People v. Byas

The defendant was charged with one count of rape and two counts of armed violence. In a bench trial, the court convicted him of all charges and sentenced him to concurrent terms of 20 years in prison.

The complainant was 13 years old at the time of the rape. On October 5, 1981, sometime between 8:15 and 8:20 a.m., she left home to walk to school. As she was walking along a sidewalk, a car stopped on the opposite side of the street. She described the car to police as a two-door, black over burnt orange 1968 or 1969 Buick. A man got out of the car, looked at its tires, and crossed the street to…