Appeal of Indianapolis house explosion conspirator rejected

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) - The Indiana Supreme court has rejected an appeal from a man serving two life sentences for causing a massive Indianapolis house explosion that killed two people.

In a unanimous ruling Tuesday, the state's highest court affirmed the convictions and sentences of 48-year-old Mark Leonard. The ruling also found Indiana's life without parole statute is not unconstitutional.

Leonard was convicted in 2015 of murder, arson and conspiracy to commit insurance fraud in the November 2012 natural gas explosion that destroyed his then-girlfriend's home and killed two next-door neighbors. That blast damaged or destroyed more than 80 homes on Indianapolis' south side.

Leonard received two life sentences without parole, plus 75 years.

Leonard also was sentenced to an additional 50 years in February for trying to have a witness killed.