People v. Musson

2026 IL App (5th) 241125-U
CourtAppellate Court of Illinois
DecidedFebruary 17, 2026
Docket5-24-1125
StatusUnpublished

This text of 2026 IL App (5th) 241125-U (People v. Musson) 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. Musson, 2026 IL App (5th) 241125-U (Ill. Ct. App. 2026).

Opinion

NOTICE 2026 IL App (5th) 241125-U NOTICE Decision filed 02/17/26. The This order was filed under text of this decision may be NO. 5-24-1125 Supreme Court Rule 23 and is changed or corrected prior to not precedent except in the the filing of a Petition for IN THE limited circumstances allowed Rehearing or the disposition of under Rule 23(e)(1). the same. APPELLATE COURT OF ILLINOIS

FIFTH DISTRICT ______________________________________________________________________________

THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, ) Appeal from the ) Circuit Court of Plaintiff-Appellee, ) Vermilion County. ) v. ) No. 23-CF-420 ) ROBERT MUSSON, ) Honorable ) Robert E. McIntire, Defendant-Appellant. ) Judge, presiding. ______________________________________________________________________________

JUSTICE McHANEY delivered the judgment of the court. Justices Moore ∗ and Boie concurred in the judgment.

ORDER

¶1 Held: Where the trial court had no duty to question a juror who cried during some testimony and where the State’s questioning of a child witness and remarks in closing argument were not improper, we affirm the defendant’s convictions.

¶2 On August 4, 2023, the defendant, Robert Musson, was charged by indictment with three

counts of predatory criminal sexual assault of a child (720 ILCS 5/11-1.40(a)(1) (West 2018)).

Two of those counts alleged that the defendant, who was 17 years of age or older, committed an

act of sexual contact with a minor, G.S., who was under 13 years of age when the acts were

committed. One count alleged that the defendant committed an act of sexual contact with a minor,

K.J., who was under 13 years of age when the acts were committed. On February 15, 2024, the

∗ Justice Moore fully participated in the decision prior to his retirement. See Cirro Wrecking Co. v. Roppolo, 153 Ill. 2d 6 (1992). 1 defendant was charged by indictment with four additional counts of predatory criminal sexual

assault of a child. Id. Two of those additional counts alleged that the defendant, who was 17 years

of age or older, committed an act of sexual contact with a minor, G.S. The other two additional

counts alleged that the defendant, who was 17 years of age or older, committed an act of sexual

contact with a minor, K.J. On August 13, 2024, a jury trial commenced on six total counts from

both indictments. 1 The defendant was convicted on all six counts and was sentenced to life in

prison. Following the denial of his motion for new trial, the defendant timely appealed. For the

following reasons, we affirm.

¶3 I. BACKGROUND

¶4 We recite only those facts relevant to the issues on appeal. On July 4, 2023, Jessica S., the

mother of alleged victim G.S., was contacted by a relative who said the defendant had abused G.S.

The defendant is G.S.’s step-grandfather. On July 7, 2023, G.S. talked to his older sibling, K.S.,

who informed Jessica that G.S. “told her more stuff and it was really bad.” On July 8, 2023, G.S.’s

father contacted Danville police about the allegations.

¶5 On July 11, 2023, G.S. was interviewed by child advocate specialist Chelsey Hembree at

the Vermilion County Children’s Advocacy Center (CAC). G.S. told Hembree that he had not slept

in four days and was very tired. He did not want to talk more, so Hembree asked if he wanted to

draw. G.S. drew a picture of himself, his mother, and his sisters. Hembree told G.S. that sometimes

children come to the CAC to talk to her about “good touch” and “bad touch.” When asked if he

understood, G.S. nodded. G.S. then drew a picture of a person and pointed to the butt. He wrote

the word “bad,” which he said meant bad touch. Hembree asked G.S. if there was anywhere else

on his body that was not okay to touch, and he said, “I know some, but he didn’t touch me there.”

1 Count V was nol-prossed before trial. 2 G.S. drew a picture of a body with a “d” but said Grandpa did not touch him there. G.S. wrote the

word “abuse.” Hembree showed G.S. an anatomically correct drawing of the front and back of an

unclothed male and asked G.S. to circle where Grandpa touched him. G.S. circled the butt on the

anatomical drawing and stated that he did not know if Grandpa touched him “here,” circling the

genitals. When asked where he was when Grandpa touched him, G.S. said they were in Grandpa’s

room when Grandpa touched his butt. He wrote “room” and “lock” on the picture he had drawn

and said that Grandpa had locked the room. G.S. was unsure how long ago this happened but said

that it happened more than once. When asked what Grandpa used to touch his butt, G.S. circled

the hand on the anatomical drawing.

¶6 G.S. later met with a detective from the Danville Police Department. G.S. told the detective

that when he was a “little boy,” while in the shower with Grandpa, Grandpa would wash his back

and touch G.S.’s genitals and butt. Grandpa told him not to tell anyone. G.S. made a slashing

motion across his own throat and said that he kept this secret for a long time because Grandpa had

said that. G.S. stated no one was home when Grandpa touched him. He also said that he touched

Grandpa’s butt and genitals “because he made me.” G.S. said Grandpa also made him “suck the

d” more than one time. G.S. said he got dizzy while it happened, and he did not like the taste and

would use a lot of soap to wash his mouth out.

¶7 Prior to trial, the State filed notice of intent to introduce the CAC interview and statements

G.S. made to his parents and to police officers, pursuant to section 115-10 of the Code of Criminal

Procedure of 1963 (725 ILCS 5/115-10 (West 2022)). On July 17, 2024, the trial court held a

hearing pursuant to section 115-10 and found the CAC video to be admissible. The State also

sought to admit evidence of the defendant’s sexual assault of each minor (G.S. and K.J.) as

propensity evidence. K.J. is the defendant’s great-niece, who disclosed abuse by the defendant

3 during the investigation concerning G.S. The State argued that the defendant’s assaults of G.S. and

K.J. were proximate in time and factually similar. The trial court granted the State’s motion to

admit this evidence, and the CAC video was published to the jury.

¶8 At trial, Jessica testified that her mother was married to the defendant, and she and her

three children, including G.S., lived with her mother and the defendant for a period in 2021. She

said that until 2023, she trusted the defendant around children, even allowing him to take them

swimming at his boss’s house at times. In 2023, Jessica received a Facebook message from Brandy

Miller, a relative, about the defendant reportedly abusing K.J. and G.S. Jessica’s daughter, K.S.,

then spoke to G.S., who told her about the defendant touching him in the shower. Based on that

conversation, Jessica and her husband took G.S. to the Danville Police Department to report a

“sexual assault.”

¶9 Officer Michael Stephens testified that he met with Jessica, her husband, and G.S. on July

9, 2023, at the Danville Police Department. G.S. told Officer Stephens that the defendant would

rub his butt in bed, made G.S. “suck his dick,” and would “watch nasty videos have Vaseline and

toilet paper with him.” G.S. said he was afraid of the defendant after that, because if he would take

a nap with him, “it would hurt.” G.S. told Officer Stephens this happened about four years ago; he

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Bluebook (online)
2026 IL App (5th) 241125-U, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/people-v-musson-illappct-2026.