Saturday, April 17, 2010

Fine, probation (only!)


This morning's paper reported the result of a negotiated plea in court yesterday for a 45-year-old Huntley man who was arrested five - FIVE (5) - times last year for beating on his girlfriend. What happened to him?

He was released on two years' non-reporting probation, a $500 fine and Conditional Discharge for violating an Order of Protection. What does Conditional Discharge mean? If he keeps his nose clean, his conviction is wiped away. What's the likelihood?

According to the article, he pled "guilty to a single misdemeanor count of domestic battery in exchange for prosecutors dropping the four other counts." And that was just last August.

The article failed to mention that it was Judge Joseph P. Condon who accepted the deal. The paper reported that he had served 161 days in the County pokey, while waiting for his trial.

What is an Order of Protection worth? Apparently not much, because he violated it the day after it was issued back in November.

OK, he's had his chances. Maybe the next time he starts beating on his girlfriend, she should introduce him to her new friends, Mr. Smith and Mr. Wesson!
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10 comments:

FatParalegal said...

I thought probation sentences could not be expunged.

Gus said...

Well, it's my guess that Conditional Discharge means the conviction is wiped away if he keeps his nose clean. Maybe a lawyer could clarify. In any event, don't all the charges remain listed in the court record, now viewable online at www.mchenrycircuitcourt.org

So, even if he minds his manners during the Conditional period, all his bad conduct is still in the record. At least, until enough money and legal footwork show up to sanitize the court records.

mike said...

Your "guess" is correct. Go do the research and while you're at it, read the article again. I am in NO way condoning what this moron did but the ONLY thing he was charged with was violating the order of protection by MAKING ONE PHONE CALL. For this he served more than five MONTHS in jail. He can be re-sentenced to prison if he fails to attend the anger management program and substance abuse. The slate is NOT wiped away if he completes the program. It's a conviction. AFAIK, the only sentence that is NOT a conviction is court supervision provided that he successfully completes it.

Gus said...

Mike, I believe he was charged with numerous offenses, which were then nolle prossed when they cut the deal.

You can see all the charges against him by doing a Name Search on www.mchenrycircuitclerk.org

My guess is that he sat in jail because he could raise the bond, whatever it was. Then he cut the deal to get out with his plea.

I wonder if she got a new O.P.

mike said...

My point was directed at your attempt a) pass this off as a lightweight sentence - serving almost six months in the county jail ISN'T, and 2) to drag the judge into this mess. The state's attorney has absolute discretion (right or wrong) in choosing what charges to prosecute an individual on. The judge cannot sentence a person for a crime they are NOT being prosecuted for. ALL that the judge could sentence him for was violating the OP and that violation was merely a telephone call. I DON'T know what that violation would be, a Class A Misdemeanor for which he could have gotten up to a year in the county jail? Day for day good time means 6 months, so this goof almost maxed out on jail time. Blow it and the felony battery is back on the table? If you don't like the sentence in this case, blame the prosecutor not the court.

Gus said...

Thanks for your comment, Mike. I'll stick with pointing fingers at the prosecutors AND the judge.

The prosecutors and the defense attorney made a deal. It was the judge who accepted it. Part of the deal was, apparently, disposition of the other charges.

While the SAO might decide whether or not to charge someone, after that the judge plays an important role, because he disposes of the charges.

Filing felonies against people and then knocking them down to misdemeanors? The SAO should make that decision BEFORE filing charges. Look at the Amy Dalby mess. How many felony charges - seven?

I could use some nasty words to describe that approach. Sort of like Island Lake PD's loading a guy up with 13 tickets after following him for three blocks, and charging him with a felony after the cop's cheap, worn-out handcuffs broke.

mike said...

