People v. McGowan

The defendant, James McGowan, was convicted of unlawful use of a weapon, a Class A misdemeanor, following a bench trial in the Circuit Court of Peoria County. He was sentenced to two years probation, including a condition of 90 days imprisonment in the county jail. The sole issue on his appeal is whether there was a reasonable basis for the police officers to stop defendant and conduct a pat-down for weapons. We affirm.

At about 12:50 a.m. on April 13,1975, uniformed police officers George Fulton and Orlando Allen prepared to exit the city garage in their marked squad car. As they left the…