TIPPECANOE COUNTY, Ind. — The Indiana Court of Appeals overturned the conviction of a former Wabash Township trustee.
In an opinion issues Thursday, the court said the state failed to present sufficient evidence that Jennifer Teising intended to abandon her Wabash Township home and establish a new residence elsewhere and that she in fact established said new residence.
A trial court found Teising guilty on 21 counts of theft in January for not living in the township between June 17, 2020 and March 23, 2021, while collecting more than $20,000 in paychecks from the township.
Previously, the judge in Teising's case found: "The Defendant's lifestyle and activities in Anderson, Indiana followed by her commitment to a six-month lot rental in Florida lend further credence to the conclusion that the Defendant did not actually reside in Wabash Township as required by Indiana Constitution..."
The court also found that as of June 2020, Teising's "nomadic RV lifestyle" meant she ceased to make her "true, permanent and fixed" home in Wabash Township and so forfeited the office of township trustee.
The judge found that Teising continuing to collect salary as a trustee after that point constituted as theft.
Teising was sentenced to 124 days in the Tippecanoe County Jail, 124 days on Tippecanoe County Community Corrections and 847 days of probation. She was also ordered to pay restitution in the amount $27,897.
The Tippecanoe County Prosecutor's Office released the following statement about Thursday's ruling:
“We will be contacting the Attorney General’s Office to request the case be transferred to the Indiana Supreme Court, as allowed by Rule 55 of the Indiana Rules of Appellate Procedure. The Attorney General’s Office has up to 45 days to request transfer from the date of the court of appeals decision. Appellate Rule 57. If the Indiana Supreme Court accepts jurisdiction, then the Court of Appeals decision shall be automatically vacated. ( Appellate Rule 58 (A).
As this is still an ongoing case, my office cannot make any comments concerning the Appellate Court decision. Please contact the Attorney General’s Office in regards to the status of this case, as their office represents the State in the appellate process."