People v. Walker

• Decision Date: 07 September 1993
• Docket Number: No. 1-90-1489,1-90-1489
• Citation: 192 Ill.Dec. 1,624 N.E.2d 1353,253 Ill.App.3d 93
• Parties: , 192 Ill.Dec. 1 The PEOPLE of the State of Illinois, Plaintiff-Appellee, v. George WALKER, Defendant-Appellant.
• Court: United States Appellate Court of Illinois

Page 1353

624 N.E.2d 1353

253 Ill.App.3d 93, 192 Ill.Dec. 1

The PEOPLE of the State of Illinois, Plaintiff-Appellee, v. George WALKER, Defendant-Appellant.

No. 1-90-1489.

Appellate Court of Illinois First District, Second Division.

Sept. 7, 1993.

Ellis J. May, III & Associates, Chicago (Ellis J. May, III, of counsel), for defendant-appellant.

Jack O'Malley, State's Atty., County of Cook, Chicago (Renee Goldfarb, Linda Woloshin, Judy DeAngelis, of counsel), for plaintiff-appellee.

Justice DiVITO delivered the opinion of the court:

Following a jury trial, defendant George Walker was found guilty of aggravated criminal sexual assault (Ill.Rev.Stat.1987, ch. 38, par. 12-14(a)(1)), and sentenced to an extended term of 60 years in the custody of the Department of Corrections, to be served consecutive to another 60 year sentence for an earlier conviction of aggravated criminal sexual assault. On appeal, he contends that (1) the circuit court erroneously denied his motion to quash his arrest and suppress evidence; (2) other crimes evidence was improperly admitted; (3) the court improperly denied his pro se motion to substitute counsel; (4) irrelevant evidence was admitted; (5) the evidence was not sufficient to prove him guilty beyond a reasonable doubt; (6) the State's closing argument prejudiced his right to a fair trial; and (7) his sentence was excessive.

At trial the following evidence was presented. K.A., the complainant, testified that on March 16, 1988, she was a high school senior. At approximately 8 p.m. on that day, she took the number 6 Jeffrey Avenue bus to her aunt Esther's house where she lived. She exited the bus at 90th and Jeffrey and began walking the "five short blocks" to her aunt's house at 90th and Crandon. As she reached the alley between Crandon and Luella Avenues, she heard footsteps behind her. When she turned, she saw a man jogging toward her wearing a "dark blue hooded sweat shirt, faded black jeans, and white converse gym shoes." As she stepped to the side so he could pass, "[h]e grabbed her from behind and put his hand around [her] mouth." She tried to scream, but could not. She started to hit him with her purse and the shopping bags that she was carrying, but he cut the straps with a "triangular-shaped" knife. He then picked her up, carried her through the alley to the back of the second house, turned her around, and began touching her face and hair. Although his hood was up, she was able to get a "clear view of his face" because the hood was a few inches above his hairline and because the alley was well-lit. She saw that he had "very short" hair, a mustache that went around the corners of his mouth and had a space, a "flat and wide nose," and "big and full lips." She also noted that he was approximately 24 years old, four or five inches taller than her, and very muscular.

He told her to say that she loved him. When she began to scream, he told her to shut up and held the knife to her neck. After she told him that she loved him, he told her to "suck [his] dick." He then pushed her down to her knees by her shoulders while he continued to hold the knife to her neck. She undid his pants and pulled them down and he then "grabbed [her] hair from the back and pushed [her] mouth on his penis." He threatened to "cut" her if she bit his penis. After they heard a car drive by, he pushed her farther into the yard and told her to tell him that she loved him. He then told her to "touch her toes" and he pulled her dress up and her stockings down. After unsuccessfully attempting to insert his penis in her anus, he placed his penis in her vagina. Following vaginal intercourse, he "pulled [her] back to [her] feet, turned her around, and demanded oral sex again." He pushed her to her knees, but when he tried to push her face onto his penis, she "threw up" on him. She then heard a car, and when he stepped away, she ran to her aunt's house and told her aunt what happened.

After the police were notified, she was taken to South Chicago Hospital where samples were taken from her mouth and vagina. While she was at the hospital, she spoke to Detective Sammy Lacey of the Chicago police department. She told him what happened and gave both a physical and clothing description of her assailant. She told him that the attacker weighed approximately 150 pounds and was approximately 5'7"' tall. However, when Lacey told her that he was 5'7"', she said that the attacker was "four or five inches taller than that."

