The Indiana Court of Appeals has unanimously rejected the request to shorten the 70-year prison term given to a LaPorte County man, who was sentenced last year for torturing his four-year-old son, Judah Morgan, to death in 2021.
On November 29, 2022, Alan D. Morgan, 30, plead guilty to murder, level 5 felony battery, and level 6 felony resisting law enforcement. According to court documents, the guilty plea came after a series of 2021 crimes, including leading police on a 119 mph chase after beating and killing Judah Morgan in the family's home outside of Hamlet.
Court records show prosecutors dismissed additional pending charges in exchange for a guilty plea that included operating a vehicle while intoxicated with a controlled substance, reckless driving, possession of drug paraphernalia, possession of marijuana, neglect of a dependent and cruelty to an animal.
Morgan was sentenced by LaPorte Circuit Judge Thomas Alevizos the three remaining charges of 63 years for murder, five years for battery and two years for resisting law enforcement. Records state all are to be served consecutively, for a total prison term of 70 years.
In his appeal, Morgan claimed the trial court abused its discretion because he felt his sentence was inappropriate, especially given his guilty plea and relative lack of prior criminal back ground.
The appeals judge disagreed. According to court documents, Appeals Judge Terry Crone of South Bend described Morgan as "truly one of the worst offenders, who was quite fortunate that the trial court did not impose the maximum possible sentence under the circumstances."
Morgan can still ask the Indiana Supreme Court to consider adjusting his prison term. Without an adjustment, according to the Department of Correction, Morgan's earliest possible release from incarceration is Oct. 8, 2073, assuming good behavior.
The child's mother, Mary Yoder, 27, is set to go on trial Sept. 25 in LaPorte County. Yoder has been charged with neglect of a dependent resulting in death, a level 1 felony; neglect of a dependent involving cruel confinement, a level 5 felony; and several misdemeanors, according to court records.
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