People v. McCarthy

• Citation: 572 N.E.2d 1219,157 Ill.Dec. 755,213 Ill.App.3d 873
• Decision Date: 23 May 1991
• Docket Number: No. 4-90-0720,4-90-0720
• Parties: , 157 Ill.Dec. 755 The PEOPLE of the State of Illinois, Plaintiff-Appellee, v. Monte Franklin McCARTHY, Defendant-Appellant.
• Court: United States Appellate Court of Illinois

Page 1219

572 N.E.2d 1219

213 Ill.App.3d 873, 157 Ill.Dec. 755

The PEOPLE of the State of Illinois, Plaintiff-Appellee, v. Monte Franklin McCARTHY, Defendant-Appellant.

No. 4-90-0720.

Appellate Court of Illinois,

Fourth District.

May 23, 1991.

Donald E. Groshong, Alton, for defendant-appellant.

Scott H. Walden, State's Atty., Quincy, Kenneth R. Boyle, Director, State's Attys. Appellate Prosecutor, Robert J. Biderman, Deputy Director, Dale M. Wood, Staff Atty., Springfield, for plaintiff-appellee.

Justice McCULLOUGH delivered the opinion of the court:

Defendant was charged by information with three counts of aggravated criminal sexual abuse (Ill.Rev.Stat.1987, ch. 38, par. 12-16(d)) (placing finger in vagina, placing mouth on vagina, touching her breasts), and one count of unlawful delivery of alcohol to a minor (Ill.Rev.Stat.1987, ch. 43, par. 131(a)). Following a jury trial in Adams County, Illinois, on June 12 through 14, 1990, defendant was convicted on two counts of aggravated criminal sexual abuse and one count of unlawful delivery of alcohol to a minor, but acquitted on the count of placing his mouth on her vagina. Defendant was sentenced to six years in the Department of Corrections for the sex offenses, and it is these convictions he appeals. We affirm.

Defendant, Monte F. McCarthy, was 35 years old at the time of the incident. Defendant began dating the victim's sister (A.S.) in 1986 after they met while she was waitressing at a restaurant defendant frequently visited. This relationship lasted approximately three years, although defendant admitted having seen her within 10 days of the trial.

The victim (M.S.) in this case was the younger sister of A.S. She was 14 years old at the time of the offenses and resided with her parents in Hamilton, Illinois. M.S. would visit her sister in Quincy for the weekend, and it was on one of these weekend visits that the incidents defendant was convicted of occurred.

On June 11, 1988, defendant, M.S., and A.S. went to Old Tony's Place in Quincy, Illinois, for dinner. M.S. drank two Tom Collins (an alcoholic drink with gin or vodka) with her dinner. Defendant paid for the dinner and drinks. After dinner, the trio went to a bar, where M.S. consumed at least four more Tom Collins drinks. Defendant also purchased these drinks for M.S.

Later that evening, they went back to A.S.'s apartment. M.S. testified she brushed her teeth, and put on a T-shirt and underpants. A.S. was in the other room watching television at this point.

M.S. testified that sometime after she went to bed, defendant came into the bedroom and got into bed with her. According to M.S., defendant kissed her on the mouth with his tongue. Defendant then pulled up her T-shirt and placed his hand and mouth on her breasts. Defendant proceeded to pull down M.S.'s underpants and placed his mouth on her vagina. M.S. further testified that he placed what she believed to be his finger in her vagina. M.S. testified she told defendant what he was doing hurt, so he stopped, although she had to ask him twice. This incident lasted approximately one hour.

M.S. testified she woke up the next morning at approximately 6:30 a.m. Defendant was in the middle of the bed with M.S. and A.S. on either side of him. They ate a pancake breakfast, which M.S. stated was bought from a restaurant, although she did not know who purchased this food. Defendant and A.S. drove M.S. back to her parents' house later that day.

On July 29, 1988, M.S. went to St. Louis with A.S. and defendant. Due to a mix-up in reservations, their hotel room only had one bed, rather than two as A.S. had requested. M.S. testified she slept on the couch in the room the first night they spent in St. Louis, but the next night she slept in the bed because her sister had passed out on the couch. M.S. testified she changed into her nightgown and got into bed. Thereafter, defendant, wearing only his underwear, got into bed with her. Defendant took her hand and placed it on his penis. When M.S. pulled away, defendant asked why she was upset now, when she did not mind previously. M.S. testified defendant said to her that he had his penis approximately two inches inside her vagina on the night of June 11, 1988. She stated she had believed it was his finger inside her vagina but in fact defendant told her it was his penis.

