The PEOPLE v. Keeney

The defendant, Melvin Keeney, having waived a jury in the circuit court of Rock Island County, was found guilty after a bench trial on February 27, 1967, of the crime of rape. He was represented at trial by counsel. His petition for probation was denied and following a hearing in mitigation and aggravation he was sentenced on March 3, 1967, to a term of from two to seven years.

Proceedings following sentencing left an uncommonly tangled trail, to which we shall refer only to the extent necessary to indicate what we consider to be the controlling issue on this appeal.

The defendant, acting pro…