Court of Appeals of Indiana | Memorandum Decision 18A-CR-450 | October 25, 2018 Page 1 of 4

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

Mary P. Lake

La Porte, Indiana

ATTORNEYS FOR APPELLEE

Curtis T. Hill, Jr.

Attorney General of Indiana

Matthew B. Mackenzie

Deputy Attorney General

Indianapolis, Indiana

I N T H E

COURT OF APPEALS OF INDIANA

Christopher A. Redden,

Appellant-Defendant,

v.

State of Indiana,

Appellee-Plaintiff

October 25, 2018

Court of Appeals Case No.

18A-CR-450

Appeal from the La Porte Circuit 

Court

The Honorable Thomas J. 

Alevizos, Judge

Trial Court Cause No.

46C01-1607-F3-571

Baker, Judge.
Court of Appeals of Indiana | Memorandum Decision 18A-CR-450 | October 25, 2018 Page 2 of 4

[1] Christopher Redden appeals the sentence imposed by the trial court after he 

pleaded guilty to Level 4 felony child molesting. Redden argues that the 

sentence is inappropriate in light of the nature of the offense and his character. 

Finding that the sentence is not inappropriate, we affirm.

[2] On July 5, 2016, the State charged Redden with two counts of child molesting, 

one as a Level 3 felony and the other as a Level 4 felony. On September 1, 

2017, Redden pleaded guilty to the Level 4 felony in exchange for the dismissal 

of the Level 3 felony charge. He admitted that he, at the age of nineteen, 

touched or fondled the vagina of a twelve-year-old girl. The probable cause 

affidavit further shows that Redden molested the victim during a sleepover at 

his house, penetrating her vagina with his finger and placing her hands on his 

penis; there were two other juveniles present in the room at the time. The 

victim kept trying to pull away and Redden repeatedly told her to “[s]top 

fighting me.” Conf. App. Vol. II p. 14.

[3] Redden’s sentencing hearing took place on December 14, 2017. At the hearing, 

the State offered evidence of Redden’s juvenile history as well as a trend of 

coercive sexual behavior in which Redden has been engaging since the age of 

six. The trial court found two aggravating factors: Redden’s lack of remorse 

and his commission of the crime in the presence of other juveniles. The trial 

court found one mitigating circumstance—Redden’s guilty plea—but did not 

afford it substantial weight because Redden pleaded guilty to the lesser charge 

while the greater charge was dismissed. The trial court sentenced Redden to a 

nine-year term. Redden now appeals.
Court of Appeals of Indiana | Memorandum Decision 18A-CR-450 | October 25, 2018 Page 3 of 4

[4] Redden’s sole argument on appeal is that the sentence is inappropriate in light 

of the nature of the offense and his character pursuant to Indiana Appellate 

Rule 7(B). In considering an argument under Rule 7(B), we must “conduct 

[this] review with substantial deference and give ‘due consideration’ to the trial 

court’s decision—since the ‘principal role of [our] review is to attempt to leaven 

the outliers,’ and not to achieve a perceived ‘correct’ sentence . . . .” Knapp v. 

State, 9 N.E.3d 1274, 1292 (Ind. 2014) (quoting Chambers v. State, 989 N.E.2d 

1257, 1259 (Ind. 2013)) (internal citations omitted).

[5] Redden was convicted of one Level 4 felony, for which he faced a term of two 

to twelve years imprisonment. Ind. Code § 35-50-2-5.5. The trial court 

imposed a nine-year term, which is above the advisory six-year term but less 

than the maximum twelve-year term.

[6] As for the nature of the offense, Redden molested a twelve-year-old girl during 

a sleepover at his house, in the presence of two other juveniles, resisting the 

victim’s repeated attempts to pull away and end the encounter. We do not find 

that the nature of the offense renders the sentence inappropriate.

[7] As for Redden’s character, while it is true that at the relatively young age of 

nineteen he has not yet amassed an adult criminal history, he was adjudicated a 

delinquent child for the crimes of felony theft and trespass. His first contact 

with the criminal justice system was in 2008; since that time, he has been 

arrested or charged with a criminal or status offense an additional six times. He 

has spent time being placed in the Michiana Family and Children’s Center and 
Court of Appeals of Indiana | Memorandum Decision 18A-CR-450 | October 25, 2018 Page 4 of 4

in the Pendleton Boys School. His psychosexual evaluation revealed that at the 

age of six, he asked a girl to kiss his penis; at the age of nine, he was charged 

with attempting to sexually molest a three-year-old girl; that he chose a threeyear-old because she would not be able to resist him; and that he was following 

an antisocial pattern of behavior that would continue to escalate unless 

checked. The evaluator concluded that Redden was “very much at risk of 

continuing to get into further trouble and being a potential danger, particularly 

to his peers and children even younger.” Conf. App. Vol. II p. 93.

[8] In sum, Redden has been exhibiting red flags for years. His delinquent 

behavior as a juvenile continued into adulthood, when he pleaded guilty to 

child molesting in his first year of adult life. He has participated with extensive 

services and been given the tools to rehabilitate his behavior but has failed to 

take advantage of those opportunities. Under these circumstances, we find that 

the sentence imposed by the trial court is not inappropriate in light of the nature 

of the offense and Redden’s character.

[9] The judgment of the trial court is affirmed.

May, J., and Robb, J., concur.