Defendant became angry and got out of bed and began dressing. He threw some money at M.S. and stated she and her sister could take a taxi back to Quincy. Defendant also told M.S. she would have to explain his absence to her sister. According to M.S., defendant did not leave the hotel room, but thereafter slept on the floor. The next morning, defendant attempted to get into bed again with M.S., but she got up and awakened her sister. M.S. has not spoken to defendant since that weekend.

The day before M.S. went to St. Louis with her sister and defendant, she obtained a false driver's license using her sister's birth certificate and other forms of identification. M.S. testified she obtained this license in order to be admitted into bars and to be allowed to drive. M.S. was approached on July 27, 1988, by two Quincy police officers about this false license. This was when she first related to them the details of the encounter with defendant.

After the police questioned M.S. about this false driver's license, they taped her statement about the events of June 11, 1988. At this time, M.S. only stated that defendant placed his finger in her vagina. It was not until March 1, 1990, that M.S. told anybody about defendant touching her breasts and placing his mouth on her vagina. M.S. explained she was embarrassed to tell the officers all of what happened, but she later realized she had to tell everything.

Finally, M.S. testified she was angry with defendant because he hurt her and caused a rift between her and her sister. M.S. also stated she was angry with defendant because he had lied about her family. Last, M.S. testified she had not spoken to her sister since early in 1989.

Defendant testified he spent approximately 95% of the time at A.S.'s apartment while they dated. Defendant testified he knew A.S. was now living in St. Louis and worked as a dancer in a night club. Defendant admitted providing alcohol to M.S. on June 11, 1988. However, he denied ever having sexual contact with M.S.

According to defendant, on June 11, 1988, after leaving the second bar, M.S. became physically ill. Defendant stated A.S. attempted to clean M.S. up and calm her down for approximately 20 minutes. Defendant and A.S. talked for approximately one hour in the living room of A.S.'s apartment, and defendant then left. Defendant returned the next morning, after receiving a telephone call from A.S. He picked up pancakes A.S. had ordered from a restaurant and brought them to the apartment, where they all ate breakfast. Defendant and A.S. then drove M.S. to her parents' home around noon that day. Defendant stated he and A.S. slept in the bed both nights in St. Louis and that M.S. slept on the couch.

The defense called Larry Renfrow, the records keeper for Illinois Bell Telephone Company. He testified that two telephone calls were made from A.S.'s apartment on June 12, 1988, one at approximately 10:12 a.m. to a number ending with the digits 8040 and another at approximately 10:33 a.m. to a number ending with the digits 7008. The parties stipulated the number of the Coach House Restaurant is 223-8040. Defendant testified his number is 222-7008 and has been so for 10 years.

Defendant was sentenced to six years' incarceration with the Department of Corrections plus fined $1,000 and court costs. Defendant made a motion for a new trial, which was denied prior to the sentencing hearing. Defendant also made a motion for reconsideration of sentence, which was also denied. Defendant then filed this appeal on October 18, 1990.

Defendant's first argument is that the evidence presented was neither clear and convincing nor corroborated and was thus insufficient to support his conviction. Defendant cites several cases for the proposition that where a conviction for a sex offense depends upon the testimony of the complaining witness and the defendant denies the charges, a more stringent burden of proof exists, requiring the conviction be supported by corroboration of the victim's testimony or evidence that the victim's testimony is clear and convincing. (People v. Thompson (1990), 198 Ill.App.3d 417, 144 Ill.Dec. 603, 555 N.E.2d 1122.) Defendant contends since this case was almost entirely based on the victim's testimony, which was neither clear and convincing nor corroborated, the evidence was insufficient to support his conviction.

This court has held:

"We will no longer require that in a case in which a sex offense is charged, the State must demonstrate either the victim's testimony is clear and convincing or substantially corroborated to prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt." (People v. James (1990), 200 Ill.App.3d 380, 394, 146 Ill.Dec. 769, 779, 558 N.E.2d 732, 742, appeal denied (1990), 135 Ill.2d 562, 151 Ill.Dec. 388, 564 N.E.2d 843.)

(See also People v. Roy (1990), 201 Ill.App.3d 166, 184-85, 146 Ill.Dec. 874, 558 N.E.2d 1208, 1221, appeal denied (1991), 136 Ill.2d 552, 153 Ill.Dec. 382, 567 N.E.2d 340.) There is no legitimate reason to place additional requirements on the victim's testimony solely because of the nature of the crime. Testimony of no other category of crime victim is held to be automatically suspect or require additional proof beyond the statutory requirements. James, 200 Ill.App.3d at 394-95, 146 Ill.Dec. at 779, 558 N.E.2d at 742.

Therefore, the evidence must be reviewed pursuant to the same standard applied in every other criminal case. That standard is whether, after viewing the evidence in the light most favorable to the prosecution, any rational trier of fact could have found the essential elements of the crime beyond a reasonable doubt....