Illinois Official Reports

Appellate Court

People v. Sperry, 2020 IL App (2d) 180296

Appellate Court 

Caption

THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, Plaintiff-Appellee, v. 

JOHN SPERRY, Defendant-Appellant.

District & No. Second District 

No. 2-18-0296

Filed September 18, 2020

Decision Under 

Review

Appeal from the Circuit Court of Kane County, No. 17-CF-470; the 

Hon. John A. Barsanti, Judge, presiding.

Judgment Reversed and remanded.

Counsel on

Appeal

James E. Chadd, Thomas A. Lilien, and Sade V. Edwards, of State 

Appellate Defender’s Office, of Elgin, for appellant.

Joseph H. McMahon, State’s Attorney, of St. Charles (Patrick Delfino, 

Edward R. Psenicka, and Katrina M. Kuhn, of State’s Attorneys 

Appellate Prosecutor’s Office, of counsel), for the People.

Panel JUSTICE SCHOSTOK delivered the judgment of the court, with 

opinion.

Justices Zenoff and Hudson concurred in the judgment and opinion.
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OPINION

¶ 1 Following a jury trial, the defendant, John Sperry, was convicted of aggravated battery 

(720 ILCS 5/12-3.05(e)(1) (West 2016)) and aggravated fleeing and eluding (625 ILCS 5/11-

204.1(a)(1) (West 2016)) and was sentenced to a total of seven years’ imprisonment. On 

appeal, the defendant argues that (1) the jury was improperly instructed as to the elements of 

aggravated battery, (2) he was deprived of the effective assistance of counsel, and (3) the 

cumulative effect of the trial errors deprived him of a fair trial. We reverse and remand for 

additional proceedings.

¶ 2 I. BACKGROUND1

¶ 3 On April 12, 2017, the State charged the defendant by indictment with attempted firstdegree murder (720 ILCS 5/8-4(a) (West 2016)), aggravated battery (id. § 12-3.05(e)(1)), two 

counts of aggravated fleeing and eluding (625 ILCS 5/11-204.1(a)(1), (4) (West 2016)), and 

reckless driving (id. § 11-503(a)(1)). The charges stemmed from a shooting incident on March 

4, 2017, during which the defendant shot Angel Ortiz, drove away, and failed to stop for the 

police.

¶ 4 On January 8, 2018, the trial court conducted a jury trial on the charges against the 

defendant. Ortiz testified that he had known the defendant for 35 years. The defendant used to 

live with him and several members of Ortiz’s extended family. The defendant had moved out 

two months before the shooting but still drove by the house daily in his old Cadillac, screeching 

his tires and honking. Ortiz testified that, on March 4, 2017, he got angry when he saw the 

defendant stop his car in Ortiz’s driveway. He walked up to within three feet of the defendant’s 

car and yelled at him. Seconds later, the defendant reached into his coat, pulled out a gun, 

pointed it at Ortiz, and shot at his head. Later, at the hospital, Ortiz learned that a bullet had 

cracked his jaw.

¶ 5 The defendant testified that he stopped at Ortiz’s house because he wanted to find out why 

one of Ortiz’s family members had a car at the garage that the defendant rented. Ortiz 

approached his car and started arguing with him, saying that he was going to “kick [the 

defendant’s] a***.” Ortiz came near the car twice and then threw something at him, but the 

defendant did not know what it was. Ortiz “took off” when he noticed a gun on the passenger 

seat. When the defendant tried to pick up the weapon to put it in his coat, the gun went off by 

itself. The defendant denied aiming the firearm, pulling the trigger, or intending to hurt, shoot, 

or kill Ortiz.

¶ 6 After the shooting, the defendant sped away, traveling 60 to 70 miles per hour. Police 

observed him committing numerous traffic violations. Police arrested the defendant after his 

vehicle struck a pole.

¶ 7 Following the testimony, the jury received instruction on (1) attempted first degree murder, 

(2) aggravated battery based on the use of a firearm, and (3) aggravated fleeing and eluding. 

