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Wednesday, October 22, 2008
Ind. Decisions - "Court upholds decision on records in girl's death"
Yesterday's Court of Appeals decision in the case of In the Matter of T.B., and Charity B. v. Indiana Newspapers, Inc. (see ILB summary here) is the subject of a story by Jon Murray today in the Indianapolis Star. Some quotes:
The Indiana Court of Appeals on Tuesday upheld a Marion County judge's decision to open most juvenile records related to the abuse death of 3-year-old TaJanay Bailey.The earlier decision was In the Matter of K.B. and B.L.; A.B.L. (mother) v. Department of Child Services - ILB summary here. Here is a list of ILB entries on the Kalab Lay case.But the court's disagreement with the release of other records in the Bailey case and another recent ruling mean future requests from the media and the public will face tighter scrutiny.
The Bailey ruling involved TaJanay's death in Indianapolis on Nov. 27, less than a month after the state Department of Child Services had sent her home for a trial reunification, along with her younger brother.
Her mother, Charity Bailey, and Bailey's live-in boyfriend, Lawrence Green, both then 20, faced murder and neglect charges in TaJanay's death.
In the following weeks, Marion County juvenile court Judge Marilyn Moores granted requests by The Indianapolis Star and WXIN (Channel 59) for about 2,000 pages of confidential court and DCS records involving TaJanay and her mother. Bailey's public defenders appealed the rulings but failed to halt the records' release.
Citing the public's interest, the Court of Appeals affirmed Moores' decision to release the court and DCS files from two abuse or neglect cases involving TaJanay. Those made up the bulk of the records.
"We further agree with the juvenile court that The Star has a 'legitimate interest' in informing the public of the facts surrounding the death of (TaJanay)," says the ruling, written by Judge Terry A. Crone for the three-judge panel.
The appeals court reversed Moores' decision to release a transcript of the last juvenile court hearing before TaJanay's death and court records from Charity Bailey's two juvenile delinquency cases.
The ruling, which acknowledged that the records release couldn't be undone, was the second ruling this month to hold some juvenile records off-limits if they aren't directly connected with a child's death.
Another panel reversed a Vanderburgh County judge's decision to release records related to the DCS cases of two siblings of 3-year-old Kalab Lay, whose parents are accused of beating him to death in April.
Here is a list of ILB entries on the TaJanay Bailey case.
Posted by Marcia Oddi on October 22, 2008 09:18 AM
Posted to Ind. App.Ct. Decisions