People v. Dalton

Defendant, a high school teacher, pled guilty to criminal sexual assault; charges alleged that he had engaged in sex with a student under age 18. Court properly denied Defendant's motion for leave to file successive postconviction petition. Defendant's claim that postconviction counsel failed to comply with Rule 651(c) does not meet either threshold requirement of the Act. Right to counsel during postconviction proceedings is entirely statutory, and defense counsel's claimed error occurred during postconviction proceedings. Appellate counsel's failure to raise claim on appeal does not mean that claim may later be raised in a successive postconviction petition. (TURNER and APPLETON, concurring.)