1

The State asserts that the defendant’s statement of facts in his appellate brief violates Illinois 

Supreme Court Rule 341(h)(6) (eff. May 25, 2018) because the facts are inaccurate in parts and 

argumentative as a whole. The State therefore requests that we wholly disregard the defendant’s 

statement of facts or, in the least, disregard the erroneous and unduly argumentative portions therein. 

As the facts that the State complains of are not pertinent to this appeal, we deny its request.
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The parties agreed that the jury should also receive instruction on the lesser-included offense 

of reckless conduct. The definitional instruction for aggravated battery provided that a person 

commits an aggravated battery when he “knowingly *** causes bodily harm” to another by 

the discharge of a firearm. Under the issues instruction, finding the defendant guilty of 

aggravated battery required the State to prove three propositions beyond a reasonable doubt: 

(1) the defendant “knowingly discharged a firearm,” (2) the defendant caused any injury to 

Ortiz in discharging that firearm, and (3) the defendant was not justified in using the force that 

he used.

¶ 8 During its deliberations, the jury sent a note asking, “Does ‘knowingly discharged a 

firearm,’ mean he intended to discharge the gun on purpose or he knew a gun was discharged?” 

The parties acknowledged that Illinois Pattern Jury Instructions, Criminal, No. 5.01B (4th ed. 

2000) (hereinafter IPI Criminal 4th No. 5.01B) defined “knowingly.” However, the court and 

the parties decided not to give that instruction. Instead, the parties agreed with the court’s 

response that “I [sic] my discretion I am not giving you further instructions on this issue. The 

instructions you received are sufficient.”

¶ 9 After completing deliberations, the jury acquitted the defendant of attempted first degree 

murder but found him guilty of aggravated battery and both counts of aggravated fleeing and 

eluding. Following the denial of his motion for a new trial, the court sentenced the defendant 

to consecutive sentences of six years for aggravated battery and one year for aggravated fleeing 

and eluding. The defendant timely filed a notice of appeal.

¶ 10 II. ANALYSIS

¶ 11 On appeal, the defendant raises three issues. We first address his second contention—that 

trial counsel was ineffective for agreeing with the trial court’s incorrect response to the jury’s 

question about the legal definition of “knowingly” and for failing to offer IPI Criminal 4th No. 

5.01B—because resolving that issue disposes of this appeal.

¶ 12 We evaluate ineffective-assistance claims by using the Strickland test (Strickland v. 

Washington, 466 U.S. 668, 687-94 (1984)), which requires a defendant to show that counsel’s 

performance was both objectively unreasonable and prejudicial. People v. Albanese, 104 Ill. 

2d 504, 526-27 (1984) (adopting the Strickland test). We determine the objective 

reasonableness of a counsel’s performance by comparison to “prevailing professional norms.” 

Strickland, 466 U.S. at 688. A counsel’s incompetence becomes prejudicial when it raises a 

reasonable probability that the result of the proceeding would have been different, i.e., where 

the deficient performance undermines confidence in the outcome, rendering the trial result 

unreliable or the proceeding fundamentally unfair. Id. at 694; People v. Moore, 356 Ill. App. 

3d 117, 121 (2005).

¶ 13 Jury instructions give the jurors the legal principles applicable to the case facts so that they 

can reach a correct conclusion according to the law and evidence. People v. Fuller, 205 Ill. 2d 

308, 343 (2002). In a criminal case, the applicable Illinois Pattern Jury Instruction “shall be 

used, unless the court determines that it does not accurately state the law.” Ill. S. Ct. R. 451(a) 

(eff. Apr. 8, 2013). In determining the adequacy of instructions, a reviewing court will consider 

all the instructions as a whole to ascertain if they fully and fairly cover the law. People v. 

Housby, 84 Ill. 2d 415, 433-34 (1981).

