People v. Barker

Defendant, William John Barker, appealed from the judgment of the circuit court of McLean County revoking his probation and imposing sentence of not less than 3 years and 4 months and not more than 10 years. The appellate court reversed (23 Ill. App. 3d 598) and we allowed the People’s petition for leave to appeal. The facts are adequately set forth in the appellate court opinion and will be restated here only to the extent necessary to define the issues.

On July 7, 1972, defendant, then 17 years of age, waived indictment and pleaded guilty to an information charging the offense of theft over…