Defendant was charged and convicted of the first-degree murder of his wife and sentenced to 25 years’ imprisonment. On appeal, defendant argued that the trial court should have barred statements he made to the police and that the trial court made evidentiary errors when it allowed the admission of statements made by the victim to her friends. The appellate court affirmed, finding that even though police withheld information regarding an arrest warrant it did not affect the validity of defendant’s Miranda waiver or make the interrogation fundamentally unfair. The appellate court further held that the victim's statements to friends were non-hearsay and non-testimonial and that there were no evidentiary errors in admitting them. (PUCINSKI and WALKER, concurring)
Illinois Appellate Court
Criminal Court
Evidence