There was no search when the traffic stop officer “needed to speak with the passenger and lowered his head down to her level” and, “[i]n the process, . . . saw a gun that was plainly visible between the driver’s seat and center console.”
Supreme
Lemmon V. Harris, No. 52S02-1011-CV-642, __ N.E.2d __ (Ind., June 28, 2011)
1994 sex offender’s transformation “by operation of law” into sexually violent predator under 2007 legislation did not violate Indiana ex post facto protections or Indiana separation of powers provision.
Moore V. State, No. 49S04-1101-CR-24, __ N.E.2d __ (Ind. June 28, 2011)
Defendant, a passenger in a car “in a state of intoxication caused by the person’s use of alcohol or a controlled substance,” was properly convicted of public intoxication, because a vehicle stopped along a highway is “public place or a place of public resort.”
Garcia-Torres V. State, No. 64S03-0912-CR-550, __ N.E.2d __ (Ind. June 30, 2011)
Defendant’s consent to the swab of his cheek for DNA was voluntary, so the swab did not violate the Fourth Amendment; further, a Pirtle advisement was not warranted before the swab was taken.
Ind. Patient’s Comp. Fund V. Brown, No. 49S02-1106-CT-388, __ N.E.2d __ (Ind., June 29, 2011)
Under the Indiana Adult Wrongful Death Statute (“AWDS”), Ind. Code § 34-23-1-2, judgment can include expenses of administration, contingent attorney fees, and loss of services.