Criminal Law

People v. Black

People v. Black
Illinois Appellate Court
Criminal Court
Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act
Citation
Case Number: 
2012 IL App (1st) 101817
Decision Date: 
Thursday, May 17, 2012
District: 
1st Dist.
Division/County: 
Cook Co., 4th Div.
Holding: 
Affirmed.
Justice: 
LAVIN
Defendant was convicted, after bench trial, of unlawful restraint of 11-year-old boy and required to register as a sex offender. Defendant used conversation and requests for help with groceries as pretext to lure boy into his apartment, where he attempted to prevent boy from leaving but boy escaped. Luring-type behavior leading up to unlawful restraint is often precursor to commission of sex offenses or intent to such commission against children, and thus Defendant's conduct was sexual in nature. Defendant's luring conduct, and possession of pornographic magazine shortly after offense, illustrate Defendant's preoccupation with sexual activity. (FITZGERALD SMITH and STERBA, concurring.)

People v. Harper

People v. Harper
Illinois Appellate Court
Criminal Court
Motions to Suppress
Citation
Case Number: 
2012 IL App (4th) 110880
Decision Date: 
Friday, May 25, 2012
District: 
4th Dist.
Division/County: 
Vermilion Co.
Holding: 
Reversed and remanded.
Justice: 
POPE
Court improperly suppressed DVD video recording and transcript from police interview of Defendant. Court's findings were insufficient to determine whether Defendant's custodial statements were inadmissible before suppressing recording and transcript. Inadvertent failure to record interview, error in recording process, or innocent equipment malfunction does not establish automatic and absolute bar to State's use of a defendant's statements during custodial interrogation. (TURNER, concurring; COOK, dissenting.)

People v. Hildenstein

People v. Hildenstein
Illinois Appellate Court
Criminal Court
Post-Conviction Petitions
Citation
Case Number: 
2012 IL App (5th) 100056
Decision Date: 
Thursday, May 31, 2012
District: 
5th Dist.
Division/County: 
Madison Co.
Holding: 
Affirmed.
Justice: 
GOLDENHERSH
Defendant filed successive postconviction petition, alleging that his 2004 guilty plea to first-degree murder was not knowing and voluntary, as he was never advised that 3 years MSR was required after serving 20-year sentence. Court dismissed petition at second stage. Defendant is not entitled to retroactive application of Whitfield case holding that faulty admonishment as to MSR is denial of due process, as his conviction was final prior to Whitfield decision. (DONOVAN and SPOMER, concurring.)

U.S. v. Sheneman

Federal 7th Circuit Court
U.S. v. Sheneman
Criminal Court
Wire Fraud
Citation
Case Number: 
No. 11-3161
Decision Date: 
June 1, 2012
Federal District: 
N.D. Ind., S. Bend Div.
Holding: 
Affirmed
Record contained sufficient evidence to support defendant's conviction on four counts of wire fraud stemming from scheme in which defendant and his son acquired control over large number of rental properties by inducing unqualified buyers through false promises to purchase said properties and then submitting false loan documents to induce lenders to approve mortgages on said properties. Record contained sufficient evidence that defendant and his son had scheme to defraud through series of false statements made to both buyers and lenders, and that defendant played crucial role in said scheme by inducing buyers to purchase subject properties and then transferring buyers to his son to generate false loan documents. Moreover, existence of interstate wire communication required by wire fraud statute was established through bank-to-bank wire transfer that occurred with each sale at issue in indictment. Ct. rejected defendant's argument that instant wire transfers were insufficient to establish interstate wire communication element of offense where said transfers played no role in underlying scheme.

People v. Molidor

People v. Molidor
Illinois Appellate Court
Criminal Court
Fines and Fees
Citation
Case Number: 
2012 IL App (2d) 110006
Decision Date: 
Friday, May 25, 2012
District: 
2d Dist.
Division/County: 
Lake Co.
Holding: 
Affirmed as modified and remanded.
Justice: 
HUDSON
Defendant pled guilty to violating Sex Offender Registration Act by failing to report change in his employment, and court sentenced him to seven years in prison. Court denied his motion for return of bond, finding it had been applied to satisfy certain assessments imposed against him. Plain language of Code of Criminal Procedure does not impose time limit on filing of motion for return of bond. Defendant's bond should be used to pay certain assessments due him; but calculations are revised, and DNA analysis fee is vacated, as Defendant previously submitted his DNA. (ZENOFF and SCHOSTOK, concurring.)

