Defendant was convicted, after bench trial, of 3 counts of armed robbery and was sentenced to 3 concurrent terms of 25 years. Counsel's failure to seek suppression of witness's pretrial identification on grounds of police not following procedural requirements in section 107A-2 of Code of Criminal Procedure did not deprive Defendant of his right to effective assistance of trial counsel because Defendant suffered no prejudice. A violation of procedural dictates of the lineup statute does not necessarily have an effect on reliability of a witness's identification. Even if a motion to suppress would have been successful, it would not have altered outcome of trial, as evidence of Defendant's guilt was overwhelming. (FITZGERALD SMITH and LAVIN, concurring.)
Illinois Appellate Court
Criminal Court
Motion to Suppress