People v. Clark

The defendant, Clay Scott Clark, was convicted of murder and sentenced to 26 years of imprisonment (Ill. Rev. Stat. 1985, ch. 38, par. 9—1(a)). He filed a direct appeal and this court affirmed his conviction. (People v. Clark (1988), 165 Ill. App. 3d 210, 518 N.E.2d 763.) The defendant then filed a post-conviction petition, which the court dismissed as frivolous and patently without merit. The defendant appeals.

The defendant filed a pro se petition for post-conviction relief on December 12, 1991. On December 20, 1991, a hearing was held in the defendant’s absence. At that hearing, the State…