People v. Miles

Defendant was convicted, after jury trial, of 2 counts of 1st degree murder. Given the strength of the identification testimony, minor discrepancies and lack of physical evidence do not raise a reasonable doubt that Defendant shot the victim; Defendants' eyewitnesses were not reliable. Evidence was sufficient to convict Defendant of 1st degree murder beyond a reasonable doubt. Court did not err in denying Defendant's motion to continue trial based on unavailability of one witness, as the absence of that testimony at trial did not prejudice Defendant, but substantially corroborated the accounts given by 3 State witnesses who positively identified Defendant as the shooter. Court interrupted defense counsel 4 times during her closing argument, but no indication that she was unable to fully present Defendant's theory of the case, and court's statements did not reflect opposition to those arguments. (MIKVA and CUNNINGHAM, concurring.)