Defendant and a codefendant were convicted, in a combined trial before a single jury, of murder in the shooting death of a taxi driver.Court found that firearm allegation was proven only as to Defendant. Defense counsel was not constitutionally ineffective. It was reasonable for defense counsel not to seek severance, as he could have calculated that jury would be more likely to convict codefendant and acquit Defendant.Defendant suffered no prejudice from alleged hearsay testimony about his clothing on the night of the murder, as other evidence overwhelmingly established his presence at crime scene. Court did not abuse its discretion in denying a mistrial based on an outburst by the victim's family. Outburst was an isolated incident in 3-day trial, and judge promptly admonished jury to disregard the incident, and no jurors indicated that they were unable to follow judge's instruction. (LAVIN and HYMAN, concurring.)
Illinois Appellate Court
Criminal Court
Murder