2023 IL App (2d) 230330-U 

No. 2-23-0330 

Order filed December 19, 2023

NOTICE: This order was filed under Supreme Court Rule 23(b) and is not precedent 

except in the limited circumstances allowed under Rule 23(e)(1).

______________________________________________________________________________ 

IN THE

APPELLATE COURT OF ILLINOIS

SECOND DISTRICT

______________________________________________________________________________ 

THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE ) Appeal from the Circuit Court

OF ILLINOIS, ) of Kane County. 

) 

Plaintiff-Appellee, ) 

) 

v. ) No. 23-CF-2049 

) 

MARCO MENDOZA-CAMARGO, ) Honorable 

) Salvatore LoPiccolo, 

Defendant-Appellant. ) Judge, Presiding.

______________________________________________________________________________ 

JUSTICE HUTCHINSON delivered the judgment of the court.

Justices Schostok and Kennedy concurred in the judgment.

ORDER

¶ 1 Held: The trial court did not err in denying the defendant’s pretrial release. Affirmed. 

¶ 2 Defendant, Marco Mendoza-Camargo, appeals the September 26, 2023, order of the Kane 

County circuit court granting the State’s petition for pretrial detention pursuant to 725 ILCS 5/110-

6.1 (West 2022). On appeal, defendant argues that: (1) the State did not prove by clear and 

convincing evidence that the proof is evident or the presumption great that defendant committed 

the offenses charged; (2) the State did not prove by clear and convincing evidence that defendant 

poses a real and present threat to the safety of any person or persons or the community, based on 
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specific, articulable facts; (3) the State did not prove by clear and convincing evidence that no 

condition or combination of conditions would mitigate the real and present threat to the safety of 

any person or persons or the community, based on the specific, articulable facts of the case, or the 

defendant’s willful flight; and (4) the court erred in its determination that no condition or 

combination of conditions would reasonably ensure the appearance of defendant for later hearings 

or prevent the defendant from being charged with a subsequent felony or Class A misdemeanor. 

For the following reasons, we affirm. 

¶ 3 I. BACKGROUND

¶ 4 On September 26, 2023, defendant, Marco Mendoza-Camargo, was charged with two 

counts of aggravated domestic battery (720 ILCS 5/12-3.3(a-5) (West 2022)) and two counts of 

aggravated battery to a pregnant person (720 ILCS 5/12-3.05(d)(2) (West 2022)). That same day, 

the State filed a verified petition to deny defendant’s pretrial release pursuant to 725 ILCS 5/110-

6.1 (West 2022). In its petition, the State argued that defendant should be denied pretrial release 

because he was charged with a forcible felony as listed in 725 ILCS 5/110-6.1(a)(1.5) (West 2022)

and the defendant’s pretrial release poses a real and present threat to the safety of any person or 

persons in the community; and because the defendant was charged with domestic battery or 

aggravated domestic battery under section 12-3.2 or 12-3.3 of the Criminal Code of 2012 and the 

defendant’s pretrial release poses a real and present threat to the safety of any person or persons 

or the community. 

¶ 5 A hearing was held on the State’s petition for pretrial detention on September 26, 2023. In 

support of its petition, the State proffered the police synopsis prepared by the Aurora Police 

Department. The synopsis related that on September 25, 2023, at approximately 5:50 AM, Aurora 

police officers responded to 705 N. May St. in reference to a domestic battery. Upon arrival on 
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scene, officers met with the alleged victim, Yuliana Garcia Zamudio, who had visible red marks 

on her neck and right arm. Zamudio was also four months pregnant at the time of this incident. As 

she was complaining of dizziness, Zamudio was transported to Mercy Hospital for medical 

attention. Officers then contacted defendant, who advised officers that he had no idea why they 

were there, and perhaps it was due to Zamudio being pregnant. Defendant denied arguing with 

Zamudio and denied any physical altercation. As defendant had two active warrants, he was placed 

into custody for the warrants and for domestic battery. 

¶ 6 Officers then went to Mercy Hospital to speak to Zamudio. She told officers that defendant 

had been drinking all night. She told him to stop drinking and then went into the bedroom where 

her two-year-old son was sleeping. Defendant followed her into the bedroom and began to yell at 

her. He proceeded to grab her by the throat with one hand and pulled her hair with the other hand. 

Zamudio asked defendant to stop. Defendant responded by saying, “I hope you and the baby die.” 

After defendant held pressure to her throat for approximately one minute, Zamudio was able to 

break free.

¶ 7 In the State’s argument in support of their petition, they acknowledged the conflicting 

statements of victim and defendant but argued that defendant’s story was simply not plausible. The 

State then laid out defendant’s criminal history, specifically emphasizing multiple failures to 

appear and multiple bond violations by defendant. 