¶ 14 In this case, the aggravated battery charge alleged that the defendant “knowingly caused 

bodily harm to Angel Ortiz, by discharging a firearm, and knowingly causing harm to Angel 
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Ortiz.” Accordingly, the State was required to prove that the defendant (1) knowingly 

discharged the gun and (2) knowingly caused harm to Ortiz. 720 ILCS 5/12-3.05(e)(1) (West 

2016); People v. Lovelace, 251 Ill. App. 3d 607, 618-19 (1993). The jury received instruction 

on the elements of aggravated battery under Illinois Pattern Jury Instructions, Criminal, No. 

11.115 and No. 11.116 (approved Apr. 13, 2015) (hereinafter IPI Criminal No. 11.115 and No. 

11.116). However, the court did not give the IPI Criminal 4th No. 5.01B. That instruction 

provides the following definition of “knowingly”:

“[1] A person [(knows) (acts knowingly with regard to) (acts with knowledge of)] 

the nature or attendant circumstances of his conduct when he is consciously aware that 

his conduct is of such nature or that such circumstances exist. Knowledge of a material 

fact includes awareness of the substantial probability that such fact exists.

[2] A person [(knows) (acts knowingly with regard to) (acts with knowledge of)] 

the result of his conduct when he is consciously aware that such result is practically 

certain to be caused by his conduct.” IPI Criminal 4th No. 5.01B.

¶ 15 A court need not define the term “knowingly” in an original set of jury instructions because 

the term is within the jury’s common knowledge (People v. Powell, 159 Ill. App. 3d 1005, 

1013 (1987)). However, once a jury asks for clarification, the issue is not whether the 

instructions were legally proper, but rather, were they understood by the jury (People v. 

Comage, 303 Ill. App. 3d 269, 273 (1999)). The fact that the jury asked the question shows at 

least some jurors did not find the instructions helpful when applying them to the case facts. 

People v. Childs, 159 Ill. 2d 217, 231 (1994). As such, since IPI Criminal 4th No. 5.01B’s 

addition in 1989, a general rule has emerged: if a jury asks the court to define a mental state 

term, or manifests confusion or doubt regarding such a term’s meaning, the court must instruct 

them accordingly. People ex rel. City of Chicago v. Le Mirage, Inc., 2013 IL App (1st) 093547-

B, ¶ 100; see also People v. Lowry, 354 Ill. App. 3d 760, 765-68 (2004).

¶ 16 In Lowry, the first district addressed the same issue that we face. There, the defendant was 

found guilty of aggravated battery and armed robbery. Lowry, 354 Ill. App. 3d at 761. During 

deliberations, the jury sent a note to the court, questioning the meaning of “knowingly.” 

Defense counsel, the State, and the court agreed to tell the jury to keep deliberating. On appeal, 

the defendant contended his trial counsel was ineffective by failing to tender to the jury the 

pattern jury instruction defining the mental state for “knowingly.” Id. at 763. The defendant 

argued that the jury’s question was concerning a substantive issue of law—the definition of 

“knowingly.” Id. at 764.

¶ 17 The Lowry court noted that defense counsel had the benefit of IPI Criminal 4th No. 5.01B 

“to clear up the jury confusion as to the meaning of ‘knowingly.’ ” Id. at 765. That instruction 

was added to the Illinois Pattern Jury Instructions specifically as a result of People v. Brouder, 

168 Ill. App. 3d 938 (1988). Brouder found reversible error when, after the jury expressed 

confusion, the court failed to provide an instruction defining “knowingly.” IPI Criminal 4th 

No. 5.01B, Committee Note, at 142; Lowry, 354 Ill. App. 3d at 765. According to the Lowry

court, “IPI Criminal 4th No. 5.01B would have provided the jurors with the guidance they were 

requesting.” Lowry, 354 Ill. App. 3d at 766. Lowry held that “the failure to offer an instruction 

essential to the fair determination of the case by the jury cannot be excused as trial strategy.” 

Id. at 767. Further, Lowry held that “[d]efense counsel’s failure to offer the proper instruction 

in response to the question by the jury was not trial strategy, but the result of his own confusion 
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regarding the question asked by the jury.” Id. Lowry determined that the failure to offer the 

instruction resulted in deficient representation. Id.