Before you point fingers you might wish to take the time to actually look at the case file. It looks as if the system might have worked after all. Justice is not always the MAXIMUM sentence, sometime it's something a little less, sometimes something far less. In this case the prosecution, the court and probation department who did the evaluation all seemed in agreement. As I had to go to the jury commission today, I went to the computer and looked it up. I don't know who's worse, you for spouting stuff without checking or the idiots at the NW Herald who supposedly are there and/or read the files and STILL get it wrong. Spires was charged on 11/7 with Violating an Order of Protection by making a phone call. The only reason it was a felony (4) was because he was previously convicted of domestic battery. On 11/12 the grand jury indicted him on that same SINGLE count. No battery, no resisting, no nothing else. This was case #09CF1198. This was the ONLY charge heard against him last Friday when he was sentenced and the ONLY charge that he pleaded guilty to in March at which time the court entered a pre-sentencing investigation. The ONLY case that I could find against him that was pending in front of the Judge (Condon) was this one and nowhere in that case file was an order of dismissal of ANY OTHER CHARGE - because there were none. Furthermore, he was sentenced to two years of FELONY PROBATION (not conditional discharge), fined $500 (with costs for probation services, etc. that amounts to about $2100), sentenced to 180 days with day for day credit. He served 161 so he still had about 9 days to go before he was released and he has to obtain BOTH a psychiatric evaluation and anger management evaluation and follow the recommendations of each,AND finally, submit a DNA sample and pay for the processing. I have no idea what court room that idiot at the NW Herald was in but she obviously didn't get high marks for either verbal or written comprehension. What's your excuse?

Gus said...

Mike, thanks for your hard work to try to figure out what really happened.

The online court record for 09CF001198 reads (under Court Events): "RELEASE - SUPV., PROB., COND. DISC"

I understood "COND. DISC" to mean Conditional Discharge.

If you go to the Public View Search on the Circuit Clerk's website and search by name, Michael Spires, you'll see Misdemeanor Complaints with filing dates of 4/21/09, 5/19/09, 6/25/09, 7/17/09, 7/24/09, 11/09/09, and felony complaints dated 11/12/09 and 1/14/10. And two traffic complaints dated 7/27/09.

mike said...

Gus said, "The online court record for 09CF001198 reads (under Court Events): "RELEASE - SUPV., PROB., COND. DISC"" That is, I guess, a broad category of disposition. I think you know that Supervision is different from Probation and is different from Conditional Discharge. Supervision means the charge "goes away" and there is no record of conviction if you're a good little boy or girl for X months. Conditional Discharge and Probation result in convictions. In this case, the court file I looked at - the actual documents - clearly stated Felony Probation. I have no idea what happened with the system in the courthouse today but when I checked them outside the clerk's criminal office on the 3rd floor, it did not show any cases from 2010. Strange that they waited so long to indict him on what do appear to be companion charges. With all the credit for time served he received, it also would appear that he was in custody from 11/7 onward. Back to my original premise though. The state's attorney has absolute discretion in prosecution. He can pull a charge off the table at any point in time and there really isn't much the judge can do about it other than take it out on him in some other case. Nobody can force the state's attorney to bring a charge and nobody can force him to drop it or prevent him from doing so. It's his call all the way. If you don't like the way it's prosecuted, blame Bianchi. If you don't like the sentence, you can blame the judge but he or she has to base the sentence on the law and the factors before him. If the dolt wasn't prosecuted for that other crap, he cannot sentence him more harshly to "catch up." My opinion is that Spires got an appropriate sentence for what he was charged with and pleaded guilty to. If they COULD legitimately sentence him for what she SAID he did, then that's something else. It is not on the table though so what's the problem?

It would be a bit like saying, "Well, I got this Gus Philpot up for sentencing on speeding 6 miles over the limit in a 55! He's only charged with that but he's such a pain, I think I'll sentence him to a year in the county jail so he can keep an eye on that Nygren fella. That'll fix him.

Gus said...

Yep. For sure that would fix that Nygren fella.

What a book that would make. Jailer smooching with an inmate. Jailer smooching with an inmate. Oh, wait; I said that. Well, one was M-F, and the other was F-M.

And then there is the ... Can't give it all away here.