Illinois Appellate Court
Criminal Court
Postconviction Petitions
Ineffective Assistance of Counsel
(Court opinion corrected 3/29/10.) Court's summary dismissal of Defendant's pro se postconviction petition, alleging claims of actual innocence of first-degree murder charge and ineffective assistance of counsel, comported with Hodges standard as lacking arguable basis in law or in fact. State did not withhold exculpatory statements of two persons, as statements were given 45 days after trial concluded, and prosecutor first learned of content of these statements, via phone call and re-interview, after trial had concluded. Defense counsel made strategic decisions on what witnesses to call, not to be second-guessed in competency determination. Attachments to petition were not sworn or notarized, contradicted by record, and lacking in specific detail, thus would not have affected the verdict.