¶ 18 Here, as in Lowry, the defendant was charged with aggravated battery. During 

deliberations, the jury raised a question as to the meaning of “knowingly.” That term directly 

related to the defendant’s mental state, which was the critical issue at trial. Rather than 

suggesting that the jury receive the applicable Illinois Pattern Jury Instruction that defined 

“knowingly,” defense counsel instead acquiesced with the State to withhold the instruction. As 

a result, the jury did not receive the guidance sought. Applying Lowry, we hold that the defense 

counsel’s performance was deficient and prejudiced the defendant.

¶ 19 The State argues that Lowry is distinguishable because there the court reversed the 

defendant’s conviction based on numerous errors that occurred. We disagree with the State’s 

characterization of Lowry. Although the Lowry court also held that the State had committed a 

discovery violation and had made improper closing arguments, the court did not indicate it 

would have affirmed the defendant’s conviction absent those additional errors. Indeed, it is 

well-established that ineffective assistance of counsel that prejudices a defendant is enough to 

warrant a new trial. People v. Krankel, 102 Ill. 2d 181, 189 (1984).

¶ 20 The State also contends that Lowry is distinguishable because there trial counsel 

demonstrated confusion over the applicable law, while here defense counsel did not. The State 

further argues that it was defense counsel’s strategy to allow the jury to be confused because 

“such misunderstanding would have been to the defendant’s benefit.” The State points out that 

the jury asked if it needed to find that the defendant discharged his gun “on purpose.” The State 

suggests that “on purpose” is a higher mental state than “knowingly.” Therefore, defense 

counsel could have believed that it was to the defendant’s benefit if the jury thought that it 

could convict the defendant only if he had discharged the weapon “on purpose.”

¶ 21 The State mischaracterizes the jury’s question. The jury did not just ask whether 

“knowingly discharge of a firearm” meant that the defendant discharged the gun on purpose 

but also whether that phrase meant the defendant “knew a gun was discharged.” The second 

part of the jury’s question thus went to whether the defendant could have knowingly discharged 

a gun even if that gun went off by accident. Defense counsel should have requested that the 

court provide instruction to the jury on the proper definition of “knowingly.” Doing so could 

have precluded jury confusion leading to an aggravated battery conviction even though it found 

that the weapon did discharge accidentally. See People v. Ogunsola, 87 Ill. 2d 216, 222 (1981) 

(“Fundamental fairness includes, among other things, seeing to it that certain basic instructions, 

essential to a fair determination of the case by the jury, are given.”); People v. Johnson, 2013 

IL App (2d) 110535, ¶ 68 (The purpose of jury instructions is to “give the jurors the correct 

principles of law applicable to the facts so they can reach a correct conclusion according to the 

law and the evidence.”). Defense counsel’s failure to request proper instruction for the jury 

cannot be considered strategy. Lowry, 354 Ill. App. 3d at 766-67.

¶ 22 Accordingly, as the defendant was prejudiced by his counsel’s representation, we reverse 

and remand for a new trial.

¶ 23 In the interests of judicial economy, we next address the defendant’s first contention since 

that issue is likely to reoccur on remand. The defendant contends that he was deprived of a fair 

trial because the jury was provided with an issues instruction that misstated the elements of 

aggravated battery. Specifically, the court erred in giving IPI Criminal No. 11.116 because that 

instruction, though it required proof that defendant “knowingly discharged a firearm,” did not 
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require proof of any mental state for the element that defendant, “in discharging the firearm 

*** caused any injury to Angel Ortiz.”

¶ 24 As stated earlier (supra ¶ 14), to establish that the defendant had committed aggravated 

battery, the State was required to prove that the defendant (1) knowingly discharged the gun 

and (2) knowingly caused harm to Ortiz. Lovelace, 251 Ill. App. 3d at 618-19. In instructing 

the jury, the trial court gave definitional and issues instructions under IPI Criminal Nos. 11.115 

and 11.116. The definitional instruction given in this case, based on IPI Criminal No. 11.115, 

stated:

“A person commits the offense of aggravated battery when he knowingly without 

legal justification and by any means causes bodily harm to another person, and 

discharges a firearm, other than a machine gun or a firearm equipped with a silencer, 

and causes any injury to another person.” 

