People v. Thompkins

The defendant, Willie Thompkins, brings this appeal from an order of the circuit court of Cook County dismissing, without an evidentiary hearing, his petition for post-conviction relief. Because the defendant received the death sentence for the underlying murder convictions, the present appeal lies directly to this court. 134 Ill. 2d R. 651(a).

The defendant was convicted in June 1982 in the circuit court of Cook County of the murders of two men, Gerald Holton and Arthur Sheppard. The defendant was also convicted of a number of other offenses based on the same occurrence. The defendant was…