Trial court properly dismissed for failure to state a claim a complaint by defendants that the rights of indigent criminal defendants are being ignored because the attorneys assigned as public defenders are burdened by unmanageable caseloads and not providing actual assistance of counsel as required by the United States Constitution and the Indiana Constitution.
Criminal
McMiller v. State, No. 49A02-1706-CR-1192, __ N.E.3d __ (Ind. Ct. App., December 18, 2017).
Although the defendant deprived the restaurant of the value of the food and drink consumed when he could not pay the bill, the conviction was reversed because the state failed to prove that he had the requisite intent to commit theft.
Fearman v. State, No. 49A04-1704-CR-802, __ N.E.3d __ (Ind. Ct. App., Dec. 14, 2017).
Defendant’s multiple acts of contemptuous behavior constitute a single contemptuous episode, and his sentence must be reduced to a six-month sentence because that is the maximum penalty allowed without a jury trial.
Sansbury v. State, No. 49A05-1704-CR-793, __ N.E.3d __ (Ind. Ct. App., Dec. 11, 2017).
Although vehicle was lawfully impounded, conviction for carrying a handgun without a license reversed because police did not conduct a valid inventory search of the impounded vehicle.
J.R. v. State, No. 49A02-1704-JV-754, __ N.E.3d __ (Ind. Ct. App., Dec. 8, 2017).
Conviction of a juvenile for possession of a handgun without a license was vacated because Ind. Code 35-47-2-1 applies only to adults, and a person under the age of eighteen is not eligible for a handgun license.