At hearing, judge releases one of three records on Purdue murder suspect to prosecution

LAFAYETTE, Ind. — Tippecanoe County Magistrate Judge Sarah Wyatt heard arguments to determine if the state was entitled to three different records relating to accused Purdue murderer Ji Min Sha’s case.

The state was requesting access to Sha’s Purdue Counseling and Psychological Services (CAPS) medical record, records from the Indiana Department of Child Services and the raw data used in Dr. Sean Samuel’s initial evaluation of Sha.

Out of the three arguments presented to Wyatt on Wednesday, the judge ruled to release one of the cases — records from the Indiana Department of Child Services.

The Purdue records will be determined after the university’s attorney provides the courts with answers regarding Sha’s ability to continue to use the university’s service.

The court will determine if the state has a right to the raw data used in Dr. Sean Samuel’s initial evaluation of Sha at a later date. Wyatt took the case under advisement.

Sha, a former Purdue student, is accused of stabbing roommate Varun Manish Chheda, 20, several times in the head and neck with a folding knife, which police found on the floor near the chair in which Chheda sat.

Purdue CAPS Records

In December 2022, the state requested that Purdue University release Sha’s CAPS records to prosecutors, but in response, the university filed a motion to quash the request due to the confidential nature of the records.

According to Indiana law, medical providers are prohibited from providing access to a patient’s medical records without consent from the patient.

When Purdue University received the subpoena from the Tippecanoe Courthouse, the university was advised not to release Sha’s records, since Purdue had not received any consent to release these records from either Sha or his defense counsel.

Purdue University ended up filing a motion to quash the subpoena request and end its involvement with this case.

The state argued that the court may release Sha’s records without his consent. The court then scheduled a hearing to determine if the records should be released.

At Wednesday’s hearing, the court needed to determine if there were any other reasonable methods of obtaining the records and if the need to disclose the records outweighs the potential harm to the patient.

Jones noted that if the court determines a need to release the records, then Purdue requested that the court limit who may have access to the materials of the records – specifically only allowing the state and medical experts involved with the case to see it; that the records be kept confidential from the public and that the records must be destroyed after the trial is resolved.

The court asked Tyler Jones, Purdue’s attorney, whether Sha was still considered a student at Purdue. Jones indicated that Sha was no longer considered a student.

The court asked this question to determine if Sha would still be able to obtain services from a CAPS physician even though he was no longer a student.

If Sha could still receive services from CAPS services, then it would affect the court's decision to release the records based on the provider-patient privilege.

But if Sha is no longer eligible to receive services, then the court sees no issue in releasing the records to the state.

Jones could not provide an answer to whether Sha could still use CAPS physician even though he is no longer a student.

The court requested that Jones provide an answer within the next seven days, in order to determine if Sha’s CAPS records can be released.

State’s request to obtain raw data from Dr. Samuel’s evaluation

The state filed a motion with the court to order the defense to follow through with the state’s request for discovery.

The state specifically requested that the defense provide prosecutors with the raw data used in the evaluation report conducted by Dr. Samuels.

Cassidy Laux, the state prosecutor, argued that since the defense cited Samuels’ evaluation as the basis of the defense’s argument to determine competency, then the state and the two psychologists/psychiatrists appointed to Sha should be allowed to evaluate the raw data as well.

Laux noted to the court that Samuel’s evaluation did not showcase a definite certainty regarding Samuel’s diagnosis of Sha, instead highlighting that Samuel’s diagnosis was based on an interpretation of data.

Laux argued that since the two psychologists/psychiatrists appointed to Sha need to be able to provide a neutral opinion to determine Sha’s competency, then the state should be allowed to review the raw data to determine their own conclusion instead of relying on Samuel’s opinion.

Sha’s defense attorney, Kyle Cray, noted that although they did hire Samuel to evaluate Sha, the defense wanted to retain him as a consulting expert and had plans to eventually use Samuel as a testifying expert once the trial began.

Cray argued it was the state that moved Samuel’s evaluation into the court record in an evidentiary hearing in December 2022, prior to the defense indicating that they were going to use Samuel as a testifying witness.

Cray argued that the defense only needs to provide evidence of scientific tests, results of physical or medical examinations, or any other reports of experts to discovery if they are intended to be called as a witness at the trial.

Since the defense team had not indicated at the time of the request that Samuels would be a testifying witness, they argued Samuel does not need to provide the state with the raw data.

Judge Wyatt heard both arguments and decided to hold the decision of the motion under advisement of the court.

This means that the judge hearing the case may spend time pondering her decision regarding the manner.

Department of Child Services’ records

The state filed a request to receive Sha’s records held by the Department of Child Services.

An attorney representing the DCS provided the state with a redacted version of Sha’s records in order to protect the identity of individuals that are not involved with the case.

Noe Padilla is a reporter for the Journal & Courier. Email him at Npadilla@jconline.com and follow him on Twitter at 1NoePadilla.

This article originally appeared on Lafayette Journal & Courier: Judge releases one of three records on Purdue murder suspect