People v. Lavinder

Following a jury trial in the circuit court of Cook County, defendant, Melvin Lavinder, was found guilty of armed robbery and attempted murder (Ill. Rev. Stat. 1979, ch. 38, pars. 18 — 2, 8 — 4, 9 — 1). Defendant was sentenced to concurrent prison terms of 25 years for each conviction. A codefendant, Larry Johnson, was found not guilty.

Defendant appeals, contending reversible error occurred in that (1) the prosecution’s peremptory challenge of all six black prospective jurors in the venire was constitutionally improper; (2) there was no probable cause for defendant’s arrest; and (3) the…