People v. Louisville

609 N.E.2d 682, 241 Ill. App. 3d 772, 182 Ill. Dec. 148, 1992 Ill. App. LEXIS 1847
CourtAppellate Court of Illinois
DecidedNovember 18, 1992
Docket1-90-3595
StatusPublished
Cited by11 cases

This text of 609 N.E.2d 682 (People v. Louisville) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Appellate Court of Illinois primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
People v. Louisville, 609 N.E.2d 682, 241 Ill. App. 3d 772, 182 Ill. Dec. 148, 1992 Ill. App. LEXIS 1847 (Ill. Ct. App. 1992).

Opinion

JUSTICE CERDA

delivered the opinion of the court:

After a jury trial, defendant, Samuel Louisville, was convicted of armed robbery (Ill. Rev. Stat. 1987, ch. 38, par. 18 — 2(a)) and sentenced to six years’ imprisonment. On appeal, defendant asserts that (1) the State failed to prove him guilty beyond a reasonable doubt; (2) he was denied due process because the knife used in the crime was not offered as evidence at trial; (3) he was denied due process because a repossession notice was attached to a document that went to the jury room; (4) he was denied due process because a photograph showing his knife and ski mask was admitted into evidence, although not shown to the jury; (5) he was denied due process because the State made improper comments during the trial and closing arguments; (6) he was prejudiced by testimony of the police radio messages concerning the robber’s description; and (7) his motion for substitution of judge was improperly denied. We affirm the conviction.

On January 25, 1988, Eugene Tellez was working alone at Jack’s Mobil gas station at 162nd and State Streets in South Holland. Defendant came into the station about 8 p.m. Around the same time, a woman entered the station, paid for gas, and left. After defendant gave Tellez $2 for gas, Tellez told him that he would have to stop the pump himself because it could not be stopped from inside. At that time, Tellez observed defendant for one to two minutes.

When defendant pumped over $5 worth of gas, Tellez went outside to tell defendant that he had gone over the $2. Since Tellez was within 10 feet of defendant’s red Chevette and the outside area was well lit, Tellez could see defendant’s face. Before leaving, defendant paid for the extra gas.

Around 8:30 p.m., Tellez saw defendant return to the station, park his car on the side of the station, and enter the station, complaining that it was cold outside. He asked for a pack of Virginia Slims cigarettes and gave money to Tellez, who was standing behind the counter. Tellez gave defendant the cigarettes, put the money on top of the cash register, and opened it to make change. At that point, defendant tried to grab Tellez with his left hand and pulled a knife from inside his pants with his right hand. Tellez pulled away quickly and fell to the floor, telling defendant, “Take anything you want, I don’t care what you do, just leave me alone.”

Tellez watched defendant reach over the counter and take money from the open cash register. When defendant noticed Tellez looking at him, he warned, “[I]f you call the police, I’ll shoot you, I will shoot you.” Tellez ran out the back door and behind the building. From there, he watched defendant leave the gas station. When defendant saw Tellez watching him, he again threatened that he would come looking for Tellez if he called the police. Defendant got into his car and drove southbound on State Street.

Tellez went into the station, where he saw the open cash register and money lying on the floor. It was later determined that approximately $307 had been taken. Tellez called the police. When they arrived, Tellez described the robber as a black man, approximately 6 feet 2 inches tall, and 220 pounds, wearing a tan leather jacket and a Chicago Bears baseball cap. Tellez described the knife as a hunting knife with a black handle and a six- to eight-inch blade. He also told the police that the robber was driving a red Chevette, traveling south on State Street.

About 30 minutes later, defendant was brought to the gas station, where Tellez identified him as the robber. Later that evening, Tellez went to the police station and identified the Chevette. The knife used in the robbery and a pack of cigarettes were on the car seat.

Officer Michael Becka of the South Holland police department testified that he interviewed Tellez at the gas station. At 8:45 p.m., he transmitted a radio message that there had been an armed robbery at the gas station and an undetermined amount of currency had been taken. The message described the robber as a large-built black man, 6 feet 2 inches tall, with a six- to eight-inch survival-type hunting knife, driving a red two-door Chevette last seen going southbound on State. Three to five minutes later, in response to requests for more information, Officer Becka transmitted a clothing description, including the Chicago Bears baseball cap.

Officer Brad Borys of the Lansing police department testified that he was at the intersection of Torrence Avenue and 173rd Street, in Lansing, when he saw defendant driving a car that matched the description from the police radio message. Defendant was turning around in a gas station. Instead of stopping for gas, defendant went east on 173rd Street, then north on Torrence Avenue.

Borys followed defendant, staying one car length behind and one lane to the right of defendant’s car. Borys stated that he pulled alongside defendant’s car, where he observed defendant’s face and clothing. Noticing that defendant was wearing a Chicago Bears cap, Borys contacted the South Holland police and asked for a clothing description. As Borys was getting the additional information, defendant abruptly turned left into a Wendy’s restaurant without using the center turn lane. Borys pulled into a driveway about 100 feet away and watched defendant walk into the restaurant.

When back-up arrived, Borys went into the Wendy’s restaurant and arrested defendant. Borys walked over to defendant’s car and looked through the window. On the passenger seat, he saw a knife matching the radio message’s description and an unopened pack of Virginia Slims cigarettes. No money was recovered from the car, but a tan leather jacket was found in the car.

Defendant testified that he was on vacation from his job as a crane operator on January 25, 1988. According to defendant, he used a knife to strip rolls of paper at work and he usually kept the knife in his car when he was not at work. Around 8 p.m., defendant went to the Mobil gas station. While he was pumping gas, Tellez came out of the station, leaned over the car, and told him he was going over the dollar amount. Defendant stated that he had not yet paid Tellez any money. He said he was planning to buy $5 worth of gas, but went over that amount.

At that time, a woman drove into the station and went inside. According to defendant, he followed her into the station and saw Tellez give her a small brown paper bag. Defendant then paid for the gas and bought a pack of cigarettes. When defendant left, Tellez and the woman were still inside the station. In rebuttal, Tellez denied giving a brown paper bag to a woman on the night of the robbery.

Defendant then testified that he stopped at two nearby car dealerships before going to the Wendy’s restaurant, where he was arrested. He admitted having a knife in his car, having $9.20 on him, and wearing a tan leather jacket when he was arrested. He denied all other allegations, including that he turned around in the gas station at 173rd Street and Torrence Avenue.

On cross-examination, the State asked defendant whether he had made any post-arrest statements. Defendant replied that he spoke to the police and to some lawyers. On redirect examination, defendant stated that he told the police, “I haven’t robbed anybody.”

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
609 N.E.2d 682, 241 Ill. App. 3d 772, 182 Ill. Dec. 148, 1992 Ill. App. LEXIS 1847, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/people-v-louisville-illappct-1992.