People v. Williams

Defendant Carl Williams appeals the circuit court’s dismissal of his third petition for relief under the Post-Conviction Hearing Act (the Act) (725 ILCS 5/122 — 1 et seq. (West 2006)). On appeal, defendant contends that his present petition and supporting affidavits meet the Act’s “cause” and “prejudice” requirements for successive petitions. He further asserts that his petition established his actual innocence and stated the gist of a constitutional claim that the prosecution withheld material evidence from his trial counsel. For the reasons set forth below, the circuit court’s order denying…