People v. Lang

In 1971, defendant, Donald Lang, was arrested and charged with the murder of Earlene Brown. At the time of the murder, defendant, who has been deaf from birth, was unable to speak, read, or write and did not know sign language. In 1972, defendant was tried for the murder and convicted by a jury. On appeal, after determining that defendant’s disabilities deprived him of a fair trial, this court reversed defendant’s conviction and remanded the cause for a fitness hearing. People v. Lang (1975), 26 Ill. App. 3d 648, 325 N.E.2d 305.

On remand in 1976, defendant was found unfit to stand trial and…