See IPI Criminal No. 11.115. The issues instruction given in the case, based on IPI Criminal 

No. 11.116, stated:

“To sustain the charge of aggravated battery, the State must prove the following 

propositions:

(1) That the defendant knowingly discharged a firearm; and

(2) That, in discharging the firearm, the defendant caused any injury to Angel Ortiz; 

and

(3) That the defendant was not justified in using the force which he used.”

See IPI Criminal 4th No. 11.116.

¶ 25 Again, the purpose of jury instructions is to provide the jury with the correct legal principles 

applicable to the evidence so that the jury may reach a correct conclusion according to the law 

and evidence. People v. Bannister, 232 Ill. 2d 52, 81 (2008). Jury instructions should be 

construed as a whole. People v. Parker, 223 Ill. 2d 494, 501 (2006). Accordingly, a single 

instruction need not state all the law of the case nor all of the relevant law on a given subject. 

People v. Mills, 40 Ill. 2d 4, 15 (1968); People v. Kelly, 8 Ill. 2d 604, 616 (1956) (per curiam). 

In determining the adequacy of instructions, a reviewing court will consider all the instructions 

as a whole to ascertain if they fully and fairly cover the law. Johnson, 2013 IL App (2d) 

110535, ¶ 68.

¶ 26 Here, when read together, the instructions adequately convey that the State was required to 

prove that the defendant (1) knowingly discharged the gun and (2) knowingly caused harm to 

Ortiz. Providing those principles of law to the jury via multiple instructions is not a problem, 

since there is no single-instruction requirement. See Mills, 40 Ill. 2d at 15; Kelly, 8 Ill. 2d at 

616. Accordingly, we reject the defendant’s argument that the jury instructions did not 

accurately state the law.

¶ 27 In so ruling, we reject the defendant’s argument that the above instructions were 

inconsistent. Those two instructions provided that the defendant committed aggravated battery 

when he (1) knowingly caused harm to another person and (2) knowingly discharged a firearm. 

Reading these instructions together, as we must, provides that the State must establish both of 

those principles. The defendant’s argument—that they are inconsistent—is contrary to our 

supreme court’s guidance on construing jury instructions. See Parker, 223 Ill. 2d at 501. 

Further, even absent such authority, we would not find that the instructions were inconsistent. 

The instructions would be inconsistent, for example, if one instruction provided that a 
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defendant’s knowledge of the consequences of his actions need not be established but a second 

instruction required proof of such knowledge. As the instructions in the present case were not 

phrased like this, defendant’s claim is without merit.

¶ 28 As we have already determined that the defendant’s second contention is meritorious, we 

need not address his third contention—that the cumulative effect of the trial errors deprived 

him of a fair trial.

¶ 29 III. CONCLUSION

¶ 30 Our reversal of the defendant’s conviction raises a double jeopardy issue. The double 

jeopardy clause of the United States Constitution prohibits the State from having another 

opportunity to try a case unless the first trial presented sufficient evidence to prove the 

defendant guilty beyond a reasonable doubt. Johnson, 2013 IL App (2d) 110535, ¶¶ 84-86. 

Thus, before remanding for a new trial, the possibility of double jeopardy requires us to rule 

upon the sufficiency of the evidence. See People v. Taylor, 76 Ill. 2d 289, 309 (1979). We have 

carefully reviewed the record in the light most favorable to the prosecution and conclude that 

there is sufficient evidence to support the jury’s verdict of guilt beyond a reasonable doubt. On 

retrial, our determination is not binding and does not indicate our opinion on the defendant’s 

guilt or innocence.

¶ 31 For the reasons stated, we reverse the defendant’s conviction and remand the cause for a 

new trial.

¶ 32 Reversed and remanded.