Court Opinion

ID: 9526148
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-07 03:13:10.891839+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T13:18:39.588900
License: Public Domain

Mr. Justice Schaefer dissenting: The proceedings under the Sexually Dangerous Persons Act sufficiently partake of the characteristics of a criminal prosecution that the defendant must be accorded his constitutional right to confront the witnesses against him. (See, People v. Nastasio, 19 Ill.2d 524.) That right was denied to the defendant in this case, and I think that the judgment committing him to custody as a sexually dangerous person should therefore be reversed. The statute requires that two qualified psychiatrists be appointed to examine the alleged sexually dangerous person. Their reports are to be filed with the court. (Ill. Rev. Stat. 1961, chap. 38, par. 823.) In this case two psychiatrists were appointed and filed their reports. Only one of them testified. The other was not immediately available, and the Assistant State’s Attorney suggested that he would return to the city the following day. The trial judge, however, stated: “Well, you can rest without him. Let the record show that the People rest.” This action of the trial court in my opinion violated the constitutional right of the defendant to confront the witnesses against him, and the judgment must be set aside. The error is not cured by the fact that the report of the second psychiatrist, who was not called as a witness, was filed with the trial judge and “is a part of the court record.” It is the fact that the unsworn and untested report of that psychiatrist is an essential part of the record that causes the error.