People v. Jones

This case presents question as to whether defendant was denied fair trial or effective assistance of counsel, where trial court responded to jury question regarding definition of “knowingly possessed firearm ammunition” by failing to give IPI instruction on term “knowledge” and instead sending back note that read “the word knowingly should be given its plain meaning within jury’s common understanding,” under circumstances where counsel for both defendant and government agreed not to give IPI instruction. Appellate Court, in affirming defendant’s conviction on charge of unlawful possession of ammunition by felon, found that defense counsel’s decision not to give jury IPI instruction was matter of sound trial strategy, where counsel’s decision was meant to minimize attention regarding defendant’s culpability, and where giving IPI instruction may have prejudiced defendant given his testimony. In his petition for leave to appeal, defendant argued that trial court was required to give IPI instruction, where relevant IPI instruction would have answered jury’s question.