¶ 8 Defense counsel offered in mitigation that defendant is employed full-time and is the sole 

breadwinner for his household. Counsel also indicated that defendant had an alternative place to 

stay during the pendency of the case. Counsel then went on to argue that the police synopsis alone 

was not clear and convincing evidence, especially due to the conflicting statements of victim and 
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defendant. Counsel then closed by pointing out defendant’s criminal history is largely non-violent 

and there are conditions of pretrial release that would mitigate the threat of harm to the victim. 

¶ 9 The trial court then granted the State’s petition and entered a written order of pretrial 

detention. On September 29, 2023, the defendant filed a timely notice of appeal under Illinois 

Supreme Court Rule 604(h)(1)(iii) (eff. Sept. 18, 2023). 

¶ 10 II. ANALYSIS

¶ 11 This appeal is brought pursuant to Public Act 101-652, § 10-255 (eff. Jan. 1, 2023), 

commonly known as the Safety, Accountability, Fairness and Equity-Today (SAFE-T) Act (Act).

See Pub. Act 102-1104, § 70 (eff. Jan. 1, 2023) (amending various provisions of the Act); Rowe v. 

Raoul, 2023 IL 129248, ¶ 52 (lifting stay and setting effective date of Act as September 18, 2023). 

The Act abolished traditional cash bail in Illinois, instead, opting for a system of presumptive 

pretrial release. 725 ILCS 5/110-1.5, 110-2(a) (West 2022). Under the Act, it is presumed that all 

defendants are entitled to pretrial release. 725 ILCS 5/110-2(a) (West 2022). A defendant may 

only be denied pretrial release in certain statutorily enumerated circumstances and after the court 

has held a hearing under section 110-6.1 of the Act. 725 ILCS 5/110-2(a), 110-6.1 (West 2022). 

¶ 12 To meet their burden at this hearing, the State must prove by clear and convincing evidence 

that: (1) the proof is evident or the presumption great that the defendant has committed an offense 

that qualifies for pretrial detention; (2) the defendant poses a real and present threat to the safety 

of any person or persons in the community based on the specific and articulable facts of the case; 

and (3) no condition or combination of conditions of pretrial release can mitigate the real and 

present threat to the safety of any person or persons in the community, based on the specific and 

articulable facts of the case. 725 ILCS 5/110-6.1(e). If a defendant is denied pretrial release, he or 

she is entitled to appeal the order under the Act. 725 ILCS 5/110-6.1(j) (West 2022).
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¶ 13 There is currently a disagreement amongst the districts as to the proper standard of review 

to apply to a trial court’s detention order. Some districts have found that these orders should not 

be reversed unless the trial court abused its discretion. People v. Inman, 2023 IL App (4th) 230864, 

¶¶ 10-11. Other districts have applied a two-fold review where manifest-weight review is applied

to the trial court’s factual findings and then the trial court’s ultimate detention determination is 

reviewed for abuse of discretion. People v. Vingara, 2023 IL App (5th) 230698, ¶ 10. We need not 

decide which standard of review is to apply, as under either standard, we reach the same result. 

¶ 14 “A finding is against the manifest weight of the evidence only if the opposite conclusion is 

clearly evident or if the finding itself is unreasonable, arbitrary, or not based on the evidence 

presented.” In re Jose A., 2018 IL App (2d) 180170, ¶ 17. “An abuse of discretion occurs when 

the circuit court’s decision is arbitrary, fanciful or unreasonable, or where no reasonable person 

would agree with the position adopted by the [circuit] court.” (Internal quotation marks omitted.) 

Inman, 2023 IL App (4th) 230864, ¶¶ 10. 

¶ 15 Defendant first asserts that the State failed to prove by clear and convincing evidence that 

the proof is evident or the presumption is great that he committed the offenses charged. He claims 

that the synopsis alone is not clear and convincing evidence, and that to meet their burden, the 

State would need to provide photos or some other additional evidence. However, defendant does 

not cite to any authority to support his assertion that photographs or additional evidence were

necessary for the State to meet its burden. Without any support, defendant’s argument fails. 

¶ 16 We have recently addressed this issue in People v. Robinson, 2023 IL App (2d) 230345-U. 

In Robinson, we observed that the plain language of the Act only requires that the State “may 

present evidence at the hearing by way of proffer based on reliable information.” 725 ILCS 5/110-

6.1(f)(2) (West 2022). The Act goes on to explain that the evidence required at a detention hearing 
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is less than what would be required at a trial. See 725 ILCS 5/110-6.1(f)(2), (f)(4), (f)(5) (West 

2022). 

