People v. Guy

In consolidated appeals, defendant challenged the second-stage dismissal of his successive post-conviction petition in which he argued that the jury was not properly instructed regarding the mental state required for a conviction of first-degree murder. Defendant also argued that his first-degree murder conviction was inconsistent with his concurrent conviction for second-degree murder. In a separate, consolidated appeal, the State challenged the trial court’s third-stage decision to grant defendant a new trial on the first-degree murder charges. The appellate court agreed with defendant’s arguments and reversed his conviction for first-degree murder outright, but upheld his conviction for second-degree murder. The appellate court further held that the question posed in the appeal brought by the State was moot. (HETTEL and ALBRECHT, concurring)