Supreme Court Quick Takes

The Illinois Supreme Court handed down two opinions on Friday, October 18. In People v. Murray, the court reversed a defendant’s conviction of unlawful possession of a firearm by a street gang member on the basis that the Illinois Streetgang Terrorism Omnibus Prevention Act requires proof of specific offenses in order to satisfy the “course or pattern of criminal activity” element necessary to establish that an individual is a street gang member. In People v. Austin, the Supreme Court rejected a circuit court’s determination that a criminal charge against a woman who distributed private sexual images of her ex-fiancee’s lover violated her first-amendment rights.

The Illinois Supreme Court handed down one opinion on Thursday, Aug. 1. In People v. Johnson, the court held that the act of shoplifting could be prosecuted as burglary as opposed to retail theft. 

People v. Johnson

By Kerry J. Bryson, Office of the State Appellate Defender

In July 2014, Darren Johnson and another man entered the Rock Falls Walmart, placing two backpacks on top of a coin counting machine in the vestibule on their way into the store. Inside, they gathered some items of clothing and then, without paying for the clothing, returned to the vestibule, retrieved the backpacks, and loaded the clothing into the backpacks. They repeated this process a second time. A customer called the police, and Johnson was stopped outside of the store. Johnson admitted stealing the clothing, telling the police it was for his daughter.

The Illinois Supreme Court handed down one opinion on Thursday, June 6. In People v. Clark, the court affirmed that a defendant’s bail bond violation constituted escape.  

People v. Clark

By Kerry J. Bryson, Office of the State Appellate Defender

Elizabeth Clark had a history of substance abuse. In October 2012, Clark pled guilty to burglary and unlawful use of a credit card and, pending sentencing, she was released for treatment. Ultimately, Clark was sentenced to 90 days in jail and 30 months of probation. Clark subsequently violated that probation twice. She was taken into custody and then released on a temporary recognizance bond to be transported directly to an inpatient treatment facility. Clark successfully completed inpatient treatment, and the bond was modified to allow her to enter a halfway house providing extended residential care following substance abuse treatment. The bond modification provided that if Clark was released or discharged from the halfway house for any reason, she was to immediately return to the custody of the Will County Jail using the most direct route of travel and without delay.

The Illinois Supreme Court issued three opinions on Thursday, April 18. The ISBA's panel of leading appellate and civil attorneys reviewed the opinions and provided summaries. In People v. Buffer, the court upheld the appellate court’s decision to vacate a defendant’s 50-year prison sentence imposed for a crime he committed when he was 16 years old and remanded the case for resentencing. In People v. Kimble, the court denied a man’s motion to bar his reprosecution on double jeopardy grounds where the trial judge declared a mistrial after the jury was deadlocked. Fillmore v. Taylor addresses whether an inmate can seek relief against the Department of Corrections pursuant to mandamus or a common-law writ of certiorari based on allegations that the Department failed to follow relevant regulations.