United States ex rel. Gibson v. McGinnis

ORDER

HAROLD ALBERT BAKER, District Judge.

In November, 1990, Benjamin Gibson petitioned for a writ of habeas corpus pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 2254. In this petition, Gibson alleged numerous grounds for relief, but only his claim that the admission of statements he made to a jailhouse informant violated his Sixth Amendment right to counsel is at issue today. On direct appeal from Gibson’s conviction, the Illinois Appellate Court held that the trial court erred in admitting the statements, but that the error had been harmless under Chapman v. California, 386 U.S. 18, 87 S.Ct. 824, 17 L.Ed.2d 705…