People v. Johnson

Defendant was convicted, after jury trial, of 1st degree murder of police officer, disarming officer, and aggravated discharge of a firearm toward another police officer.No abuse of discretion by court in excluding proposed testimony of psychiatrist who viewed surveillance video. Court did not abuse its discretion in excluding proposed lay witness testimony from Defendant's family members, boyfriend, and medical personnel who interacted with Defendant on prior occasions. No evidence from which jury could have found Defendant's conduct to be merely reckless, and thus court did not abuse its discretion in denying Defendant's request for instruction on involuntary manslaughter. Defendant's mandatory sentence of natural life does not shock moral sense of community and does not violate proportionate penalties clause of Illinois Constitution as applied to her.(BURKE and GORDON, concurring.)