For the first time ever, the Indiana Court of Appeals will conduct a hearing in Starke County this morning. As part of the “Appeals on Wheels” program, the court will hear an oral argument at the Knox High School auditorium starting at 10:30 CST.
The case is Jacob T. Kingma v. State of Indiana. Kingma was charged with the Level 6 felony of operating while intoxicated endangering a person, following a traffic stop in Frankfort in August of 2018. He allegedly failed two out of three field sobriety tests and admitted to recent marijuana use.
His driver’s license was later suspended for two years because he refused to submit to a chemical test in violation of Indiana’s Implied Consent law. Kingma says that refusal was not made knowingly or intentionally, since no one authorized to perform a blood draw was there when the offer was made by police and the officer didn’t tell him it would be done at a hospital. But the state argues that going to the hospital is standard practice, and Indiana law doesn’t require officers to specify how or where a chemical test is performed.
This morning’s oral argument will be heard by Chief Judge Nancy H. Vaidik, Judge Paul D. Mathias, and Judge Elizabeth F. Tavitas. The judges will then hold a question-and-answer session with the audience, but will not take questions on this specific case.
The goal of “Appeals on Wheels” is to make it easier for Hoosiers to “observe the real-world issues that face the Court and learn more about the Court’s indispensable role in Indiana government.” The Court of Appeals will also hear an oral argument in Winamac tomorrow.