¶ 17 Here, as in Robinson, the evidence the State submitted was reliable. The synopsis was 

signed by the responding officer and notarized. Defendant seems to be arguing that because he 

denied wrongdoing to the officers, and his denial was noted in the synopsis, the synopsis was not 

reliable. This argument is not persuasive. The synopsis notes that in addition to Zamudio’s 

statement, the officers also observed red marks on her neck and arm, which corroborate her version 

of events. There is no such corroboration to defendant’s statements. If defendant wishes to pursue 

his argument further, he may do so at trial. At this stage, we find the synopsis to be reliable and 

that the State met their burden. We decline to require the State to present any more evidence than 

required by the Act. 

¶ 18 Next, defendant argues that the State failed to prove by clear and convincing evidence that 

defendant poses a real and present threat to the safety of Zamudio based on the specific, articulable 

facts of the case. We disagree. In his notice of appeal, defendant asserts that the State relied on the 

seriousness of the charges along with defendant’s unrelated driving offenses. However, a review 

of the record shows that the State referenced the specific, articulable facts of the case in arguing 

that defendant posed a real and present threat to the safety of Zamudio. The State pointed out that 

Zamudio was pregnant and that defendant told her “I hope you and the baby die.” This statement 

alone shows that defendant posed a real and present threat to the safety of Zamudio. Additionally, 

defendant’s driving offenses were referenced to show that defendant was incapable of complying 

with simple court orders, not to show that defendant posed a real and present threat to the safety 

of Zamudio. 
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¶ 19 Defendant also argues that the State did not show that defendant had any prior domestic 

violence history, therefore, they did not prove that he poses a real and present threat to the safety 

of Zamudio. However, defendant again is asking us to impose a higher burden on the State than is 

required by statute. We decline to do so. The State proved by clear and convincing evidence that 

defendant posed a real and present threat to the safety of Zamudio based on the specific, articulable 

facts of the case.

¶ 20 Defendant’s third contention is that the State failed to prove by clear and convincing 

evidence that no condition or combination of conditions would mitigate the real and present threat 

to the safety of any person or persons or the community, based on the specific, articulable facts of 

the case, or the defendant’s willful flight. In determining what conditions, if any, would ensure the 

safety of any person, a trial court “shall, on the basis of available information, take into account” 

certain factors. 725 ILCS 5/110-5(a) (West 2022). Under subsection (a)(6), when a defendant is 

charged with aggravated domestic battery, as is the case here, the trial court may consider 

additional factors, including: whether the person has a history violating the orders of any court or 

governmental entity; whether the personal has been, or is, potentially a threat to any other person; 

whether the person has a history of abusing alcohol or any controlled substance; the severity of the 

alleged incident that is the basis of the alleged offense, including, but not limited to, the duration 

of the current incident, and whether the alleged incident involved the use of a weapon, physical 

injury, sexual assault, strangulation, abuse during the alleged victim’s pregnancy, abuse of pets, or 

forcible entry to gain access to the alleged victim; and whether the person has expressed suicidal 

or homicidal ideations. 725 ILCS 5/110-5(a)(6)(D), (E), (G), (H), (K) (West 2022). 

¶ 21 Here, the State proffered evidence showing the defendant has a history of non-compliance 

with simple court orders, which the trial court appropriately took to mean that the defendant would 
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not comply with a no-contact order. The synopsis provided also shows the egregious nature of the 

offense, involving strangulation of a pregnant woman and homicidal ideations by the defendant. 

All factors the trial court could consider in determining if conditions of pretrial release would 

ensure the safety of the victim. The record is abundant with facts sufficient to support a finding 

that no condition or combination of conditions of pretrial release would ensure the safety of the 

victim. For that reason, we disagree with defendant’s argument that the State failed to prove by 

clear and convincing evidence that no condition or combination of conditions would mitigate the 

real and present threat to the safety of any person or persons or the community, based on the 

specific, articulable facts of the case, or the defendant’s willful flight.

¶ 22 Lastly, defendant argues that the court erred in its determination that no condition or 

combination of conditions would reasonably ensure the appearance of defendant for later hearings 

or prevent the defendant from being charged with a subsequent felony or Class A misdemeanor. 

This argument is misplaced. The State proceeded on its petition for pretrial detention on the basis 

of dangerousness, not willful flight. The trial court’s findings only regarded defendant’s

dangerousness. Notwithstanding, we disagree with defendant’s argument. The record shows that 

defendant had multiple failures to appear in previous cases. It follows that a defendant who has 

previously failed to appear and shows a flagrant disregard for orders of the court would not feel 

compelled to appear for later hearings. Accordingly, defendant’s final argument fails as well. 

¶ 23 III. CONCLUSION

¶ 24 Accordingly, we find that the trial court did not abuse its discretion and we affirm the 

judgment of the circuit court of Kane County. 

¶ 25 Affirmed.