Opinion ID: 2229929
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 8

Heading: The Felony-Murder Eligibility Factor

Text: Defendant was found eligible for the death penalty based upon murder committed in the course of    [one or more of the following felonies]: armed robbery,    aggravated criminal sexual assault,    home invasion. 720 ILCS 5/9-1(b)(6) (West 1994). Defendant notes that the shooting of Jeff Stephens occurred outside the Stephens' house at the end of the driveway, and that the other felonies of which he was convicted subsequently took place inside the house. From this, defendant argues that none of the felonies occurred in the course of the murder. Therefore, according to defendant, he is not eligible for the death penalty. This court has repeatedly held that, in order to establish the aggravating factor of murder in the course of another felony, the State need not prove that the commission of the underlying felony had begun when the murder occurred. [Citations.] Rather, all that must be proved is that the murder and the other felony were committed either simultaneously or as part of the same criminal episode. People v. Hampton, 149 Ill.2d 71, 88-89, 171 Ill.Dec. 439, 594 N.E.2d 291 (1992). In the case at bar, Heather testified that she heard yelling and a gunshot from outside the house, and that she looked out her window but was unable to see what was happening. She then went to get her bathrobe, which hung on the back of the bedroom door. Before she could finish putting her robe on, defendant appeared in her bedroom doorway, thus indicating that defendant entered the house immediately after shooting Jeff. After defendant tied Heather to the bed, he returned outside to drag Jeff into the house. Consequently, the home invasion occurred immediately after the shooting and before defendant had finished moving Jeff. In addition, the aggravated criminal sexual assault had begun before defendant brought Jeff into the house. The armed robbery then followed directly after the sexual assault. The evidence clearly shows a closely related and partially interrelated series of offenses. Therefore, we conclude that the jury was justified in finding that the murder was committed in the course of the other felonies.