The PEOPLE v. McCoy

Defendant was convicted of involuntary manslaughter in a bench trial by the circuit court of Piatt County. The Appellate Court, Fourth District, affirmed the conviction (101 Ill. App. 2d 69) and we granted leave to appeal.

The circumstances of the trial are, to say the least, unusual. The State’s Attorney prosecuting the case was the only witness for the State. He testified that he attended an inquest at which he heard testimony about an automobile accident in which the defendant was involved and which resulted in the death of a woman. The State’s Attorney gave the names of the witnesses at…