People v. Coffman

The defendant, a seventeen-year-old high school student, pleaded guilty to a charge of deceptive practices in writing a $10 check on his older brother’s account and was placed on probation. Six weeks later, the probation was revoked and the defendant was sentenced to the Illinois State Farm at Vandalia, Illinois, for one year. In appealing from this order, his principal contention is that he was denied procedural due process of law in that the revocation order was entered without benefit of counsel.

The revocation proceedings was instituted by an unverified motion of the probation officer…