Defendant appealed his conviction for unlawful use or possession of a weapon by a felon, arguing that the circuit court erred in declining to give a non-pattern jury instruction pursuant to section 10-30 of the Law Enforcement Officer-Worn Body Camera Act and in admitting body camera footage showing marijuana belonging to defendant’s co-arrestee. The Supreme Court affirmed, finding that the proposed jury instruction was not an accurate statement of the law because it did not instruct the jury to consider whether the failure to activate the body camera was reasonably justified and, even if it had, any error was harmless, and that the admission of the video evidence, while improper, was harmless error. (THEIS, HOLDER WHITE, and CUNNINGHAM, concurring and NEVILLE, dissenting. ROCHFORD and O’BRIEN took no part in the decision)
Illinois Supreme Court
Criminal Court
Jury Instructions