People v. Perez

Following a bench trial in the circuit court of Kane County, defendant, Victor Perez, was found guilty of first degree murder (720 ILCS 5/9 — 1(a) (West 1994)) stemming from the shooting death of Pedro Gonzalez. The conviction was based on a theory of accountability. 720 ILCS 5/5 — 2(c) (West 1994). Defendant was sentenced to 20 years’ imprisonment. The appellate court affirmed defendant’s conviction in an unpublished order. No. 2 — 96—0744 (1998) (unpublished order under Supreme Court Rule 23). We allowed defendant’s petition for leave to appeal (177 Ill. 2d R. 315(a)), and we now reverse…