People v. Gipson

This case presents question as to whether defendant’s statutory minimum, 52-year cumulative sentence on two attempted first degree murder charges was unconstitutional as applied to defendant, who had committed said offenses as 15-year-old and who was tried and sentenced as adult for said offenses. While Appellate Court rejected defendant’s claim that said sentence violated his 8^th Amendment rights because his transfer to adult court and imposition of instant sentence was not tantamount to natural life sentence without possibility of parole, Ct. nevertheless found that his sentence violated Proportionate Penalties Clause of Ill. Constitution in that said sentence “shocked the moral sense of the community,” where instant sentencing scheme did not permit trial court to give defendant’s youth and mental disorders appropriate weight. Ct. also directed trial court on remand to conduct new hearing on question as to whether defendant was fit to stand trial after he had initially been found to be unfit to stand trial.