The People v. Hicks

We here consider two separate appeals, consolidated for purposes of opinion, which have been prosecuted by defendant, Morris Hicks, from judgments of the circuit court of Cook County. The first appeal is from a judgment, predicated on a jury verdict of guilty, convicting him of the murder of Virginia Simmons and sentencing him to the penitentiary for a term of not less than 20 nor more than 50 years; the second is from a judgment which dismissed without a hearing a petition wherein defendant sought relief under the provisions of the Post-Conviction Hearing Act. Ill. Rev. Stat. 1967, ch. 38,…