Juvenile Court lacked subject-matter jurisdiction when it adjudicated juvenile as a delinquent child for dangerously possessing a firearm, an act that would not be an offense if committed by an adult.
Criminal
Harris v. State, No. 20A-CR-732, __ N.E.3d __ (Ind. Ct. App., Nov. 17, 2020).
Trial court acted within its discretion when it accepted a guilty plea but explained it would not be accepted until review of the PSI; then after review of the PSI determined the plea agreement was unacceptable and allowed the defendant to revoke the guilty plea before trial.
Jackson v. State, No. 20A-CR-385, __ N.E.3d __ (Ind. Ct. App., Nov. 19, 2020).
When a defendant failed to remove his hands from his pockets and sit down, there was insufficient evidence of physical efforts by the defendant to resist law enforcement and therefore the “forcibly” element of the offense of resisting law enforcement could not be satisfied.
Williams v. State, 20A-CR-1209, __ N.E.3d __ (Ind. Ct. App., Nov. 12, 2020).
Indiana’s theft statute does not criminalize the taking of lost or mislaid property.
Larkin v. State, 19A-CR-2705, __ N.E.3d __ (Ind. Ct. App., Nov. 09, 2020).
For the jury to receive an instruction on alleged lesser-included offense, the offense must either be an inherently or factually included offense to the principal charge and there must be a serious evidentiary dispute regarding the element that distinguishes the lesser offense from the principal charge. Moreover, a defendant must receive fair notice of the charge against which he must defend at trial.