Admission of drug test results on testimony of sponsoring witness, the lab’s quality assurance manager, without testimony of the lab scientist who performed the test or a showing of the latter’s unavailability, violated defendant’s confrontation rights.
Appeals
Salter v. State, No. 49A02-0808-CR-672, __ N.E.2d __ (Ind. Ct. App., June 19, 2005)
Downloading an image to a computer is not “creating a digitized image” under the child exploitation offense; the dissemination of matter harmful to minors offense was unconstitutionally vague as applied to defendant’s sending an image of his genitals to a sixteen year old with whom he could legally have consensual sexual relations.
Beldon v. State, No. 43A05-0805-CR-302, __ N.E.2d __ (Ind. Ct. App., May 21, 2009)
Fact that physician had a busy schedule, without a showing that she could not have rearranged the schedule or that she was subpoenaed, did not make her “unavailable” such that her videotaped deposition could be admitted without violating the Confrontation Clause.
Whatley v. State, No. 49A02-0809-CR-808, __ N.E.2d __ (Ind. Ct. App., May 21, 2009)
Fact church was used for some secular activities, such as Girl Scouts, did not change it into a “youth program facility” “drug free zone” supporting enhancement of cocaine sentence.
Indiana Patient's Compensation Fund v. Patrick, No. 49A02-0807-CV-614, ___ N.E.2d ___ (Ind. Ct. App., May 18, 2009)
Trial court properly characterized father’s claim for damages for emotional distress arising from the negligence of the medical personnel treating his adult son as independent of and in addition to the adult wrongful death claim.