People v. Balle

              FIFTH DIVISION
FEBRUARY 8, 2008
1-06-0302
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS,
Plaintiff-Appellee,
v.
WILLIE BALLE,
Defendant-Appellant.
)))))))))
Appeal from the
Circuit Court of
Cook County.
No. 87 CR 18009
Honorable
Clayton J. Crane,
Judge Presiding.
JUSTICE TULLY delivered the opinion of the court:
On October 3, 2005, defendant filed a second postconviction petition in which he alleged
(1) that his trial counsel was ineffective for failing to obtain records from the psychiatric unit of
the Cook County jail, which would have supported an insanity defense and a request for a fitness
hearing; (2) that, in violation of Brady v. Maryland 373 U.S. 83, 10 L. Ed. 2d 215, 83 S. Ct. 1194
(1963), the State failed to turn over defendant's mental health records from the Cook County jail;
and (3) that his natural life sentence is void because he was not eligible to be sentenced pursuant
to the Habitual Criminal Act (720 ILCS 5/33B-1 et seq. (West 2002)). The circuit court
dismissed defendant's petition, concluding that defendant's second postconviction petition failed to
satisfy the cause-and-prejudice test. See 725 ILCS 5/122-1(f) (West 2004).
We originally affirmed the dismissal of defendant's postconviction petition, but vacated his
sentence and remanded to the circuit court for a new sentencing hearing. Subsequently, the
Illinois Supreme Court exercised its supervisory authority and directed this court to reconsider its