The People v. Williams

222 N.E.2d 321, 36 Ill. 2d 194, 1966 Ill. LEXIS 240
CourtIllinois Supreme Court
DecidedSeptember 23, 1966
Docket39515, 39524 cons.
StatusPublished
Cited by46 cases

This text of 222 N.E.2d 321 (The People v. Williams) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Illinois Supreme Court primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
The People v. Williams, 222 N.E.2d 321, 36 Ill. 2d 194, 1966 Ill. LEXIS 240 (Ill. 1966).

Opinions

Mr. Justice House

delivered the opinion of the court:

Marvin Williams was indicted along with Samuel Jones, Johnnie Walker, Robert House, David Sanders and Samuel Lacey in the criminal court of Cook County for the crime of rape. In a joint bench trial all of the defendants were found guilty and sentenced to the penitentiary. Williams, who was sentenced to the penitentiary for 15 years, filed a petition under the Post-Conviction Hearing Act. (Ill. Rev. Stat. 1965, chap. 38, pars. 122 — 1 et seq.) His appeal from a dismissal of this petition has been consolidated for review with his writ of error.

The complaining witness testified that about 10 :00 o’clock P.M. on January 16, 1961, she was returning to her home from church and had gotten off a bus at Douglas and Kedzie. As she was walking along the street, some boys came up behind her and grabbed her around the neck. The boy who grabbed her said he had a knife in her back. She was taken to a basement where one of the boys took her purse and she was told to take off her clothes. She said that all six of the defendants then had sexual relations with her. On cross-examination she stated that four or five of the defendants had sexual relations with her at this time. Three of the boys then took her to a vacant building and had sexual relations with her.

Samuel Jones testified that he grabbed the prosecuting witness around the neck and took her to the basement with the intent of robbing her. Sanders, Lacey and Walker were with him at this time. He took $3 from her purse and gave Walker, Sanders and Lacey each $1. Those three left and Williams and House then arrived. Williams, House and Jones then took her to a vacant building. Jones said he asked to have sexual relations with her and she consented.

The other defendants all admitted that they were at the basement or the vacant building, but they all denied that they had sexual relations with the complaining witness, that they threatened her, that they heard or saw anyone threaten her, or that they saw any of the other defendants have sexual relations with her. A joint confession by Williams, Jones and House was introduced into evidence in which they admitted taking the woman to the empty building and each of them having sexual intercourse with her there. In this confession Jones accused Williams of threatening her with a nail file, but this was denied by Williams. Williams in turn accused House of. threatening her with a knife, but this was also denied in the confession by House. At the trial Williams denied that he made that part of the confession in which he admitted having sexual relations with the complaining witness and that he had accused House of threatening her with the knife.

The points raised by the petition under the Post-Conviction Hearing Act and by the writ of error are the same. Petitioner’s two basic arguments are that he was denied adequate assistance of counsel and that the appointment of a single public defender to represent six defendants at their joint trial was an “ineffective appointment.”

Much of petitioner’s argument centers around defense counsel’s stipulation that the joint “confession” of Jones, House and Williams could be admitted in evidence. He now argues that he confessed because of threats and promises of leniency, that he was not represented by counsel or advised of his rights when he confessed and that defense counsel stipulated to the confession to exculpate other of the defendants. While he attacks the stipulation from various aspects, the basic complaint seems to be that his counsel should have demanded a preliminary hearing on admissibility.

The record shows that defense counsel stipulated that the confession could be admitted as to the defendants who made the various statements in the confession and further stipulated that no weight be given those statements until the maker had testified. The additional stipulation was obviously made because defense counsel knew the makers of the statements were going to deny making them. When Williams did in fact testify, he denied making any of the incriminating statements in the confession.

In People v. Gray, 33 Ill.2d 349, it was alleged that counsel’s failure to move to suppress alleged oral confessions was tantamount to no representation at all. There, as here, defendant at the trial denied that he had made any confessions. We stated, at page 355, “We cannot say that where alleged confessions are denied as having ever been made, incompetency of counsel is indicated by the absence of a motion to suppress them. As a matter of trial tactics, counsel evidently relied upon his client’s testimonial denial of ever having stated that he committed the crime. This is not unusual, as under the former practice where defendant denied making a confession it was unnecessary for the trial court to grant a hearing on a motion to suppress. People v. Hegovic, 348 Ill. 58; overruled in People v. Norfleet, 29 Ill.2d 287.” The stipulation of defense counsel does not show inadequate assistance of counsel.

