People v. Lindsey

Defendant was convicted, after jury trial, of theft from a place of worship, a Class 4 felony. The failure to submit to jury the sentence-enhancing factor, that the charged theft was committed in a place of worship, was not harmless error where State failed to prove beyond a reasonable doubt the result would have been the same absent the error. Defendant argued that theft did not occur in a place of worship because it took place in office building which did not function as a place used primarily for religious worship. Whether theft occurred in a place of worship was hotly contest during trial. Defendant's Class 4 felony theft conviction is reduced to a Class A misdemeanor theft conviction with his sentence for that crime reduced to the maximum Class A penalty. (PIERCE and NEVILLE, concurring.)