People v. Deacon

Following a jury trial, the defendant, Michael Deacon, was convicted of the murder of George Christo, Jr. The defendant was subsequently sentenced to a 55-year term of imprisonment. He appeals, raising numerous contentions of error involving the pretrial, trial, and sentencing stages of the proceedings below.

The defendant was tried together with Leonard Stocki, who also was charged with Christo’s murder. At the trial the State presented one occurrence witness, Lois Chernetzki, the girlfriend of the decedent. She had previously been convicted of delivery of a controlled substance, i.e.,…