People v. Johnson

At a hearing in March 1997, the trial court ordered defendant, Korey L. Johnson, to pay for the attorney appointed to represent him on charges that he had violated the terms of his probation, pursuant to section 113 — 3.1 of the Code of Criminal Procedure of 1963 (Code) (725 ILCS 5/113 — 3.1 (West 1996)). Defendant appeals the payment order, arguing that the court erred by failing to conduct the statutorily required hearing on his ability to pay. We agree and reverse and remand.

I. BACKGROUND

In April 1995, defendant pleaded guilty to burglary (720 ILCS 5/19 — 1 (West 1994)) and was sentenced…