Doty
JENNINGS COUNTY — The attorney for a 15-year-old Jennings County teenager who is being tried as an adult for allegedly raping a special needs student on a school bus has asked a judge to bar prosecutors from introducing evidence about alleged “incidents” between the defendant and the alleged victim that occurred other than on the date listed in charging documents.
The request, filed by an attorney representing Landon Doty, 15, North Vernon, seeks to prohibit prosecutors and witnesses “from mentioning in any way or offering evidence about alleged incidents between the defendant and the alleged victim in this matter except on the date set forth in the charging information.”
A probable cause affidavit filed in the case includes allegations that Doty sexually assaulted a 7-year-old, non-verbal special needs student on a school bus on April 16.
In June, Doty was arrested on 12 charges, including four felony counts of rape, two felony counts of child molesting, four felony counts of sexual battery, one count of criminal confinement and one misdemeanor count of public indecency. He has pleaded not guilty to all of the charges.
“Such evidence or argument’s prejudicial effect substantially outweighs its probative value,” Bradley Kage, Doty’s attorney, states in the request.
Jennings Circuit Court Judge Murielle Bright has given the Jennings County Prosecutor’s Office until next week to object to the request.
On Friday, Bright is expected to consider a request by Doty’s attorney to move the case out of Jennings County because of heavy media coverage of the case.
Kage has argued in a court filing that Landon Doty, 15, North Vernon, “cannot receive a fair trial in Jennings County” due to “extensive pre-trial publicity on television and social media.”
Kage states in the request to change venue that he received an anonymous voicemail “expressing an opinion about the defendant’s guilt and that he should plead guilty” and that “many members of the Jennings County, Indiana, community have expressed their opinion that the defendant is guilty.”
He also cites in the request that Indianapolis television station WTHR filmed Doty’s initial hearing last month and then broadcast it later that day and the following day.
Bright has also yet to decide whether to grant a request by Doty’s attorney to lower his $250,000 bond.
Bright stated in an order last month that Doty’s current bond is “commensurate with the seriousness of the alleged crime(s)” based on the court’s bond schedule but deferred making a final decision on the request, pending additional documentation.
Bright ordered the Jennings County Jail to allow Doty to undergo a therapy or counseling assessment and has asked for written proof of school enrollment — whether in-person or online — as well as evidence of active counseling.
Additionally, she directed Doty’s attorney to file a formal waiver of attorney-client privilege to allow the Doty’s legal guardians to participate in consultations between the teenager, his lawyer and jail officials. His attorney has since filed the waiver.
However, the order does not specify a deadline for the documentation to be submitted or for Doty to undergo the assessment.
In the meantime, Bright ordered Doty’s bond to remain unchanged “until further order of the court.”
A probable cause affidavit filed in Jennings Circuit Court alleges that North Vernon police were dispatched to Jennings County Middle School, located at 820 W. Walnut St. in North Vernon, on April 17 regarding “an unknown issue at the school’s transportation building.”
When the officers arrived, the school’s principal allegedly showed them video from the school bus’ camera that was taken after school the day before as the students were on their way home, the probable cause affidavit states.
The probable cause affidavit describes the alleged sexual assault and includes investigators describing incidents of oral sex and rape.
At one point, the bus monitor allegedly walked over to Doty and asked what was going on. The bus monitor then allegedly told the bus driver to pull over and “stated that the bus video needs to be reviewed.” The students were then separated.
The bus monitor and driver were not named in the probable cause affidavit.
Doty was allegedly taken from class and his guardian, his maternal grandmother, was called to come to the school. She allegedly said her brother would come because she was in Indianapolis.
When her brother arrived, the principal allegedly advised that “an incident took place and is being handled by the police department.”
Doty was placed into handcuffs and escorted inside a patrol car. Once the officer got into the car, Doty allegedly said, “I’m basically screwed,” according to information in the probable cause affidavit.
The magistrate judge’s order states that the victim suffers from moderate to severe autism and is non-verbal. The order also states that Doty is allegedly of “normal intelligence” and is not a special needs student, raising questions about why he was repeatedly allowed to ride the special needs school bus, according to court documents.
It is also not clear in the court documents how Doty was able to repeatedly hide the alleged conduct from the bus monitor and driver.
