People v. Taylor

Defendant, Reyondos Taylor, was charged in the circuit court of St. Clair County with first-degree murder. Defendant, along with his half-brother, Terrance Towns, was accused of the murder of Charles Woodcock, the night manager of the Short Stop convenience store in Fairview Heights. Defendant was convicted after a jury trial and sentenced to 45 years’ imprisonment.

At trial, several witnesses testified that they had either seen or spoken to Woodcock, who was working alone, minutes before closing. A search of defendant’s mother’s house, where the defendant lived, produced a note, found in…