People v. Dobbins

Defendant filed a petition for a certificate of innocence after his conviction for possession of a controlled substance was vacated based on fabricated evidence. While the petition was pending, defendant died and his partner and mother of his minor child moved to substitute as the petitioner to proceed with the COI cause of action on behalf of the decedent’s estate. The trial court denied the motion to substitute by finding that a COI is a personal statutory right that did not survive the petitioner’s death. The Illinois Supreme Court affirmed, finding that the trial court did not err when it dismissed the petition because the plain language of the COI statute indicates that it is not a cause of action to recover damages, but rather a condition precedent to recovering damages in the court of claims. (THEIS, OVERSTREET, HOLDER WHITE, CUNNINGHAM, ROCHFORD, and O’BRIEN, concurring)