People v. Lacy, 407 Ill. App. 3d 442

Defendant Michael Lacy was convicted after a jury trial of aggravated criminal sexual assault and two counts of armed robbery; he was sentenced to 25 years in prison.
He was charged with the August 6, 2001 Eastgate Park attack by three men; co-defendants were Antonio Hale and Maurice Shelton, and severance was granted.
A suppression hearing and trial addressed police photo arrays and lineups identifying Lacy by TD and Vines; TD described lighting and positions during the assault.
TD and Vines identified Hale, then later identified Lacy in a photo array and lineup; TD identified Lacy in court and in photographs.
Postconviction petition (2008) claimed ineffective assistance of trial and appellate counsel; the trial court dismissed at second stage; appellate court affirmed.
The appellate court held that many asserted deficiencies were trial strategy, lacked merit, or were defaulted; the petition was properly dismissed.

Issue	Plaintiff's Argument	Defendant's Argument	Held
Ineffective assistance at suppression hearing and trial	Lacy	Lacy	Not established
Appellate counsel ineffective for not raising issues on direct appeal	Lacy	Lacy	Merits considered; no prejudice shown
K-9 tracking testimony—admission prejudicial	Lacy	Lacy	Prejudice not shown; not reversible error
Alibi witness omission—trial strategy	Lacy	Lacy	Trial strategy supported; no ineffective assistance

Pendleton, 223 Ill.2d 458 (2006) (framework for postconviction stages; substantial deprivation standard)
Perkins, 229 Ill.2d 34 (2007) (state of postconviction proceedings; role of Rule 651(c) amendments)
Coleman, 183 Ill.2d 366 (1998) (dismissal at second stage; no fact-finding; de novo review on appeal)
West, 187 Ill.2d 418 (1999) (ineffective assistance standards; appellate counsel guidance)
Pecoraro, 175 Ill.2d 294 (1997) (trial strategy in cross-examination; objective reasonableness)
Manson v. Brathwaite, 432 U.S. 98 (1977) (reliability of identification under totality of circumstances)