People v. Harris

Chief Justice Fitzgerald and Justices Freeman, Kilbride, Garman, Karmeier, and Burke concurred in the judgment and opinion.

OPINION

The issue is whether the circuit court of Peoria County erred in allowing the State to impeach defendant, Martez Harris, with certified copies of his prior juvenile adjudications. We hold that it did not.

BACKGROUND

In August 2004, three men robbed a Peoria bar at gunpoint. Two witnesses identified defendant as one of the culprits, and he was charged with three counts of armed robbery (720 ILCS 5/18—2(a)(2) (West 2004)). Defendant was 19 years old at the time of the…