People v. Howard

Defendant, Ricky Howard, was convicted of the offenses of unlawful use of weapons, reckless conduct, attempted murder, and armed violence. He was sentenced to 30 years for each of the offenses of attempted murder and armed violence, sentences to run concurrently. Defendant appeals from the convictions and sentences.

The convictions arose from a shooting that occurred at the home of Ralph Ritter on May 7, 1978, in Tilton, Illinois. The following uncontroverted evidence was adduced at trial.

During the late afternoon and early evening of May 7, 1978, Ritter received four phone calls from…