The Senate Appropriations Committee heard HB 1110, sponsored by Sens. Steele, Grooms, and Randolph, adding various magistrates. This bill allows: the judges of the Clark circuit court to jointly appoint a third full-time magistrate; the judge of the Greene circuit court and the judge of the Greene superior court to jointly appoint one full-time magistrate; the judges of the … [Read more...] about Magistrates
Judicial Administration
Magistrates and criminal trials
The House Courts and Criminal Code Committee heard SB 137, sponsored by Rep. Fine and Rep. Slager, on magistrates and criminal trials, prohibiting a magistrate’s presiding at sentencing when (1) the magistrate had not also presided at trial and (2) the defendant objected to the magistrate presiding at sentencing. Author Sen. Randolph presented the bill to the Committee. A technical … [Read more...] about Magistrates and criminal trials
Service of process fees collected by a sheriff
The House Judiciary Committee heard SB 217, sponsored by Reps. Gutwein, McNamara, and Lawson, concerning service of process fees collected by a sheriff. Author Sen. Boots explained that this bill increases the service of process fee from $13 to $25 from a party requesting service of a writ, an order, a process, a notice, a tax warrant, or any other paper completed by the sheriff. … [Read more...] about Service of process fees collected by a sheriff
Appeals by the Attorney General
The House Courts and Criminal Code Committee heard SB 261, sponsored by Rep. Cox, allowing interlocutory criminal appeals by the Attorney General of a trial court’s order dismissing charges. Author Sen. Young presented the bill that was amended in the Senate to add a subsection (b) which would allow the State to challenge the sentence imposed in any appeal by a defendant, even if t … [Read more...] about Appeals by the Attorney General
Marion County Small Claims
The House Courts and Criminal Code Committee heard SB 523, Sen. R. Michael Young’s bill to make changes to the Marion County Small Claims courts, sponsored by Rep. Frizzell. Sen. Young explained that decisions by the Indiana Supreme Court and the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals on venue within the small claims court had adversely affected the caseload balances between the i … [Read more...] about Marion County Small Claims