and trial dates conflicted with his due process of…
Appeals court affirms murder convictions
The Indiana Court of Appeals affirmed a man’s convictions of murder, conspiracy to commit murder, and the finding that he is a habitual offender. In Charles D. Boney v. State of Indiana, No. 22A01-0607-CR-310, Boney was connected to the murder of Kim Camm and her two children at home by her husband, David. Boney provided the weapon David used to murder his family and was at the Camm’s home when the murder occurred. Boney raised several issues on appeal following his jury…
Chilean judge, ambassador visit ND law school
The first judge to prosecute former Chilean dictator Augusto Pinochet and an ambassador and special envoy to Sudan will speak at the Notre Dame Law School Friday.
Allen County judge faces misconduct charges
An Allen County judge is facing disciplinary charges for what is being described as misconduct in a fellow jurist’s courtroom that involved verbally berating members of a defendant’s family after a sentencing hearing.Allen Superior Judge Kenneth R. Scheibenberger has been charged by the Indiana Commission on Judicial Qualifications with four counts of misconduct, filed Tuesday as a formal notice of disciplinary proceedings. The document can be viewed here.The filed complaint states that on Nov. 30, 2007, Judge Scheibenberger suspended his court…
Courthouse preservation bill, others now law
Bills relating to a courthouse preservation advisory commission, inmate issues, probate, foreclosure notices, domestic violence, and invasion of privacy concerns have been signed into law in the last week.Among the bills that are of interest to the legal community are:SEA 78, regarding probate and trust matters, signed today; HEA 1379, regarding viatical settlements, signed today; SEA 227, regarding the renamed sexual assault victim advocate standards and certification board, signed today; SEA 62, regarding posting notice of foreclosure sales, signed today; SEA…
LLCs must have attorneys in federal court
Owners of limited liability companies must be represented by an attorney to appeal a decision in federal court, ruled the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals today.
High court’s e-ticket wins first place award
The Indiana Supreme Court's electronic Citation and Warning System won first place in the Cygnus 2008 Innovation Award for Software at the International Association of Chiefs of Police Conference in San Diego earlier this month, the court announced today.
Hammond legal aid clinic relocates
The legal aid clinic for the city of Hammond has moved just one mile away from its old home into a new space donated by law firm Rubino Ruman Crosmer Smith Sersic & Polen in Dyer.The clinic moved between Christmas and New Year’s.Lawyers who do work for the city or are on contract with the city are required to give hours to the clinic. The firm had lawyers who could be called on to help, which is how the idea came…
U.S. Chief Justice visits Notre Dame
The chief justice of the U.S. Supreme Court visited students at the Notre Dame Law School this morning for a one-day appointment to the James J. Clynes Visiting Chair at the school.
COA: Totality of facts support blood seizure
A blood sample seized by the state from an unconscious woman didn’t violate her rights under the Fourth Amendment because all of the circumstances surrounding the car accident involving the woman led to a fair probability she drove a car while drunk, the Indiana Court of Appeals ruled.In Samara J. Copas v. State of Indiana, No. 33A01-0801-CR-3, Samara Copas appealed the trial court’s denial of her motion to suppress a blood sample taken by the state after obtaining a search warrant. Copas…