The question now is whether petitioner is entitled to a hearing on the voluntariness of the admissions he made in the joint statement. As we have pointed out, the petitioner at the time of his trial in March, 1961, denied all the incriminating admissions of the joint statement stipulated into the record. The first suggestion that he did make these admissions and that they were not made voluntarily came in his petition filed 4 years later on March 11, 1965, under the Post-Conviction Hearing Act.

In People v. Smith, 32 Ill.2d 88, 93, we stated, “A confession obtained by coercion is, of course, inadmissible, and it is the usual rule that where an issue is raised concerning ■ the voluntary nature of a confession the court must make a determination of that issue. However, constitutional claims, like other claims, may be waived. The record clearly shows that defendant’s counsel stipulated that the confessions might be admitted in evidence without objection. This agreement waived any claim that the confessions were improperly obtained. It is of no significance that the attorney was appointed by the court, for the same rules of procedure apply whether counsel is appointed or privately retained.”

This pronouncement would be dispositive of this issue, but we feel it should be considered in light of recent Supreme Court decisions concerning waiver of a Federally guaranteed constitutional right. We recognize, of course, that we need not forego our procedural rules for preserving constitutional claims for review when such rules serve a legitimate State interest, (see Henry v. State of Mississippi, 379 U.S. 443, 452, 85 S. Ct. 564, 570, 13 L. Ed. 2d 408, 415); nevertheless we have relaxed the waiver principle of a constitutional claim where fundamental fairness so required. See People v. Hamby, 32 Ill.2d 291.

In Pay v. Noia, 372 U.S. 391, 83 S. Ct. 822, 9 L. Ed. 2d 837, the Supreme Court stated, “Although we hold that the jurisdiction of the federal courts on habeas corpus is not affected by procedural defaults incurred by the applicant during the state court proceedings, we recognize a limited discretion in the federal judge to deny relief to an applicant under certain circumstances.” (372 U.S. 391, 438, 83 S.

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

Related

People v. Bowman
561 N.E.2d 633 (Illinois Supreme Court, 1990)
People v. Turner
495 N.E.2d 1056 (Appellate Court of Illinois, 1986)
People v. Lewis
473 N.E.2d 901 (Illinois Supreme Court, 1984)
People v. Wilkerson
463 N.E.2d 139 (Appellate Court of Illinois, 1984)
People v. Smith
459 N.E.2d 1171 (Appellate Court of Illinois, 1984)
State v. Sayers
319 N.W.2d 438 (Nebraska Supreme Court, 1982)
People v. Jackson
433 N.E.2d 1385 (Appellate Court of Illinois, 1982)
United States v. Franzen
659 F.2d 741 (Seventh Circuit, 1981)
United States ex rel. Fulton v. Franzen
659 F.2d 741 (Seventh Circuit, 1981)
People v. Ecoma Banks
389 N.E.2d 180 (Appellate Court of Illinois, 1979)
People v. Ross
380 N.E.2d 897 (Appellate Court of Illinois, 1978)
People v. Thompson
366 N.E.2d 375 (Appellate Court of Illinois, 1977)
People v. Joseph
361 N.E.2d 368 (Appellate Court of Illinois, 1977)
People v. Craig
361 N.E.2d 736 (Appellate Court of Illinois, 1977)
People v. Hardemon
361 N.E.2d 680 (Appellate Court of Illinois, 1977)
People v. Hammond
342 N.E.2d 127 (Appellate Court of Illinois, 1975)
People v. Nichols
327 N.E.2d 186 (Appellate Court of Illinois, 1975)
People v. Normant
323 N.E.2d 553 (Appellate Court of Illinois, 1975)
People v. Husar
318 N.E.2d 24 (Appellate Court of Illinois, 1974)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
222 N.E.2d 321, 36 Ill. 2d 194, 1966 Ill. LEXIS 240, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/the-people-v-williams-ill-1966.