Estate of Judah Morgan v. Alan Morgan

CourtIndiana Court of Appeals
DecidedMay 30, 2025
Docket24A-CT-02513
StatusPublished

This text of Estate of Judah Morgan v. Alan Morgan (Estate of Judah Morgan v. Alan Morgan) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Indiana Court of Appeals primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Estate of Judah Morgan v. Alan Morgan, (Ind. Ct. App. 2025).

Opinion

FILED May 30 2025, 9:18 am

CLERK Indiana Supreme Court Court of Appeals and Tax Court

IN THE

Court of Appeals of Indiana Estate of Judah Morgan, by Jenna Hullett, Personal Representative, Appellant-Plaintiff

v.

Alan Morgan, Mary Yoder, and Indiana Department of Child Services, Appellees-Defendants

May 30, 2025 Court of Appeals Case No. 24A-CT-2513 Appeal from the Hendricks Superior Court The Honorable Rhett M. Stuard, Judge Trial Court Cause No. 32D02-2301-CT-4

Court of Appeals of Indiana | Opinion 24A-CT-2513 | May 30, 2025 Page 1 of 17 Opinion by Judge Weissmann Judges May and Scheele concur.

Weissmann, Judge.

[1] The Indiana Department of Child Services (DCS) returned four-year-old Judah

Morgan to the care of his parents. In the six months that followed, Judah’s

parents neglected, abused, and tortured Judah, eventually killing him. Judah’s

relative and former foster parent, Jenna Hullett, was then appointed as Personal

Representative of Judah’s Estate. In that capacity, Hullett timely filed a

complaint against DCS, alleging its wrongful acts or omissions proximately

caused Judah’s neglect, abuse, torture, and death. Hullett specifically sought

damages under Indiana’s Child Wrongful Death Statute (CWDS) but later

amended her complaint to add specific requests for damages under Indiana’s

General Wrongful Death Statute (GWDS) and Survival Statute.

[2] On DCS’s motion, the trial court dismissed Hullett’s amended complaint. The

court concluded that Hullett lacked standing to bring a claim under the CWDS

because that statute only applies to actions filed by parents and guardians of

protected persons. The court also found that Hullett’s claims under the GWDS

and Survival Statute were time-barred because they were added after the two-

year deadlines applicable to those statutes. We affirm the dismissal of Hullett’s

claim under the CWDS, agreeing that she lacked standing. But we reverse the

Court of Appeals of Indiana | Opinion 24A-CT-2513 | May 30, 2025 Page 2 of 17 dismissal of Hullett’s claims under the GWDS and Survival Statute, concluding

the amendments that specifically referenced those statutes arose from the same

conduct, transaction, or occurrence alleged in Hullett’s timely-filed complaint

and, thus, related back to the date of that filing.

Facts [3] Judah was born drug-positive in June 2017, shortly after DCS substantiated

allegations that his parents, Alan Morgan and Mary Yoder, had abused and

neglected Judah’s older brother. DCS removed Judah from Alan and Mary’s

care before he ever left the hospital, and he was soon found to be a child in need

of services (CHINS). For most of his CHINS case, Judah was placed in foster

care with Hullett. But in April 2021, DCS returned Judah to Alan and Mary’s

care on a “Trial Home Visit” basis. App. Vol. II, p. 5. Roughly three months

later, DCS petitioned to close Judah’s CHINS case. And less than four months

after that, Judah was killed. Alan eventually pleaded guilty to Judah’s murder,

and Mary pleaded guilty to neglect resulting in Judah’s death.

[4] Hullett was later appointed as Personal Representative of Judah’s Estate. In

that capacity, she sued Alan for intentionally beating, torturing, and murdering

Judah. Hullett then timely filed an amended complaint that also asserted a

Court of Appeals of Indiana | Opinion 24A-CT-2513 | May 30, 2025 Page 3 of 17 “Tort Claim” against DCS.1 Id. at 60. In pertinent part, this First Amended

Complaint alleged and prayed as follows:

30. For the six-month period prior to Judah’s death, Judah was savagely beaten, tortured, abused and neglected by his parents, Mary Yoder and Alan Morgan. This six-month period overlapped the period from April 7, 2021 until June 27, 2021 when DCS had legal custody of Judah but had placed Judah in a [trial home visit]. *** 39. As a direct and proximate result of the reckless, careless, negligent, and wrongful acts and omissions of DCS, Judah Morgan was neglected, beaten, tortured and eventually murdered on October 11, 2021.

WHEREFORE, the Plaintiff requests judgment against DCS and seeks an award of all damages, including attorneys’ fees, permitted under the Indiana Child Wrongful Death Statute (I.C. § 34-23-2-1 et seq.), as well [as] all other just and proper relief.

Id. at 57, 60.

[5] DCS moved to dismiss Hullett’s First Amended Complaint under Indiana Trial

Rule 12(B)(6), arguing that Hullett lacked standing to bring a wrongful death

claim under the CWDS. Hullett responded with an unopposed motion to file a

Second Amended Complaint, which the trial court granted. In her Second

Amended Complaint, Hullett asserted a “Survival Claim” and “Wrongful

1 Hullett also added Mary as a co-defendant to her intentional tort claim against Alan. That claim remains pending.

Court of Appeals of Indiana | Opinion 24A-CT-2513 | May 30, 2025 Page 4 of 17 Death Claims” against DCS. Id. at 76, 80. Her Survival Claim cited the

Survival Statute (Ind. Code § 34-9-3-4) and requested “all damages allowed by

law.” Id. at 76. Meanwhile, her Wrongful Death Claims specifically requested

damages under the GWDS (Ind. Code § 34-23-1-1) and CWDS (Ind. Code §

34-23-2-1).

[6] DCS soon moved to dismiss Hullett’s Second Amended Complaint under Trial

Rule 12(B)(6) as well. As to Hullett’s Survival Claim, DCS argued that the

claim was time-barred under the two-year statute of limitations for personal

injury claims. As to her Wrongful Death Claim under the GWDS (hereinafter,

“GWDS Claim”), DCS argued that the claim was time-barred by the GWDS’s

own two-year filing requirement. And as to her Wrongful Death Claim under

the CWDS (hereinafter, “CWDS Claim”), DCS again argued that Hullett

lacked standing.

[7] The trial court agreed with DCS’s arguments and dismissed Hullett’s Second

Amended Complaint without prejudice. Hullett then filed a Third Amended

Complaint as a matter of right. In her Third Amended Complaint, Hullett

asserted the same claims as in her prior complaint; however, she specifically

alleged that any limitation period was tolled by DCS’s fraudulent concealment

of relevant facts.

[8] DCS promptly moved to dismiss Hullett’s Third Amended Complaint under

Trial Rule 12(B)(6), reiterating its previous arguments. The trial court granted

the dismissal and incorporated by reference its order dismissing Hullett’s

Court of Appeals of Indiana | Opinion 24A-CT-2513 | May 30, 2025 Page 5 of 17 Second Amended Complaint. The court also expressly directed the entry of

judgment under Trial Rule 54(B).

Discussion and Decision [9] Hullett appeals the Trial Rule 12(B)(6) dismissal of her complaint against DCS,

arguing that her complaint stated viable claims for relief under the CWDS,

GWDS, and Survival Statute. Specifically, Hullett challenges the trial court’s

conclusions that she lacked standing to bring her CWDS Claim and that her

GWDS Claim and Survival Claim were time-barred. Addressing these

challenges in reverse order, we conclude that Hullett timely filed her Survival

Claim and GWDS Claim but lacked standing to bring her CWDS Claim. We

therefore reverse in part and affirm in part.

I.

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