The PEOPLE v. Cannon

Defendants, William Cannon, Jr. and Lawrence Cochran, were convicted by a jury in the circuit court of Cook County for the murders of two persons. The jury found that the death penalty should be imposed, the court entered judgment on the verdicts, and sentenced defendants to death. Pursuant to our Rule 603 (Ill. Rev. Stat., ch. 110A, par. 603), defendants have appealed directly to this court.

Defendant, along with Arthur Johnson, were indicted for the murders of Donald Hopkins, Jr. and Anthony Smith. The People’s evidence at trial shows that on July 25, 1966, a group of teenage boys was…