People v. Hatchett

PRESIDING JUSTICE CUNNINGHAM

delivered the modified opinion of the court upon denial of petition for rehearing:

Following a bench trial in the circuit court of Cook County, defendant Derrick Hatchett was convicted of first-degree murder and sentenced to 45 years of imprisonment. On appeal, the defendant argues that: (1) he was denied a fair trial when the trial court admitted the decedent’s statement as an excited utterance and/or dying declaration; (2) he was denied a fair trial when the trial court permitted the handwritten statement of a testifying witness, Tron Johnson, to be introduced as…