People v. Adams

Defendant was found guilty pursuant to a negotiated guilty plea of one count of being an armed habitual criminal. After defendant’s conviction, one of his qualifying convictions for aggravated unlawful use of a weapon was found unconstitutional and the trial court ultimately vacated the conviction for AHC and entered a conviction for the lesser-included offense of unlawful use of a weapon by a felon and re-sentenced defendant. Defendant appealed, arguing that because the AUUW statute was found void, this voided the conviction for AHC so that no further proceedings were permitted, including reduction to a lesser-included offense and that because the statute of limitations had expired, the trial court could not grant leave to amend the count in the information to a UUWF charge. The appellate court affirmed, finding that the trial court did not err when it revised the defendant’s conviction to the lesser included offense and that defendant either waived or invited any error with regard to the statute of limitations. The appellate court, however, did agree with defendant that the trial court’s use of an order nunc pro tunc was not proper but explained that the error was harmless. (McBRIDE and ELLIS, concurring)