Antonio Hughley, Appellant (defendant) v. State of Indiana, the Consolidated City of Indianapolis/marion County…

Summary

The Indiana Supreme Court held that a criminal defendant's self-serving, minimally detailed affidavit denying that seized currency was drug proceeds was competent designated evidence raising a genuine issue of material fact, precluding summary judgment for the State in a civil forfeiture action. Because the State's statutory prima facie case rested on circumstantial evidence and the defendant's sworn affidavit was direct evidence to the contrary, credibility could be weighed only by a trier of fact. Emphasizing Indiana's heightened summary judgment standard and the disfavored, punitive character of forfeitures, the Court reversed and remanded with instructions to deny the State's summary judgment motion.