Court Opinion

ID: 9530972
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-07 04:05:59.886501+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T13:28:18.390095
License: Public Domain

MR. JUSTICE RYAN, also dissenting: I concur in the dissent of Mr. Justice Underwood. In addition I wish to make some observations that are more in the nature of expressions of personal opinions than statements of legal precepts. It would seem that when the hearing has been held before the court and not a jury a defendant should be required to demonstrate that he has in some manner suffered prejudice by being handcuffed during the trial. In this case it is not contended that the evidence did not support the court’s finding that the defendant was delinquent. In fact, it is not urged that the evidence was close or evenly balanced. It appears to me to be a useless obeisance to “the appearance, dignity, and self-respect of a free and innocent man,” a needless expense, and a waste of judicial time to remand this case for another delinquency hearing at which there is no contention the finding of the court would be or could be different. Also, I am concerned about the after-the-fact determination by the majority that the defendant should not have been handcuffed. The trial judge is charged with the responsibility for the decorum of his courtroom and with the responsibility for the safety of every person in it. He must make a judgment, balancing the possibility of offending the dignity of the defendant who has been charged with participating in an act of violence against the possibility of death or injury to himself and others in his court. If he errs in striking this balance, in my opinion, it is better to offend the dignity of the defendant than to suffer violence to erupt in the courtroom. Even at the risk of being reversed by a court of review, I would, if again a trial judge, adhere to this belief. It is the trial court and not this court that will be held accountable to the public for permitting acts of violence to occur in court. In such a sensitive area, the trial court should not be reversed short of a clear abuse of discretion. For these reasons I do not believe the circuit court of La Salle County should have been reversed in the absence of a showing that the defendant was in someway prejudiced or that the trial court clearly abused its discretion. I therefore respectfully dissent.