People v. Phillips

People v. Phillips
Illinois Appellate Court
Criminal Court
Accountability Theory
Citation
Case Number: 
2012 IL App (1st) 101923
Decision Date: 
Tuesday, May 15, 2012
District: 
1st Dist.
Division/County: 
Cook Co., 2d Div.
Holding: 
Reversed.
Justice: 
CONNORS
(Court opinion corrected 5/31/12.) Defendant was convicted, after bench trial, of aggravated battery with a firearm and aggravated discharge of a firearm under accountability theory; co-Defendant was found directly guilty. Two vehicles were in near-collision and stopped within inches of each other, and blocked intersection. Co-Defendant, a passenger in Defendant's vehicle, fired at other vehicle. No evidence that Defendant deliberately maneuvered vehicle to trap other vehicle, or that Defendant knew that co-Defendant was armed. Thus, insufficient evidence for conviction under accountability theory. (CUNNINGHAM, concurring; QUINN, dissenting.)

U.S. v. Davis

Federal 7th Circuit Court
U.S. v. Davis
Criminal Court
Sentencing
Citation
Case Number: 
Nos. 11-1313 et al. Cons.
Decision Date: 
May 31, 2012
Federal District: 
N.D. Ind., Hammond Div.
Holding: 
Affirmed
Dist. Ct. did not err in denying six defendant's motions to reduce their sentences pursuant to 18 USC section 3582(c)(2) based on retroactive crack cocaine amendments to U.S. Sentencing Guidelines where record supported Dist. Ct.'s findings that all six defendants were responsible for distributing over 4.5 kilograms of crack cocaine, and where said quantities qualified defendants for same offense level under new guidelines that was assigned to them at original sentencing hearings. Moreover, Dist. Ct. did not err in making new drug quantity findings since new findings were not inconsistent with findings made at original sentencing hearings.

House Bill 1263

Topic: 
Eavesdropping exemption
(Noland, D-Elgin) attempts to reverse the Seventh Circuit’s preliminary injunction in ACLU v. Alvarez that held that a citizen had the First Amendment right to audio-record law enforcement officers doing public duty in a public place. The Senate Judiciary Committee and Chairman Noland believes that this is unfair to officers, embarrasses them, and endangers their safety. House Bill 1263 expands the exemption to include the right of officers to record at any time “if there is no reasonable expectation of privacy” and notifies the citizen that he or she is being recorded. It is to be voted on in the Senate today.
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Senate Bill 3171

Topic: 
Medical records of deceased family members
(Sullivan, D-Rushville; Brady, R-Bloomington-Normal) cleans up the statutes given family members the ability to get medical records of deceased family members without being forced to open an estate. It does four things. (1) The federal Department of Heath and Human Services has interpreted the 2003 federal Privacy Rule that a patient or their representative may not be charged a “handling” or “retrieval” fee; the only fees that may be charged are reasonable per-page fees. This change makes clear that this protection applies as well to a patient’s personal representative under the recently enacted medical records’ statute at § 8-2001.5. (2) Changes “may” to “must” to remove a conflict with the federal privacy law and Illinois’ current statute. Under the federal Privacy Rule release of medical records is required to be given to a decedent’s executor or administrator or “or other person who has authority to act on behalf of a deceased individual or of the individual’s estate. (3) This change addresses the Privacy Rule requirement that patient records be restricted to patient representatives. This deems the individual’s patient representative when no other patient representative exists, such as an administrator or executor. (4) This requires that a person purporting to be a personal representative seeking records under this statute must certify that to be true under penalty of perjury so that there is some evidence that is true. Passed both chambers.
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People v. Eppinger

Illinois Supreme Court PLAs
Criminal Court
Voir Dire
Citation
PLA issue Date: 
May 30, 2012
Docket Number: 
No. 114121
District: 
3rd Dist. Rule 23 Order
This case presents question as to whether trial court committed plain error by conducting voir dire in absentia after pro se defendant voluntarily absented himself from voir dire proceeding, but appeared and represented himself on all other aspects of his trial. Appellate Court, in reversing defendant's conviction on attempted murder and armed robbery charges, found that trial court had failed to comply with section 115-4.1(a), which permits trial court to start trial without defendant, but only if trial court had previously appointed counsel. In its petition for leave to appeal, State argued that section 115.4.1(a) did not apply where defendant was in custody at time of voir dire and voluntarily chose to remain in his cell at time voir dire was scheduled.