Rondell Walker, Appellant, v. State of Indiana, Appellee. (2022)

Supreme Court of Indiana.

Rondell Walker, Appellant, v. State of Indiana, Appellee.

Supreme Court Case No. 34S02-1206-CR-346

Decided: October 14, 2022

Order Correcting Nature of Expungement

On September 27, 2022, this Court ordered this case sealed and redacted pursuant to an order issued by the Howard County Court granting Appellant's “Verified Petition for Expungement of Conviction Records and/or Collateral Records Pursuant to I.C. 35-38-9.” Portions of the trial court's order purported to direct expungement pursuant to both Indiana Code section 35-38-9-6 (providing for sealing and redaction of expunged misdemeanor and minor Class D and Level 6 felony convictions) and section 35-38-9-7 (providing for records of expunged higher-level felony convictions to be clearly marked as “expunged” but to remain public documents).

Upon further review, because the expunged records in this appeal relate to a Class B felony conviction, the only relief available is pursuant to Indiana Code section 35-38-9-7. The records of this case thus should not have been sealed and redacted, but only marked as expunged.

Having further reviewed the matter, the Court ORDERS as follows:

1. The Clerk of this Court is directed to clearly and visibly mark the records regarding this appeal as having been expunged. However, pursuant to Indiana Code section 35-38-9-7(b), they remain public records.

3. The Clerk is directed to remove all redacted versions of the opinion posted online on the computer gateway administered by the office of technology and replace them with the original, unredacted version of the opinion; and

4. The Clerk shall provide a copy of this order to West/Thomson Reuters, LexisNexis, Wolters Kluwer, and any other sources to which opinions of this Court are normally sent.

Done at Indianapolis, Indiana, on 10/14/2022.

Loretta H. Rush Chief Justice of Indiana