People v. Anderson

Defendant, Tony Anderson, appeals from the circuit court’s denial of his petition for leave to file a successive postconviction petition pursuant to section 122 — 1(f) of the Post-Conviction Hearing Act (725 ILCS 5/122 — 1(f) (West 2004)). He contends that the circuit court erred when it found that he failed to establish either a freestanding claim of actual innocence or the requisite “cause and prejudice,” which would permit him to proceed with his successive petition. For the reasons that follow, we disagree.

BACKGROUND

We begin by noting the complex procedural history of this case. On April…