People v. Dugan

The appellant entered a negotiated plea of guilty to voluntary manslaughter on November 12, 1970. The question presented is whether the failure of the trial court to determine whether there was a factual basis for the plea of guilty, as required by Supreme Court Rule 402(c), requires reversal. There is nothing in the record to indicate that the trial judge made any inquiry or determination that there was a factual basis.

Rule 402 calls for substantial compliance with the requirement for a factual basis. This could be accomplished by having the defendant state what he did, having the State’s…