Court of Appeals of Indiana | Memorandum Decision 19A-CR-2934 | June 19, 2020 Page 1 of 12

MEMORANDUM DECISION

Pursuant to Ind. Appellate Rule 65(D), 

this Memorandum Decision shall not be 

regarded as precedent or cited before any 

court except for the purpose of establishing 

the defense of res judicata, collateral 

estoppel, or the law of the case.

ATTORNEY FOR APPELLANT

Timothy J. O’Connor

Indianapolis, Indiana

ATTORNEYS FOR APPELLEE

Curtis T. Hill, Jr.

Attorney General of Indiana

Evan Matthew Comer

Deputy Attorney General

Indianapolis, Indiana

IN THE

COURT OF APPEALS OF INDIANA

Decharla K. Boatman,

Appellant-Defendant,

v.

State of Indiana,

Appellee-Plaintiff.

June 19, 2020

Court of Appeals Case No.

19A-CR-2934

Appeal from the Marion Superior 

Court

The Honorable Angela Dow

Davis, Judge

Trial Court Cause No.

49G16-1811-F6-41621

Altice, Judge.
Court of Appeals of Indiana | Memorandum Decision 19A-CR-2934 | June 19, 2020 Page 2 of 12

Case Summary

[1] Following a jury trial, Decharla Boatman was convicted of Level 6 felony 

criminal recklessness and Class A misdemeanor battery. She asserts that the 

trial court abused its discretion when it denied her request for a continuance on 

the morning of trial and that, as a result of the denial, she was denied her Sixth 

Amendment right to counsel.

[2] We affirm. 

Facts & Procedural History

[3] Boatman and D.W. have a minor child together. On August 12, 2018, 

Boatman went to a restaurant to meet D.W. and D.W.’s father (Grandfather), 

who had been helping to transport the child for visits. They were meeting to 

discuss visitation and transportation issues. Boatman sat at a table across from 

D.W. and Grandfather. At some point, Boatman became angry and slapped

D.W. in the face. She also, while standing, reached into a purse or backpack,

pulled out a loaded handgun, and began to raise it. Grandfather grabbed 

Boatman’s hands, pointed them upward, and was able to remove the weapon 

from her grasp. Boatman begged Grandfather to return it to her, but he refused. 

Boatman left the restaurant, and police were called to the location.

[4] On November 28, 2018, the State charged Boatman with Level 6 felony 

pointing a firearm, Level 6 felony criminal recklessness, and Class A 

misdemeanor battery. Boatman appeared at the February 7, 2019 initial 

hearing, and the court ordered a public defender to represent her. The next day, 
Court of Appeals of Indiana | Memorandum Decision 19A-CR-2934 | June 19, 2020 Page 3 of 12

attorney Scott Gill of the Marion County Public Defender Agency filed his 

appearance on her behalf.

[5] Boatman failed to appear for the first pre-trial conference on March 4. The 

court took under advisement the issuance of a bench warrant and re-set the 

matter for March 7, and Boatman appeared for that hearing. When Boatman 

failed to appear at an April 1 pretrial conference, a warrant was issued but was 

recalled the same day, and the matter was re-set for a later date in April. 

Thereafter, Boatman appeared late for a July 1 pretrial conference.

[6] On August 12, Omar Ghani of the Marion County Public Defender Agency 

filed his appearance on Boatman’s behalf.1

 At a September 16, 2019 pretrial 

conference, the case was set for trial on Wednesday, November 6, with the final 

pretrial on Monday, November 4. At the final pretrial hearing, Ghani 

responded affirmatively to the court that the defense was ready to proceed to 

trial on November 6, as did the State. The intervening day between the final 

pretrial and trial, Tuesday, November 5, was Election Day, a holiday. 

[7] At 5:16 p.m. on November 4, after the final pretrial hearing, private attorneys 

Tom F. Hirschauer III and Kyle Swick filed their appearance on behalf of 

Boatman. At 5:56 p.m. that day, Hirschauer filed a motion to continue the jury 

trial. The motion stated, “Due to being recently retained, Counsel and all other

1 It appears attorney Gill remained on record as counsel for Boatman as well.
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attorneys at Keffer Hirschauer LLP have conflicts during the time of the Jury 

Trial.” Appellant’s Appendix at 124.

[8] On the morning of November 6, the jury trial was called to order at 8:51 a.m. 

