Opinion ID: 2042608
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 5

Heading: Jury Instruction on Identification

Text: Defendant next argues that his trial counsel was ineffective for failing to submit a jury instruction on identification. According to defendant, identification of the robber was the primary issue in this case, and defense counsel therefore was ineffective for failing to tender Illinois Pattern Jury Instructions, Criminal, No. 3.15 (4th ed.2000) (hereinafter IPI Criminal 4th), which deals with the circumstances of identification. [4] The State counters that there was no issue of eyewitness identification at trial, and counsel therefore was not ineffective for failing to tender a jury instruction on identification. Defendant's claim of ineffective assistance of counsel is reviewed under the two-prong test set forth in Strickland v. Washington, 466 U.S. 668, 104 S.Ct. 2052, 80 L.Ed.2d 674 (1984). Under this test, a defendant must show that (1) his counsel's performance was deficient in that it fell below an objective standard of reasonableness and (2) counsel's deficient performance prejudiced the defense in that, absent counsel's deficient performance, there is a reasonable probability that the result of the proceeding would have been different. People v. Evans, 209 Ill.2d 194, 219-20, 283 Ill.Dec. 651, 808 N.E.2d 939 (2004). In order to prevail on a claim of ineffective assistance, a defendant must satisfy both the performance and prejudice prongs of Strickland. Evans, 209 Ill.2d at 220, 283 Ill.Dec. 651, 808 N.E.2d 939. In reviewing defendant's claim that his counsel was ineffective for failure to tender a jury instruction, we first recount the pertinent evidence presented at trial. The charge against defendant arose from a robbery at a Peoria pizzeria in July 2002. The State's first witness was Wesley Fleming, the acting manager of the pizza restaurant where the robbery occurred. Fleming testified that on July 11, 2002, at about 1 a.m., he was in the process of closing for the day when two men approached him. Fleming did not hear or see the men enter the restaurant. As they approached, Fleming noticed that they were wearing dark, baggy clothing and some sort of cloth obscuring their faces, like a mask. Because of the masks, Fleming could not see the men's faces, but he did note that they were of different heights. The shorter of the two men pointed a handgun at Fleming and demanded that he open the safe. Fleming told the man that the safe was time-locked. The man then ordered Fleming to open the cash register, but Fleming explained that the computer which controlled the register was already shut down. The man responded, Don't fuck with me, don't fuck with me, and he shot Fleming in the leg. Fleming took out his wallet and offered it to the men, who took it and left. Fleming testified that employees sometimes propped open the rear door of the restaurant if they had to go outside for a short time, but it was normally closed and locked. The door could be opened from the outside by entering a combination on a keypad. Fleming stated that he believed the door was closed before the robbery, but he could not be certain. He said it looked closed, but he had not specifically checked it before the robbery. During the time that the robbery was taking place, the taller of the two men was standing watch over another employee, a driver, who was also in the restaurant. The employee, Andrew Albee, corroborated Fleming's account of the incident. Albee testified additionally that he was in the back of the restaurant washing dishes when he heard the rear door open and turned to see the two men enter. The shorter of the two men had a gun and told Albee to lie down near the cash register. Albee testified that the taller man was about 6 feet in height, [5] and the shorter man was 5 feet 8 or 5 feet 9 inches. Albee added that the rear door of the restaurant was closed and locked before the men entered. According to Albee, if the door had been open, he would have noticed. Albee testified further that after the men left the restaurant, he found a broomstick under the rear door, propping it open. Peoria police officer Terry Esser testified that he was patrolling the area near the pizza restaurant at about 1 a.m. on July 11, 2002. When he looked toward the restaurant, he saw two African-American males running from the rear of the establishment. Esser drove over to investigate and saw the men attempting to enter a black two-door car that had pulled up near them. At the same time, two persons who were in the car got out, and all four individuals fled the area on foot. The black vehicle began rolling with no one inside, so Esser left his squad car and entered the vehicle to stop it. Esser then returned to his squad car and drove after the four fleeing individuals. After a few blocks, he parked his squad car and continued the pursuit on foot, toward a wooded area. Esser eventually concentrated on just one man. According to Esser, the man was wearing dark pants and a yellow or orange shirt. Esser lost sight of the man, but at about that time other officers arrived, including a canine unit. As Esser and the other officers searched the area, they found a black wig lying along a roadside. Esser searched further and found an African-American man lying on the ground just inside the wooded area. The man fled, and Esser pursued him on foot. During the chase, Esser and other officers crossed over a fence and briefly lost sight of the suspect. He was later found lying on the ground, and was taken into custody. According to Esser, the man was wearing dark pants and a white T-shirt. Esser identified defendant in court as the man he had chased and arrested. On cross-examination, Esser acknowledged that he lost sight of the man on two occasions during the chase. Peoria police officer Mike Patterson testified that, after being called to the scene of the robbery, he initially canvassed the area for suspects. Patterson then towed the car which Esser had seen, a black 1985 Chevrolet Monte Carlo. According to Patterson, the vehicle was registered to Erin Bush, whose address was the same as defendant's. Patterson spoke to Erin Bush, who told him that defendant was her son. Detective Michael Mushinsky testified that he and Detective Fred Ball interviewed defendant at the Peoria police station at 8 p.m. on July 11, 2002. Defendant told the detectives that he and his brother, Tobias, and a third person had gone to the pizza restaurant, and defendant and Tobias entered through the rear