Opinion ID: 2162437
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 14

Heading: Prejudice Related to Toxicology Report

Text: Defendant revisits his argument that Dr. Harkey's testimony regarding the results of the toxicology testing was improperly admitted. Defendant asserts that admission of the toxicology evidence through Dr. Harkey was improper because it bolstered the State's claim of premeditation and created undue prejudice during the death penalty eligibility phase of the trial. [2] In support of this claim, defendant directs our attention to People v. Cloutier, 178 Ill.2d 141, 227 Ill.Dec. 448, 687 N.E.2d 930 (1997). In Cloutier, we concluded that it was error to allow the State to present inadmissible hearsay evidence to prove a statutory aggravating factor at the eligibility phase of the defendant's capital sentencing hearing. Cloutier, 178 Ill.2d at 155-56, 227 Ill.Dec. 448, 687 N.E.2d 930. Cloutier has no bearing on the instant case because, as we previously concluded, the toxicology evidence used by the State at eligibility in this case was properly admitted evidence. Accordingly, defendant's claim lacks merit.