Ronald Kitchen - What The Illinois Supreme Court Previously Said
Back in 1994, the Illinois Supreme Court stated:
* "As a preliminary matter, we note that defendant's alibi testimony was obviously inconsistent and contained fatal flaws."
* "In addition, defendant admitted that as Assistant State's Attorney Lukanich prepared the handwritten statement, he never mentioned to him that he was at the pool party. Leslie Jenkins, defendant's sister who offered alibi testimony on his behalf, admitted that she visited defendant in jail more than 10 times subsequent to his arrest. Yet she allowed defendant to languish in jail for two full years before contacting the authorities with personal knowledge that she was with him on the night of the murders."
* "Williams testified that he had driven defendant and codefendant Reeves to deliver drugs and collect money from 'Debbie' and 'Mary' on a number of occasions, accurately described certain details of the Sepulveda residence, and positively identified photographs of Sepulveda and Rodriguez as the women to whom cocaine was sold."
* "At the motion to suppress statements, the State presented the testimony of four Chicago police officers, each of whom testified that defendant was not beaten and that his confession was voluntary. Assistant State's Attorney Mark Lukanich also testified that he did not see any of the police officers physically strike, threaten, or assault defendant. Most importantly, a videotape was presented at the suppression hearing which showed defendant's exit from the police station to the police wagon. In the videotape, defendant was walking normally and not limping in any manner, nor did he show any visible signs of injury."
More to follow. . .
The Illinois Supreme Court ruled on Thursday that a pardon from the governor, even a pardon declaring innocence, does not automatically clear a criminal record. The person receiving the pardon would still have to petition a trial court to expunge the conviction, which the court has the discretion to do or not do. The major issue the Supreme Court dealt with was whether the legislature gave the courts the authority to expunge a record. The Court held that the lawmakers have certainly done that. As such, the circuit courts have the discretion to clear the record or not, even if the Governor declares someone innocent.The Case arouse out of the petition of 