People v. Couch, 970 N.E.2d 1270

In 2005, the State charged Couch with criminal drug conspiracy, delivery of a controlled substance (cocaine 15–100 grams), and delivery of cannabis; he was convicted on all counts and sentenced in 2007.
Judge Claudia Anderson sentenced Couch to concurrent prison terms of 26, 5, and 20 years, plus 20 years to be served consecutively on another count.
In December 2009, Couch, pro se, filed a postconviction petition alleging Judge Anderson was biased and that sentencing relied on information from her current husband, Glen Anderson.
In March 2010, the circuit court dismissed the petition at the first stage as frivolous and patently without merit, noting that Judge Anderson had no stepson and was not married to Glen Anderson.
The State argued the petition was untimely, not verified, and not supported by affidavits or records, and the court agreed that the absence of such supporting materials made the petition fatally deficient under the Act.
The appellate court affirmed, holding that at the first stage the petition must be supported by affidavits or other evidence, and its lack justified dismissal.

Issue	Plaintiff's Argument	Defendant's Argument	Held
Whether the first-stage dismissal of the postconviction petition was proper	Couch contends the court should accept his allegations as true to determine if they state a constitutional claim	The State argues the petition is frivolous and not supported by affidavits or records, rendering it properly dismissible	Yes, the petition was properly dismissed at stage one for lack of supporting affidavits/records
Whether the petition's lack of supporting documents defeats review at stage one	Couch asserts the court should not dismiss based on lack of evidence if allegations, if true, state a constitutional claim	The State maintains affidavits/records are required and their absence is fatal	Yes, lack of affidavits/records supports dismissal at stage one

People v. Andrews, 403 Ill. App. 3d 654 (2010) (three-stage postconviction process; stage 1 screening for nonfrivolous claims)
People v. Rivera, 198 Ill. 2d 364 (2001) (section 122-2.1 simplified procedure for resource allocation)
People v. DeBerry, 372 Ill. App. 3d 1056 (2007) (limits on postconviction relief when petition cannot be supported by record evidence)
People v. Delton, 227 Ill. 2d 247 (2008) (requirement of affidavits/records supporting postconviction claims)
Wallenberg, 24 Ill. 2d 350 (1962) (constitutional standards for postconviction petitions; reliance on record)