People v. Ward

The defendant, George Edward Ward, pled guilty to criminal damage to property and two counts of burglary (720 ILCS 5/19 — 1, 21 — 1 (West 1992)). He was sentenced to concurrent 3- , 20- , and 20-year terms of imprisonment, respectively. The defendant appeals.

The record shows that the defendant broke a plate glass window, entered a commercial building, and then ran out with some candy, change, and a shirt. The items were traced to shops inside the building.

At the sentencing hearing, the trial judge found that the defendant was eligible to be sentenced as a Class X offender because of his prior…