Under the second step of the double jeopardy test announced in the Indiana Supreme Court’s Wadle opinion, when assessing whether an offense is factually included, a court may examine only the facts as presented on the face of the charging instrument. Moreover, where ambiguities exist in a charging instrument about whether one offense is factually included in another, courts must construe those ambiguities in the defendant’s favor, and thus find a presumptive double jeopardy violation. In this event, the State can later rebut this presumption at the third step of the Wadle test.
Juvenile
C.M. v. Y.N., No. 23A-AD-1590 __ N.E.3d __ (Ind. Ct. App., March 6, 2024).
To comply with Ind. Code § 31-19-5-12(a) and to be entitled to notice of an adoption, a putative father must register with the Putative Father Registry not later than thirty days after the child is born or not later than the date of the filing of the adoption petition, whichever date occurs later.
In re N.E., No. 23A-JC-996, __ N.E.3d __ (Ind. Ct. App., Jan. 31, 2024).
A litigant’s failure to appear at a hearing should be addressed using the indirect contempt procedure which requires a rule to show cause and a hearing. The trial court erred by relying upon information obtained from the drug testing facility by its court reporter without her testimony under oath.
D.H. v. A.C., No. 23A-JT-1369, __ N.E.3d __ (Ind. Ct. App., Dec. 21, 2023).
If a child was conceived as a result of “an act of rape,” the victim-parent can seek to terminate the rights of the perpetrator-parent. “Act of rape” is defined in statute as (1) “an act described in” the rape statute or (2) an act of child molesting (where the victim is under fourteen) involving deadly force, a deadly weapon, serious injury, or drugging.
T.D. v. State, No. 23S-JV-110, __ N.E.3d __ (Ind., Oct. 6, 2023).
When a court fails to confirm or secure a waiver as required by the Juvenile Waiver Statute, Trial Rule 60(B) is the appropriate avenue for a juvenile to challenge their agreed delinquency adjudication. Because the judgment is voidable, rather than void, when the Juvenile Waiver Statute is violated, Rule 60(B)(8) is the proper vehicle for a juvenile to collaterally attack their adjudication.