Two weeks later, on March 30, 1988, Lacey and a police sketch artist came to her house and she gave a description of her assailant while the artist drew a composite. Two days later, Lacey called her and told her to come to the police station. When she arrived, she was brought into a viewing room where she immediately identified defendant as her attacker from a lineup.

C.W. testified that on March 29, 1988, she left work at 5:40 p.m. and took the number 6 Jeffrey bus to her home at 90th and Constance. At about 6:30 p.m., she got off the bus at 91st and Jeffrey and began walking the three blocks to her house. As she reached the alley that runs behind Constance, she heard footsteps behind her. When she turned around, she observed defendant jogging toward her "wearing a blue hooded jacket, faded jeans, and white gym shoes." When she moved to the side to enable him to pass, he grabbed her from behind and put his left hand over her mouth and his right hand at her neck. She tried to scream, but could not. He said "shut up you stupid bitch" and held a knife to her neck. The knife was a dark gray, "box-cutter" knife with a triangular-shaped blade and the word "Stanley" imprinted on the side. He then pulled her down the alley toward her house, but he was unable to open the gate to the backyard. He then "spun" her around so that their faces were only one inch apart. She observed that he was in his early-to-mid twenties, was about 5'9"' to 5'11"' tall, was very muscular, had a mustache that came down over the corners of his mouth and had a gap, and that he had a broad, flat nose, and thick lips.

Defendant then told her that he was "going to get * * * some head" and pushed her down to her knees. He ordered her to drop her belongings and take off her coat and sweater. While holding the knife to her neck, he pulled off her bra and moved her head toward his crotch and "forced" his penis into her mouth. He started to laugh and asked her where she "learn[ed] to give head so good." He then pulled her back to her feet and brought her to the house across the alley from her own. As he reached over the gate to open it, she noticed that his hood had fallen down and she was able to see his uneven haircut, which was "very short" in some places. He opened the gate and pulled her across the lawn to a concrete patio.

He then said that he was "going to get * * * some more head," pushed her back to her knees, and again "forced" his penis into her mouth. Defendant then removed his penis, told her to take off the rest of her clothes, and pushed her down to her hands and knees, causing her to scrape her knees on the concrete. After initially fondling her genitals, he "forced" his penis into her vagina, then into her anus, and then again into her vagina. After unsuccessfully attempting anal intercourse a second time, defendant pushed her down and ran away. Though she was bleeding from her vagina, anus, and knees, she waited for a moment to make sure he was gone, before running to her house. When she reached her house, she started "pounding" on the back door until her mother opened it. When her mother asked what happened, she said that she had been raped. Her father then called the police. She was later taken to the hospital by ambulance.

Three days later, on April 1, 1988, she went to the police station with Detective Lacey to view a lineup of suspects. Upon entering the room, she immediately identified defendant. She also identified the knife that defendant used during the assault.

The parties then stipulated that if Dr. Susesh Shah were called to testify, he would state that he swabbed complainant's mouth and vagina at the South Chicago Hospital emergency room at 9:40 p.m. on March 16, 1988. The swabs were analyzed by Pamela Fish, a serologist for the Chicago police department, and were determined to be negative for spermatozoa.

Sergeant Sammy Lacey testified that on March 16, 1988, at approximately 9:30 p.m., he and his partner were assigned to investigate K.A.'s complaint and went to South Chicago Hospital in order to interview her. At the hospital, K.A. described her attacker's clothing and physical appearance, and the events that had occurred earlier that night.

Two weeks later, on March 30, 1988, he learned that another rape had occurred in the same area the day before. He then contacted C.W., who furnished him a physical and clothing description of her attacker. He also met with complainant again and had her describe the attacker to a sketch artist.

Around 7 p.m. the next evening, Lacey was driving west on 88th Street near Merrill, when he observed a black, two-door Cadillac travelling east on 89th swerve and pull up to the curb at 89th and Merrill. This location was approximately two blocks from where complainant was raped and four blocks from where C.W. was raped. Defendant got out of the car and walked up the stairs of a house. Lacey observed that he was black, 20-25 years-old, and was wearing a blue hooded sweatshirt, dark faded jeans, and white gym shoes. He then pulled his car in front of the Cadillac, walked over to defendant, and identified himself as a police officer. When he asked defendant if he lived there, defendant responded that he was visiting a friend named Larry. Lacey then told defendant that he matched the description of a suspect and asked to see some identification. Defendant said his ID was in the glove compartment, and told Lacey he could get it.

Lacey opened the door to defendant...