By Liz Shepherd
InkFreeNews

Daniel S. Louvier

WARSAW — Daniel Louvier, a 38-year-old Silver Lake man who molested two children, is appealing his 24-year prison sentence with the Indiana Court of Appeals.

Louvier was sentenced in Kosciusko Superior Court One on Nov. 9, 2020, for two counts of child molesting, both level 4 felonies. During a one-day jury trial in October 2020, Louvier was found guilty on both charges.

Local attorney Travis Neff, who represented Louvier during his trial, is also representing Louvier in his appeal.

Louvier is currently serving his sentence in the Indiana State Prison, with a projected release date of May 14, 2039.

According to court documents, on Dec. 9, 2019, a Child Protective Services caseworker contacted the Kosciusko County Sheriff’s Office. The caseworker said she had received complaints of molestation committed by Louvier that involved fondling two children.

A forensic interview was conducted by a DCS family case manager with one of the children on Dec. 9, 2019. During the interview, the child said Louvier touched them inappropriately multiple times over the past year. The child said the touching would happen when they were watching movies or television together. The child also said Louvier would pull them closer to him or pull them onto his lap and touch them inappropriately.

On Dec. 11, 2019, a forensic interview was conducted with the second child. The child said Louvier touched them inappropriately multiple times during the previous school year. The child said they would be sitting on the couch watching television when Louvier would pull them closer and inappropriately touch them.

A 24-page appellant’s brief was filed March 19. In his appeal to the court, Neff argues the trial court abused its discretion in sentencing Louvier to the maximum sentence of 24 years and ignoring law that requires maximum sentences be reserved “for the worst of the worst.”

Neff lists “Buchanan v. State of Indiana” and “Serino v. State of Indiana” as two examples of child molesting cases in which the sentences ruled in trial courts were changed in some fashion by the Court of Appeals.

In the brief, Neff lists five aggravators that the late Kosciusko Superior Court One Judge David Cates discussed in the trial. Aggravators included Louvier having a criminal history and violating probation at least three times; being in a position of trust; needing correctional rehabilitative treatment; having a juvenile history; and doing significant damage to his victims.

Two statutory mitigators included Louvier being a productive member of society by being employed and using his resources to help support his family.

The brief also argues that Judge Cates acknowledged one mitigator through stating he was glad Louvier was able to build relationships “but continued that he could not ‘find a mitigating factor of any importance.'”

Neff argues the court created an unreasonable sentence for Louvier by not considering the mitigators presented in court and only mentioned them as unimportant.

“Even though Mr. Louvier’s sentence is not as extreme as the cases that were provided revised sentences, Mr. Louvier was sentenced to the maximum amount for the charges that he was sentenced,” read the brief.

The brief argues Louvier should have been provided some type of suspended time for rehabilitation and that prosecution failed to prove Louvier qualified as “the worst of the worst” for his offenses.

“The amount of 24 years is grossly unproportionate to the actual offense of which Mr. Louvier was found guilty,” reads the brief. “We respectfully request that this court re-sentence Daniel Louvier to a sentence that is reasonable considering the evidence presented or remand the sentencing of this cause back to the trial court in this matter.”