People v. Washington

Charles Washington was convicted by a jury in the circuit court of Cook County of the murder of Nathan Bottley (Ill. Rev. Stat. 1979, ch. 38, par. 9 — 1) and was given a sentence of 28 years. The appellate court (111 Ill. App. 3d 711) reversed, holding that the defendant was denied effective assistance of counsel. The court ordered a new hearing on the defendant’s pretrial motions and a new trial. We granted the State’s petition for leave to appeal under Rule 315 (87 Ill. 2d R. 315).

In November 1977, Albert Johnson was shot to death in Chicago Heights. The defendant, a Chicago Heights…