People v. Holmes

This case presents question as to whether trial court properly granted defendant’s motion to quash his arrest and suppress evidence on charge of aggravated unlawful use of weapon (AUUW) charge for carrying firearm without valid FOID card, where defendant was arrested after police officer observed revolver in defendant’s waistband. Instant arrest took place prior to Aguilar, 2013 IL 112116, which found as unconstitutional portion of AUUW statute that criminalized carrying concealed firearm in public, and defendant successfully argued before trial court that no probable cause existed for his arrest because he had not violated any valid law. While state argued that good-faith exception to exclusionary rule applied since at time of instant arrest police officer could have reasonably have relied on then-valid AUUW statute, Appellate Court found that good-faith exception did not apply where officer was enforcing unconstitutional statute. Ct. noted, though, that federal courts would have decided issue differently.