Boatman, who had been ordered to appear for trial at 8:30 a.m., was not 

present, nor was Hirschauer, although an unnamed attorney from his office 

was, explaining that Hirschauer was in Johnson County at an all-day jury trial. 

The trial court stated that the case, pending since 2018, had been confirmed two 

days prior for jury trial, and “I am not granting a continuance[.]” Transcript at 

4. The court directed unnamed counsel to find Boatman and get her to court 

immediately and also directed that the appointed public defender, whose 

appearance had not been withdrawn, come to court for trial. The court briefly 

recessed and reconvened at 9:32 a.m., at which time the trial court advised 

Boatman, now present, as follows:

Ms. Boatman, you are going to trial today. You have the choice 

of having the lawyer that you just hired, but it’s somebody in his 

office[.] . . . You cannot hire an attorney at the very last second. 

You came to court on Monday. It was set for a final pretrial, and 

you, through your attorney, said, ready. So you are going to trial 

with your public defender. You can have two options. You can 

have the lawyer sit with the public defender or they can return 

the money and you will go with the public defender, but you are 

going to trial today.

Id. at 5. The unnamed attorney stated that, after having spoken with Boatman, 

the Hirschauer firm was orally moving to withdraw, and the trial court granted

the motion. 
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[9] Thereafter, Ghani and co-counsel Chris Collman,2 who were now present in 

court, engaged in a lengthy dialogue with the trial court, expressing that they 

were not prepared to go to jury trial that day and desired a continuance. They 

explained that on or near the November 4 pretrial, they had divided trial 

preparation duties between them, intending to do the trial prep on the 

November 5 Election Day holiday, but that when they received e-notice on 

November 4 that Hirschauer’s firm had filed an appearance, they believed that 

the case was now being handled by private counsel and they could not speak 

with Boatman. Id. at 8. Therefore, they explained, they did not do any work 

on the case on November 5. The trial court asked Collman and Ghani whether 

they had spoken to or given the case file to private counsel, and they replied 

that they had not. The court stated that it was denying any continuance, 

advising, “When people say ‘ready’, I expect . . . that the case is ready for trial. . 

. . That’s why I set a final pretrial so close to the jury date.” Id. at 8. Collman

noted, “Ms. Boatman elected to hire private counsel and she should have that 

right[,]” to which the court replied, “And she would have to do it not the 

evening before the trial after it’s set for jury.” Id. at 13. 

[10] Ghani and Collman urged that by not allowing a continuance, the court was 

violating Boatman’s Sixth Amendment right to effective counsel, and they 

asked to make a record, which the trial court permitted but first stated:

2 The record reflects that Collman, also with the Marion County Defender Agency, had agreed on or around 

November 4 that he would “sit as second chair” for trial. Transcript at 8.
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Hold on. I’m going to make the record as to what the Court sees 

and then I’ll let you respond. This case has been set since 

February of 2019. I think it’s a 2018 case. . . . The Public 

Defender continuously represented her. I never had a motion to 

withdraw. I understand that after court was closed on Monday

[November 4], after the final pretrial where the parties, both 

parties, including the Defendant, said that they were ready for 

trial and yesterday was an election day. The courts were closed. 

Motions in limines were done. Final witnesses were done. And 

discovery was completed by the Defense. Private lawyer put his 

appearance in at 5:00 p.m. No one notified me, . . . I have access 

to court email[.] . . . [T]he Public Defender never even gave the 

discovery to the private lawyer and the private lawyer withdrew 

[today] at 9:00 a.m. So, the Court is proceeding with trial today 

and allowing that lawyer to withdraw his appearance this 

morning.

Id. at 12-13.

[11] Ghani and Collman then made their record.

As the Court’s well aware, as public defenders we carry a heavy 

caseload. We’re in court a lot. And a lot of the time 

unfortunately our preparation occurs during the last 24 to 48 

hours ahead of trial. That’s what was going to happen in this 

case specifically because Tuesday was a court holiday and it was 

Mr. Ghani’s and my [] intention to complete preparation 

whenever he indicated on Monday that we were ready to go. 

Again, Judge, we have the parts necessary at this point in time to 

become ready prior to trial. Not if the – if the Judge were to call 

the jury in in this very given moment, we’d be ready to go, Judge. 

