People v. Adams

842 N.E.2d 1187, 363 Ill. App. 3d 34, 299 Ill. Dec. 835, 2006 Ill. App. LEXIS 26
Appellate Court of Illinois·Decided January 24, 2006·No. 1-04-2680 Rel·Published·Cited by 3 cases

Opinions

JUSTICE WOLFSON

delivered the opinion of the court:

Following a bench trial, the defendant was convicted of involuntary manslaughter, usually considered a Class 3 felony. Because the victim was the defendant’s son, the offense was elevated to a Class 2 felony. 720 ILCS 5/9 — 3(f) (West 2000). Defendant was sentenced to 12 years in prison. The major issue in this case is whether the change in class violates the defendant’s right to due process of law. We conclude it does not.

FACTS

On February 28, 2001, defendant was taking care of his son, Stanton Adams, Jr. Stanton was two months old. According to defendant, he began bouncing Stanton on his knee and tossing him in the air. The last time defendant tossed Stanton in the air and tried to catch him, Stanton slipped through his hands, hit the side of a sofa, and fell to the floor. Defendant picked Stanton up. When Stanton did not respond, defendant panicked and began shaking him. Defendant then attempted CPU. After Stanton did not respond, defendant wrote several suicide notes and attempted to kill himself. Dr. Nancy Jones, assistant medical examiner for Cook County, described Stanton’s extensive injuries. Jones opined Stanton died “as a result of cerebral injuries due to blunt head trauma due to child abuse.”

The trial court found defendant guilty of involuntary manslaughter. At the sentencing hearing, the trial court found it was undisputed that the victim and defendant shared a father-son relationship. The offense was then elevated from a Class 3 felony to a Class 2 felony pursuant to section 9 — 3(f) of the Criminal Code of 1961 (Code) (720 ILCS 5/9 — 3(f) (West 2000)). After reviewing the presentence investigation report and hearing arguments of counsel, the trial court sentenced defendant to 12 years’ imprisonment and imposed a $5,000 fine. The court noted defendant spent 1,199 days in custody before the conviction but did not credit those days against the fine.

DECISION

I. Section 9 — 3(f)

Defendant contends section 9 — 3(f) is unconstitutional because it violates his right to due process. He contends the statute bears no rational relationship to the legislature’s stated purpose, to fight and deter domestic violence.

Section 9 — 3(a) states: “A person who unintentionally kills an individual without lawful justification commits involuntary manslaughter if his acts whether lawful or unlawful which cause the death are such as are likely to cause death or great bodily harm to some individual, and he performs them recklessly ***.” 720 ILCS 5/9 — 3(a) (West 2000). Involuntary manslaughter is generally a Class 3 felony (720 ILCS 5 — 9—3(d)(1) (West 2000)) for which the penalty is “not less than 2 years and not more than 5 years” (730 ILCS 5/5 — 8— 1(a)(6) (West 2000)). Section 9 — 3(f), however, provides:

“In cases involving involuntary manslaughter in which the victim was a family or household member ***, the penalty shall be a Class 2 felony, for which a person if sentenced to a term of imprisonment, shall be sentenced to a term of not less than 3 years and not more than 14 years.” 720 ILCS 5/9 — 3(f) (West 2000).

All statutes are presumed to be constitutional. People v. Wilson, 214 Ill. 2d 394, 398, 827 N.E.2d 416 (2005). The party challenging a statute’s validity bears the burden of clearly demonstrating a constitutional violation. Wilson, 214 Ill. 2d at 399. If reasonably possible, a court should construe a statute so as to confirm its constitutionality and validity. Wilson, 214 Ill. 2d at 399. Whether a statute is constitutional is a question of law we review de novo. People v. Malchow, 193 Ill. 2d 413, 418, 739 N.E.2d 433 (2000).

Under the State’s police power, the legislature has wide discretion to establish penalties for criminal offenses. People v. Morris, 136 Ill. 2d 157, 161, 554 N.E.2d 235 (1990). Legislation will not be invalidated “ ‘unless the challenged penalty is clearly in excess of the very broad and general constitutional limitations applicable.’ ” Morris, 136 Ill. 2d at 161, quoting People ex rel. Carey v. Bentivenga, 83 Ill. 2d 537, 542, 416 N.E.2d 259 (1981). However, “[n]o person shall be deprived of life, liberty or property without due process of law.” 111. Const. 1970, art. I, § 2; Morris, 136 Ill. 2d at 161-62.

When reviewing a statute under the due process clause, the test focuses on the enactment’s purpose and objective. Morris, 136 Ill. 2d at 162; People v. Bradley, 79 Ill. 2d 410, 417, 403 N.E.2d 1029 (1980). A statute will be upheld if it “ ‘bears a reasonable relationship to a public interest to be served, and the means adopted are a reasonable method of accomplishing the desired objective.’ ” People v. Wright, 194 Ill. 2d 1, 24, 740 N.E.2d 755 (2000), quoting People v. Adams, 144 Ill. 2d 381, 390 (1991); Morris, 136 Ill. 2d at 161. To satisfy the due process clause, the penalty prescribed for a particular crime need only be reasonably tailored to remedy the evil the legislature has determined to be a threat to the public health, safety, and general welfare. People v. Anderson, 272 Ill. App. 3d 537, 540, 650 N.E.2d 648 (1995). Courts determine the reasonableness of a statute. Morris, 136 Ill. 2d at 161.

Defendant contends section 9 — 3® was enacted in order to “fight and deter” domestic violence. He contends section 9 — 3® is not reasonably designed to implement the legislature’s purpose because involuntary manslaughter is an unintentional act, and an unintentional act cannot be deterred by an enhanced penalty. See People v. Martin, 119 Ill. 2d 453, 519 N.E.2d 884 (1988); People v. Fernetti, 104 Ill. 2d 19, 470 N.E.2d 501 (1984); People v. Alejos, 97 Ill. 2d 502, 455 N.E.2d 48 (1983); People v. Land, 169 Ill. App. 3d 342, 523 N.E.2d 711 (1988).

In Martin, our supreme court observed that deterrence as an aggravating factor had, at best, marginal applicability to the offense of involuntary manslaughter. Martin, 119 Ill. 2d at 459. The court said “an enhanced penalty would have very little, if any, deterrent effect on potential offenders.” Martin, 119 Ill. 2d at 459. However, the court did not address whether statutorily increasing the penalty for involuntary manslaughter under specific circumstances would violate due process. Martin involved a sentencing judge’s improper consideration of the victim’s death as an aggravating factor.

In Fernetti, our supreme court said: “Involuntary manslaughter, by statute, is defined by its ‘unintentional’ nature.

Free access — add to your briefcase to read the full text and ask questions with AI

People v. Adams, 842 N.E.2d 1187, 363 Ill. App. 3d 34, 299 Ill. Dec. 835, 2006 Ill. App. LEXIS 26 (Ill. Ct. App. 2006).

842 N.E.2d 1187 (People v. Adams) — published by Counsel Stack Legal Research, free access to 12M+ legal documents.

Related

People v. Robinson
872 N.E.2d 73 (Appellate Court of Illinois, 2007)
People v. Adams
842 N.E.2d 1187 (Appellate Court of Illinois, 2006)