Louis H. Howard, Jr. v. State of Indiana (mem. dec.)
90A02-1610-CR-2380
| Ind. Ct. App. | Mar 29, 2017Background
- In July 2015, Howard pled guilty to two Level 6 felonies (theft and counterfeiting) and was sentenced to consecutive terms; the court directly placed him on home detention as an alternative to DOC and ordered two years of probation after completion.
- Howard began serving home detention on September 17, 2015.
- The State filed a Verified Petition for Revocation of Suspended Sentence and Probation on November 16, 2015 (alleging new offenses); a second petition was filed August 22, 2016 and later amended on September 7, 2016 to add further charges.
- At a combined fact-finding hearing, the trial court found the State failed on the first petition but succeeded on the amended second petition and ordered Howard to serve the balance of his sentence in the DOC, with credit for pretrial confinement.
- On appeal Howard conceded he received notice of probation revocation but argued the petitions did not give sufficient notice that the State sought revocation of his direct placement on home detention.
- The Court of Appeals concluded the petitions—titled and worded to seek revocation of the suspended sentence and probation—gave sufficient notice that the State sought revocation of the direct placement, and affirmed.
Issues
| Issue | Plaintiff's Argument | Defendant's Argument | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| Whether the State gave sufficient notice it sought revocation of Howard's direct placement on home detention | Petition titled to revoke suspended sentence and probation put Howard on notice revocation of placement was sought | Howard: petition did not explicitly seek revocation of direct placement on home detention | Court: petition wording was sufficient under Christie; notice was adequate, appeal affirmed |
Key Cases Cited
- Christie v. State, 939 N.E.2d 691 (Ind. Ct. App. 2011) (holding revocation of a suspended sentence implies revocation of a court-ordered community-corrections placement)
- McCauley v. State, 22 N.E.3d 743 (Ind. Ct. App. 2014) (example of petition expressly styled to revoke direct placement and/or probation)
- Purcell v. State, 721 N.E.2d 220 (Ind. 1999) (explaining statutory use of “suspend” for community-corrections placement differs from a traditional suspended sentence)
- Shaffer v. State, 755 N.E.2d 1193 (Ind. Ct. App. 2001) (discussing suspension concept in community-corrections context)