That’s not what anyone means at a final pretrial conference when 

they confirmed. It’s not what we meant in this case either.

***
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Again, with the Court holiday, Judge, that would have been the 

time at which we would have been and had planned to be in 

communication with Ms. Boatman regarding her decision to 

testify or not to testify, how to conduct voir dire, theme and 

theory of our case, what questions to ask of what witnesses. . . .

Again, . . . once Ms. Boatman had an attorney file an 

appearance, we were for all intents and purposes from Monday 

afternoon barred by the Rules of Professional conduct from 

having any communication with her as she was a represented 

party, Judge.[3]

. . . Additionally, we did not notify the Court because we

assumed that private counsel’s filing and appearance was 

notification for the Court[,] and we did not turn over file to the 

private attorney because no request was made.

***

In a normal circumstance we would be prepared for trial. 

However, considering the circumstances, we need more time to 

be able to continue to prep this trial. We’re not asking for an 

exorbitant amount of time. We’re just asking for a reasonable 

amount of time.

Id. at 13-16. The State indicated it was ready to proceed with trial but had no 

objection to a continuance.

3 Later during trial, the court stated that it had reviewed the Rules of Professional Conduct and that defense 

attorneys were not precluded under the Rules from communicating with Boatman or the new, private 

counsel: “You’re not prohibited by the rules. It’s not attorney/client privilege if you’re talking about the 

aspects of a case when you’re on the same side.” Transcript at 85. Counsel did not disagree.
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[12] The court, in response to defense counsels’ request for more time, stated:

If you get a continuance, [Boatman] is going into custody. She 

has missed court three times. She was an hour late for trial. So, I 

will take her into custody and then you can tell me when you’re 

ready. And the Public Defender will be charged for the jury. I 

have the jury downstairs that I have ordered. She has missed 

court on February 1, 2019. She missed court on . . . July the lst 

of 2019, and she missed court this morning, was an hour late.

Id. at 16. Defense counsel did not further press for a continuance and

proceeded with trial.

[13] At trial, defense counsel questioned potential witnesses, addressed motions in 

limine, cross-examined witnesses, posed objections, and presented closing 

argument. The jury acquitted Boatman of Level 6 felony pointing a firearm and 

convicted her of Level 6 felony criminal recklessness and Class A misdemeanor 

battery. The court sentenced Boatman to 545 days for the Level 6 felony 

conviction, suspending 500 days and giving credit of 45 days for time served, 

and imposed a concurrent 180 days, all suspended, for the Class A 

misdemeanor conviction. Boatman now appeals. 

Discussion & Decision

I. Sixth Amendment

[14] Boatman argues that her Sixth Amendment right to counsel was violated when 

“the trial court refused to grant her a continuance on the day of trial.” 

Appellant’s Brief at 16. The Sixth Amendment guarantees to every criminal 

defendant the right to the effective assistance of counsel. Lewis v. State, 730 
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N.E.2d 686, 688 (Ind. 2000). Boatman does not raise an ineffective assistance

claim under the two-part test set forth in Strickland,

4 where the defendant must 

show that counsel, first, performed deficiently and, second, prejudiced her as a 

result of that performance. Rather, she argues that her situation falls under 

United States v. Cronic, 466 U.S. 648, 659-60 (1984). As our Supreme Court has 

recognized, Cronic delineates three circumstances that avoid the Strickland

requirement that a defendant establish both deficient performance and actual 

prejudice: (1) when there is a complete denial of counsel; (2) when there is a 

complete failure by counsel to subject the State’s case to meaningful adversarial 

testing; or (3) when the circumstances are such that “although counsel is 

available to assist the accused during trial, the likelihood that any lawyer, even 

a fully competent one, could provide effective assistance is so small that a 

presumption of prejudice is appropriate without inquiry into the actual conduct 

of the trial.” Ward v. State, 969 N.E.2d 46, 77 (Ind. 2012) (quoting Cronic, 466 

U.S. at 659-60); Harrison v. State, 707 N.E.2d 767, 774 (Ind. 1999).

[15] Boatman urges that defense counsel did not have an opportunity to prepare

questions for voir dire or cross-examination, had not discussed with Boatman 

whether she would testify, had not put together the theory of the case, and 

“[c]learly, the loss of the intervening 36 or so hours between the time that 

substitute counsel appeared and then withdrew from the case deprived defense 

4 Strickland v. Washington, 466 U.S. 668, 687 (1984).
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counsel of the time required to properly prepare the case for trial.” Appellant’s 

Brief at 19. We find, however, that Boatman’s claims do not fall into any of the 

three situations that would raise a presumption of ineffectiveness. 

