The Indiana Court of Appeals rejected a Hammond man’s bid to overturn his murder conviction Friday. Kian Moore, 24, got 58 years in February in the Oct. 22, 2019 death of Quinten Kendrick-Taylor, 23. He just stepped outside to walk when he was gunned down on the 1300 block of Liberty Court in Hammond. Moore argued he was blindsided when the jury was allowed to consider a legal principle known as accomplice liability, because he was charged as the principal shooter. He argued it was tacked on at the last minute before deliberations, not giving enough time to prepare a defense. Co-defendants Christian Buchanan-Purdiman, the driver, and Buchanan’s girlfriend Leila Shojaee inked plea deals in the case. All three were in the car and all three helped cover up parts of the crime to different degrees, Appeals Court Judge Paul Felix noted. At the trial, Moore argued prosecutors couldn’t definitively prove who in the car shot Kendrick-Taylor. In a 3-0 decision, Felix said it didn’t matter. Indiana law allowed prosecutors to use accomplice liability — meaning a group participating in connection with a crime like murder can be considered equally guilty, no matter who fired the deadly shots. “Shojaee’s testimony made it unclear who had fired the shots at Kendrick-Taylor,” Felix wrote. “Thus, we are unpersuaded by Moore’s claims that he was caught off guard and unable to prepare for an accomplice liability instruction.” Moore can appeal the ruling. His earlier release date is in 2062. [email protected]