Defendant was convicted, after jury trial, of 1st degree murder, armed robbery, and home invasion. Defendant filed a pro se motion for leave to file a successive postconviction petition, along with affidavit from codefendant stating that he lied about Defendant being involved in the crimes to shift the blame from himself. The newly-discovered evidence in codefendant's affidavit, which is material and noncumulative, is not positively rebutted by the record. No one testified at trial that Defendant was not involved in the crimes. Although there are contradictions between averments in affidavit and the trial evidence, contradictions are not enough to cause Defendant to fail this part of the test. Nothing in the trial record makes the averments in the affidavit incontestably false or impossible. Affidavit constitutes conclusive evidence that would probably lead to a different result at trial. Thus, Defendant carried his burden to make a substantial showing of a claim of actual innocence. (ELLIS and COBBS, concurring.)
Illinois Appellate Court
Criminal Court
Post Conviction Petition