Gingerich Waiver Hearing On Hold
![Paul Henry Gingerich was only 12 years old when he was sent to prison for conspiracy to commit murder.](https://www.inkfreenews.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/01/Paul-Henry-Gingerich.jpg)
Paul Henry Gingerich was only 12 years old when he was sent to prison for conspiracy to commit murder.
The wavier hearing for Paul H. Gingerich, 15, which was set for 9 a.m. this morning, has been vacated with no new date set. A pre-trial conference via telephone will be held at another date with the two attorneys and a special judge.
Indiana Court of Appeals remanded the case of Gingerich’s conviction for conspiracy to commit murder back to Kosciusko County Juvenile Court to rehear the juvenile waiver hearing. The Indiana Supreme Court denied a petition to hear the case.
Gingerich, now 15, is serving a 30-year sentence, five years suspended after pleading guilty in 2010 to an adult charge of conspiracy to commit murder in the April 2010 shooting death of Philip Danner. Gingerich is serving his sentence at Pendleton Juvenile Correctional Facility.
Special Judge James Heuer from Whitley County Juvenile Court has taken under advisement two motions filed, one by the Kosciusko County Prosecutor, the other by Gingerich’s legal counsel, Monica Foster.
On May 6, Kosciusko County Prosecutor Dan Hampton filed a motion for a mental evaluation and transport orders. This request was based on comments by the state’s appeal court justices in ordering the case back to juvenile court.
Hampton has requested the court allow the state the opportunity for a mental evaluation of Gingerich and to have him transported to that facility. Hampton noted in his request that, through the course of the appellate process, the juvenile argued insufficient time established for having mental evaluations by the defense. It was addressed whether it would be in the best interest of the child and for the safety and welfare of the community for the child to remain within the juvenile justice system.
In his filing Hampton noted, “… the State of Indiana believes that the juvenile intends to offer mental evaluation reports of him to this court and, in an interest of justice, the State of Indiana should have the same opportunity.”
Hampton said arrangements have been made for evaluation to be done at Cedarbridge Youth Center in Muncie and would take three weeks on site. Due to this, it would be necessary to have the juvenile transported to the detention facility at Cedarbridge and retained until completion. This location was chosen as it was closer to the Indiana Department of Corrections, Pendleton Juvenile Facility.
Three days after the motion Foster filed a motion of discovery directing the state to produce various items such as statements, transcripts, raw or handwritten notes of investigating officers, criminal histories of witnesses, depositions, forensic reports, any grand jury testimony and police reports relating to the case within 30 days of the court’s order.
During a telephone conference, it was noted that some, if not all, o this material was made available during the appeals process. Heuer ordered Foster to make a list of items she did not have that was included in the appeals process.
Hampton, as of Thursday, had yet to receive that list to comply with the motion for discovery.