Illinois Appellate Court
Criminal Court
Postconviction Petitions
Defendant, age 18 at time of offense, pled guilty to 1st degree murder and was sentenced to 42 years. Defense counsel presented 55 pages of records as to Defendant's diagnosed clinical disorders and his social and cognitive deficits, including showing that his intellectual ability was within the low average range. Court erred in summarily dismissing his pro se postconviction petition. The petition is not based on an indisputably meritless legal theory or a fanciful factual allegation, and makes an arguable claims that court failed to give a full consideration of Defendant's specific facts and circumstances and special characteristics. (HOLDER WHITE and STEIGMANN, concurring.)