The first person in Indiana charged and convicted of Dealing in a Controlled Substance Resulting in Death – a state statue passed by the General Assembly and signed into law by Governor Eric Holcomb in 2018 – has had his conviction “reversed and remanded” by the Indiana Court of Appeals.
Yeary
Justin Yeary, Noblesville, was arrested in April 2019 in connection with a drug transaction that took place in Noblesville in which he sold drugs to Tyler Humphrey, Zionsville, which resulted in Humphrey’s death.
Yeary was then convicted in March 2021 of Dealing in a Controlled Substance Resulting in Death, a Level 1 felony – the most serious drug offense in the Indiana Code.
Yeary was sentenced in May 2021 by Hamilton County Superior Court 1 Judge Michael Casati to 35 years in the Indiana Department of Correction with 28 years executed with the Indiana Department of Correction and three years as direct and open commitment to Hamilton County Community Corrections.
Yeary appealed that decision to the Indiana Court of Appeals, and on April 7, 2022, the court reversed and remanded the decision of the Hamilton County Superior Court. The court explained its decision in a 36-page filing, which you can read at this link.
However, the court’s opinion clearly states on page 36 that “[t]he State may retry Yeary if it so chooses because the State presented sufficient evidence for a reasonable jury to find Yeary guilty.”