People v. White

608 N.E.2d 1220, 241 Ill. App. 3d 291, 181 Ill. Dec. 746, 1993 Ill. App. LEXIS 180
CourtAppellate Court of Illinois
DecidedFebruary 17, 1993
Docket2-91-1204
StatusPublished
Cited by20 cases

This text of 608 N.E.2d 1220 (People v. White) 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. White, 608 N.E.2d 1220, 241 Ill. App. 3d 291, 181 Ill. Dec. 746, 1993 Ill. App. LEXIS 180 (Ill. Ct. App. 1993).

Opinion

JUSTICE BOWMAN

delivered the opinion of the court:

Defendant, Joe Lee White, was convicted of home invasion (Ill. Rev. Stat. 1991, ch. 38, par. 12 — 11(a)(2)), robbery (Ill. Rev. Stat. 1991, ch. 38, pars. 18 — 1(a), (b)), and aggravated battery (Ill. Rev. Stat. 1991, ch. 38, par. 12 — 4(b)(10)). He was sentenced to concurrent prison terms of 40, 30, and 5 years, respectively. On appeal, defendant contends that the State did not prove him guilty beyond a reasonable doubt, that error occurred in the trial court’s comments on weight accorded expert fingerprint testimony, that no evidence was entered as to the age of the victim as required for the two crimes in which the victim must be age 60 years or older, that the defendant’s conviction of aggravated battery is barred under the one-act, one-crime doctrine, and that defendant was denied due process of law where an extended-term sentence was imposed based on the aggravating factor of victim’s age when no evidence of age had been presented. We affirm in part, modify in part, vacate in part, and remand to the trial court for resentencing.

Margaret and Harry Lauritson were residents of Waukegan and were away from their home on July 4, 1991. James Christensen, a long-time boarder in the residence, was house sitting in their absence. Around 9:15 p.m., Mr. Christensen was sitting in the downstairs living room watching television. He heard a noise on the front porch and got up to see what was the source of that noise. A man rushed in and struck him hard in the chest, knocking him to the floor and knocking off his glasses. The man grabbed Christensen’s wallet and left. The incident happened in less than 30 seconds.

Shortly after the crime, evidence technician Thomas Ambrose dusted for fingerprints. He lifted a latent fingerprint from the inside of the outer front door of the enclosed front porch of the Lauritson home. The following day, in a matter unrelated to Christensen’s robbery, Waukegan police officer Elaine Delaney took inked fingerprints of the defendant Joe Lee White.

On July 7, Detective Paul Hendley showed Christensen two photographic lineups. One of those lineups contained a picture of defendant. Christensen responded that he would not be able to identify the man who attacked him, because his glasses had been knocked off and, according to the record, “everything happened so fast.”

On July 11, Investigator Donald Verbeke filed a report which concluded that the latent fingerprint lifted by Ambrose matched the ring finger on the inked card of defendant prepared by Delaney. The next day, Detective Donald Meadie showed Christensen a photo array which included defendant’s picture. Again, Christensen was unable to identify any of the men shown as his assailant. One week later defendant was indicted on charges of home invasion, aggravated battery (based on Christensen’s age), and robbery.

Trial took place September 3-5, 1991. Christensen testified that the incident happened “in a flash.” He had no chance to focus on the intruder’s features and was able only to state that the man was black, between 5 feet 11 inches and 6 feet tall, and was wearing certain clothes. Christensen did not testify as to how old he himself was.

Using side-by-side mounted photographs of the latent fingerprint found on the inside of the storm door of the Lauritson home and the inked print of defendant’s left ring finger, expert witness Donald Verbeke testified that the formation of the characteristics in each print was exactly the same. He noted that there were 13 similar characteristics charted in the exhibit. He also stated that there were 10 to 20 other characteristics that had not been illustrated. Verbeke came, to the conclusion that the latent print and the inked print were made by the same person. He stated that he did not know when the print was impressed on the door.

Defendant’s wife, Deborah White, along with Milana McClinton, Dante Roberts, and Barbara Carley LeFlore, all of whom lived in the Whites’ apartment complex, testified as to defendant’s whereabouts on July 4. Since it was a holiday, witnesses testified that defendant spent much of it getting his hair permed, watching his three children, and relaxing with neighbors and family as barbecuing took place at the apartment complex.

The eyewitness testimony was somewhat conflicting. For instance, Mrs. White testified as to being picked up by defendant at her mother’s house in North Chicago at 8 p.m. It was about a 15 to 20 minute drive from defendant’s home in Waukegan to Mrs. White’s mother’s home in North Chicago. She reported that they arrived at home about 8:30. Then, once at home, defendant remained outdoors at the apart- • ment complex, while his wife went inside, took a bath and a nap until about 10 p.m. Ms. McClinton stated that she saw defendant around the apartment complex at 8:15 p.m., before she left to go to a fireworks exhibition. She arrived home at 10 p.m. Ms. LeFlore found it hard to identify a time in the evening when she talked to defendant, but it was between “light and dark.” She also testified that it was hard to state a time because she had been drinking and could not remember exact times. Dante Roberts testified to seeing the defendant at the apartment complex at several times between 7:45 and 8:30 p.m. At 8:30 p.m. Roberts left to go to a fireworks exhibition, and did not return until 10 p.m. The defendant was reportedly seen at the apartment complex when witnesses McClinton and Roberts arrived home at 10 p.m.

In closing arguments the State argued to the jury that “fingerprints don’t lie.” Furthermore, the State contended that none of the defense witnesses could place the defendant at his apartment complex at 9:15 p.m., the precise time of the crime.

In closing argument, defense counsel argued that fingerprints may not lie, yet they may be misinterpreted. Counsel then asked the jury to consider the dissimilarities between the fingerprints. Counsel then began to point out dissimilarities between the fingerprints. In response to the State’s objection, the record reveals that the court stated:

“These fingerprints are subject to expert opinion. It’s not proper for either counsel to ask the jury to arrive at their [sic] opinions as to the similarities of the fingerprints or for either counsel to voice an opinion. That’s subject to expert opinion.”

Defense counsel continued and insisted that there were visible dissimilarities between the two prints. In response to the State’s objection that counsel was trying to put in evidence, the record shows that the court stated:

“Gentlemen, both of you have made some vague suggestion that the jury compare the fingerprints. These fingerprints are subject to an expert opinion. An expert has looked at the two fingerprints, the known and the unknown, and voiced an opinion. The jury is not to ***.”

The court then instructed the jurors to confine themselves to the facts in evidence that they heard from the witness stand and to the reasonable inferences which could be drawn from these facts.

The jury was instructed that, in order to sustain the charge of Class I robbery in this case, they must specifically find that Christensen was 60 years of age or older.

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
608 N.E.2d 1220, 241 Ill. App. 3d 291, 181 Ill. Dec. 746, 1993 Ill. App. LEXIS 180, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/people-v-white-illappct-1993.