Wilson v. People

QUINN, Chief Justice.

The question raised in this case is whether a prosecutor’s repeated statements during summation that the accused and his wife “lied” in testifying during trial constituted plain error. In affirming the conviction of William Wilson (defendant) for two felony counts of sexual assault, the court of appeals in an unpublished opinion held that the prosecutor’s remarks, although improper, did not constitute plain error. We now reverse the judgment and remand the case for a new trial.

I

The defendant was tried by a jury on charges of second degree sexual assault1 and sexual…