Constitutional Right To Speedy Trial Not Violated

Following a jury trial, Rodriques Johnson was convicted of arson, a Class B felony, and sentenced to ten years in the Indiana Department of Correction. Johnson appeals his conviction, raising one issue for our review : whether his constitutional right to a speedy trial was violated . Concluding his right to a speedy trial was not violated, we affirm.

Facts and Procedural History

Johnson lived with his mother in a house belonging to the Anderson Housing Authority until they moved out sometime

in April or early May of 2012. On May 21, 2012, Johnson threw a brick through the kitchen window of the house.

He then lit pieces of paper on fire and threw them through the window. Two Anderson Housing Authority employees, Nathan Ballinger and Willie Beasley , were inside the house at the time. Johnson told them to “get the f*** out.” Transcript, Volume I at 235. William Hofer, another Anderson Housing Authority employee, tried to enter the house to extinguish the fire, but Johnson

blocked him. Johnson then sat in a nearby lot until the police and fire departments arrived a short time later. Ballinger, Beasley, and Hofer provided statements to the officers and Johnson was arrested at the scene. The Anderson Housing Authority spent $5,300.41 repairing the house . . .

If you have questions about a possible violation of your Constitutional rights, contact Indianapolis attorney Randall Parr immediately.