door. Defendant stated that he was an employee of the restaurant and had gone there for leftover pizza. Defendant told the detectives that after he and Tobias entered the restaurant, Tobias pulled out a pistol and demanded money from the manager. According to defendant, he had seen Tobias get the gun earlier that day, but did not realize he had brought it with him to the restaurant. Defendant stated further that Tobias pointed the gun at the restaurant manager and demanded that he open the safe. The gun went off, and defendant and his brother took the manager's wallet and ran out through the rear door. When they reached the parking lot, they jumped into the car, but when they saw the police pulling up, they all jumped out of the car and ran their separate ways. Defendant said they did not know the area well, so he and the others simply took off running. Defendant added that he was wearing fake hair, which he removed at one point while running through some woods. Mushinsky testified that he and Ball asked him why he was wearing a fake hairpiece and had on a mask if he was just going in there to get some leftover pizza. Defendant answered, I don't know. Defendant testified in his own behalf. He stated that he was 18 years old and was an employee of the pizza restaurant where the robbery took place. According to defendant, he went to the pizza restaurant at noon or 1 p.m. on July 10, 2002, to get his paycheck, and then returned home. He drove to the restaurant and back in his own car, a white Chrysler Fifth Avenue. That evening, defendant was drinking heavily and smoking marijuana with his cousin and some other individuals. At some point in the eveningdefendant did not recall the exact timehe left in his car and drove to see a female friend at her grandmother's house, which was in the area of the pizza restaurant. On the way theresometime between midnight and 3 a.m.defendant was driving in the area of the pizza restaurant when he saw a police car creeping out on him. Defendant stated that he was nervous about being stopped by the police because he had been drinking heavily, he had two bags of marijuana in [his] pocket, and he had no insurance. In order to avoid being pulled over, defendant pulled ahead of the police car, drove a little farther, parked his car, and got out. When he looked back, he saw the police car approaching, and he started to run. The officer got out of his car and began chasing defendant, who ran until the officer told him to stop and get down on the ground. At that point, a canine unit was approaching. Defendant testified that he was afraid the dog was going to attack him, so he got up and started running again, toward a wooded area. He said he discarded the marijuana in the woods. A short time later, defendant was stopped in the woods by police with guns drawn. The police took him back to a squad car and brought him to the police station. Defendant testified that he did not go to the pizza restaurant that night. He also denied that the restaurant gave away leftover pizza. According to defendant, the restaurant threw it away because it was cold. On cross-examination, defendant was unable to explain how his mother's car happened to be near the pizza restaurant at the time of the robbery. Defendant also denied making any statement to police about the robbery. According to defendant, he made no statements concerning    a robbery. As is shown by the evidence presented at trial, there was no identification of defendant as one of the men who committed the robbery. The two restaurant employees who witnessed the robbery both testified that they could not identify their assailants because the robbers wore masks. Police officer Terry Esser identified defendant as having been near the scene of the crime. Esser testified that, following a chase, defendant was taken into custody in a nearby wooded area. Esser did not identify defendant as one of the robbers. Indeed, in closing argument, defense counsel argued repeatedly that there was no identification of defendant. Counsel stated: There was a tall guy, a short guy, nobody was able to identify anybody in there. There was not one iota of evidence that said they were able to identify [defendant] in that place. Shortly thereafter, counsel stated: There was no identification by anyone in this court during this trial that identified or pointed out and said this was he. Counsel added: It's a grave responsibility that you're going to take into that jury room, ladies and gentlemen, without a positive identification or even a half-way identification, really no identification at all of anyone here. In rebuttal argument, the State agreed: We don't live in a perfect world and this is not a perfect case. There is no I.D. I'm not going to tell you there is. I didn't hear any evidence of an I.D., because there was no I.D. Identification was not the main issue in this case, notwithstanding defendant's arguments to the contrary before this court and the appellate court. Rather, the State's case against defendant was based on his statement to police and on other, corroborating evidence, which we have detailed above. In his statement to police, for example, defendant admitted being present at the restaurant during the robbery, but attempted to mitigate blame by asserting that he went to the restaurant to get leftover pizza. However, when asked by police why he was wearing a wig and a mask to get leftover pizza, defendant answered, I don't know. The jury also heard testimony that the black car seen by Officer Terry Esser near the restaurant the night of the robbery was registered to defendant's mother. In his testimony at trial, defendant denied going to the pizza restaurant the night of the robbery. On cross-examination, however, he was unable to explain how his mother's car happened to be near the restaurant at the time of the robbery. In sum, the main issue for the jury was not eyewitness identification, but rather which of the various versions of events presented at trial should be believed. We conclude that, in these circumstances, there is no reasonable probability that defendant would have been acquitted if IPI Criminal 4th No. 3.15 had been tendered and given. Defendant has failed to show that he was prejudiced by defense counsel's failure to tender this jury instruction on identification. We therefore reject defendant's claim that his counsel was ineffective for failure to submit this instruction. See Peeples, 205 Ill.2d at 513-14; 275 Ill.Dec. 870, 793 N.E.2d 641; Evans, 209 Ill.2d at 219-20, 283 Ill.Dec. 651, 808 N.E.2d 939.