People v. Skipper

Defendant, Willie Skipper, was convicted of aggravated battery and sentenced to five years in the Illinois Department of Corrections. On appeal, defendant argues that his sixth and fourteenth amendment rights to an impartial jury were violated by the trial court’s refusal to voir dire the prospective jurors as to any predisposition regarding a verdict of “not guilty by reason of self-defense.” We affirm.

The testimony at trial was conflicting. According to the defense, defendant was walking to the drugstore for his wife on the morning of March 17, 1984. Defendant encountered the complainant,…