[16] Here, attorneys from the Marion County Public Defender Agency had been 

continuously representing Boatman since the case’s inception. During the 

course of the case, Boatman’s counsel conducted discovery, deposed one or 

more witnesses, and filed witness and exhibit lists and a motion in limine. Two 

attorneys from that agency were present for trial, questioned jurors during voir 

dire, made an opening statement, cross-examined witnesses, objected to 

evidence, and presented closing argument, during which counsel argued that 

while the videotape of the incident showed Boatman pulling out a gun, it was 

too grainy to see if she pointed it directly at someone as required for Level 6 

felony pointing a firearm. The jury acquitted Boatman of that charge. The 

circumstances of this case do not show that Boatman was deprived of any 

meaningful opportunity to subject the State’s evidence to adversarial testing.

Accordingly, we are not persuaded that Boatman’s case falls within the narrow 

exceptions of Cronic.

5

5 Boatman argues that the trial court knew and expressly recognized that counsel was not ready for trial. In 

support of that proposition, she refers us to the following exchange between counsel and the court in which 

the court stated if a continuance was granted, Boatman would be going into custody until trial. 

MR. GHANI: Judge, we understand she was an hour late today. However, having her 

chose [sic] between doing a jury trial –
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II. Abuse of Discretion

[17] Boatman argues that “[u]nder the unique circumstances of this case, the denial 

of the requested continuance was an abuse of discretion because it resulted in 

unprepared attorneys being forced to trial.” Appellant’s Brief at 21. When, as 

here, a party moves for a continuance not required by statute, we review the 

court’s decision for abuse of discretion. Zanussi v. State, 2 N.E.3d 731, 734 (Ind. 

Ct. App. 2013). An abuse of discretion occurs when the ruling is against the 

logic and effect of facts and circumstances before the court or the record 

demonstrates prejudice from denial of the continuance. Id. “Continuances to 

allow more time for preparation are generally disfavored in criminal cases.” Id.

“Such motions require a specific showing as to how the additional time would 

have aided counsel.” Id. (quoting Robinson v. State, 724 N.E.2d 628, 634 (Ind.

Ct. App. 2000), trans. denied).

[18] Here, Ghani affirmatively stated at the November 4 pretrial hearing that the 

defense was ready to proceed to jury trial on November 6. After the court had 

closed on November 4, Hirschauer’s firm filed an appearance and then a 

motion to continue trial. Hirschauer had no contact with Ghani to discuss the

THE COURT: It’s not her choice. It’s yours. If you want a continuance you may get ready, 

but she is going into custody.

Transcript at 16 (emphasis added). Boatman argues that the court’s use of the words “[i]f you want a 

continuance you may get ready” reflects the court’s knowledge “that [her] attorneys were not prepared for 

trial.” Appellant’s Brief at 20. We disagree with this interpretation. The context of the full colloquy between 

counsel and the court reflects that the court was merely re-stating what counsel had repeatedly urged – i.e., 

they needed more time to “get ready” for jury trial.
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case, Hirschauer did not make any request that Ghani provide him with 

Boatman’s file, and Ghani did not file a motion to withdraw. The jury was 

assembled on the morning of November 6. Boatman was not present for trial, 

nor was Hirschauer. After the court denied Hirschauer’s motion to continue, 

his colleague moved to withdraw, which the court granted. Ghani and 

Collman remained as counsel on the case, and their office had represented 

Boatman since the beginning. Boatman was found not guilty of one of the 

charged offenses. She has provided no compelling examples of how additional 

time would have benefited her defense. Under these circumstances, we find 

that the court’s denial of Boatman’s request for additional time was not an 

abuse of discretion. See Turner v. State, 508 N.E.2d 541, 547 (Ind. 1987) (“The 

last minute dismissal of counsel and subsequent request for a continuance to 

seek new counsel is an often used ploy for stalling the trial, and when this 

maneuver impedes sound judicial administration, there is no abuse of discretion 

to proceed without granting a further continuance.”)

[19] Judgment affirmed.

Bailey, J. and Crone, J., concur.