The People v. Alden

In 1954 John Alden, referred to herein as petitioner, was tried by jury in the criminal court of Cook County for the crime of murder, found guilty, and sentenced to the penitentiary for a term of 14 years. He filed a petition in the trial court under the Post-Conviction Hearing Act, which was denied after a hearing. We allowed a writ of error and appointed counsel. Briefs were filed, the cause was orally argued and is now before us for decision.

The post-conviction petition alleged that the testimony of one Gerald Matthews at petitioner’s trial was false and perjured and that the State had…