People v. Gonzalez

Defendant was convicted, after jury trial, of attempted 1st degree murder and aggravated battery with a firearm, for a shooting in 2010. Defendant was sentenced, in 2015, to concurrent sentences of 38 years and 10 years. State presented no evidence linking Defendant to offense except for identifications by victim and his girlfriend, who gave description immediately after offense that offenders were Hispanic men dressed in black. No introduced link between Defendant and the shooting except for selection, by victim and his girlfriend, of Defendant from photo spread and lineup. Police conduct in conducting photo array and lineups may have undermined reliability of identification. Court erred in denying evidence of Defendant's tattoos, as that evidence, and 2 additional witnesses who claim victim admitted that Defendant did not shoot him, may change result. Reversed and remanded for new trial. (McBRIDE, specially concurring; BURKE, dissenting.)