High court won’t make unanimous jury requirement retroactive
The Supreme Court ruled Monday that prisoners who were convicted by non-unanimous juries before the high court barred the practice a year ago don’t need to be retried.
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Man convicted of child porn not entitled to relief over criminal procedure rule, restitution dispute
A debate over a federal criminal procedure rule and a restitution order did not sway a 7th Circuit Court of Appeals panel, which upheld a man’s conviction and sentence for child pornography.
COA reverses narcotic conviction for insufficient evidence
The Indiana Court of Appeals has vacated a man’s felony conviction for possessing a narcotic, agreeing with both the defendant and the state that the substance found in the man’s possession was not actually a narcotic.
Lake Co. father of drowned brothers pleads guilty to neglect charges
An Indiana man pleaded guilty Wednesday to two counts of neglect of a dependent resulting in serious bodily injury in the drownings of his two sons.
Ponzi schemer Cochran escalates fight for early release on COVID grounds
Jim Cochran, the former Indianapolis businessman serving a 25-year prison term for his role in the massive Fair Finance Ponzi scheme, is asking a Chicago appeals court for early release on the grounds that his health problems could make contracting COVID-19 lethal and that he has undergone a religious conversion that no longer makes him a risk to society.
Eastern Indiana woman gets 55 years in slaying of child’s father
A judge sentenced an eastern Indiana woman to 55 years in prison Tuesday after a jury convicted her of murder in the shooting death of her child’s father.
Supreme Court skeptical of low-level crack offender’s case
Crack cocaine trafficking kingpins convicted more than a decade ago can ask courts to reduce their prison terms under a 2018 federal law. The Supreme Court on Tuesday sounded skeptical that people convicted of older low-level crack crimes can do the same.
SCOTUS denies juvenile LWOP sentence appeal in 1994 Ball State murder
The United States Supreme Court waited exactly three years to reject the appeal petition of a defendant sentenced to life without parole for a murder he committed near Ball State University 27 years ago when he was 17.
Attorney suspended 90 days after second domestic violence conviction
A Logansport lawyer who was convicted for a second time of beating his wife will have his law license suspended for 90 days with automatic reinstatement, the Indiana Supreme Court has ruled.
COA upholds felony domestic battery conviction for man who made wife ‘see stars’
A man convicted of felony domestic battery against his wife failed to convince the Indiana Court of Appeals that his wife did not suffer “moderate bodily injury” raising his crime to a felony level.
Man guilty of murder for killing groom at Indianapolis bachelor party
A jury has convicted a man of murder in the 2019 shooting death of a man celebrating his bachelor party at an Indianapolis pub.
New Castle woman pleads guilty in mother’s suffocation death
A central Indiana woman has pleaded guilty to killing her mother, whose body was found wrapped in plastic two weeks after she was suffocated inside her apartment.
In third appeal of burglary case, COA rules released defendant can’t be resentenced
Taking his case to the Indiana Court of Appeals for a third time, a man who served his sentence for burglary convictions and was released will not return to prison after the appellate court determined the trial court lacked authority to order the man’s resentencing.
Juvenile lifer who set precedent sentenced to life again
In reviewing Evan Miller’s case, the U.S. Supreme Court banned mandatory life without parole sentences for juveniles — saying judges and juries should consider the special factors of youth — a decision that eventually led to inmates across the country getting a chance at release. But Miller will not get that chance.
Justices toss suppression of drug evidence in home-detention search
A defendant sentenced to home detention waived his rights protecting him against searches and seizures even without reasonable suspicion, the Indiana Supreme Court ruled Friday, overturning the suppression of evidence found during a home-detention search.
Man charged in pastor’s wife’s slaying sentenced to 29 years
A man charged in connection with the fatal shooting of an Indianapolis pastor’s pregnant wife in 2015 has been sentenced to 29 years in prison under a plea deal in which he agreed to testify against two co-defendants.
High court moves away from leniency for minors who murder
After more than a decade in which the Supreme Court moved gradually toward more leniency for minors convicted of murder, the justices on Thursday moved the other way.
After George Floyd ex-cop’s conviction, AG Garland opens Minneapolis police probe
Attorney General Merrick Garland is expected to announce that the Justice Department is opening a sweeping investigation into policing practices in Minneapolis a day after a former officer was convicted in the killing of George Floyd.
Justices accept resignation of suspended Decatur lawyer
A northern Indiana lawyer who two years ago was suspended and jailed for forging a judge’s signature on a phony divorce order and attempting to coopt a deputy prosecutor’s identity has resigned from the practice of law rather than face a subsequent attorney discipline complaint.
Marion Co. Prosecutor’s Office accepting petitions for wrongful conviction reviews
The Marion County Prosecutor’s Office is officially accepting conviction review petitions as part of its new Conviction Integrity Unit.