People v. Merriweather, 2017 IL App (4th) 150407

In June 2003, 17-year-old Byron Merriweather was accused of shooting and killing Steven McDade; a jury convicted him of first degree murder in February 2006.
In May 2006 the trial court sentenced Merriweather to an aggregate 70-year term (45 years plus an automatic 25-year firearm enhancement).
Merriweather’s direct appeal and an initial pro se postconviction petition were unsuccessful; this court affirmed his conviction and the trial court dismissed his first postconviction petition as frivolous.
In February 2013 Merriweather filed a pro se motion for leave to file a successive postconviction petition claiming actual innocence based on newly discovered affidavits naming another shooter; he later sought to supplement the record with an additional affidavit (Rashon Pike).
The trial court denied leave in March 2015, finding the affidavits were not newly discovered; the court did not explicitly rule on the motion to supplement with Pike’s affidavit.
On appeal, the Fourth District vacated the trial court’s judgment and remanded for the trial court to rule on Merriweather’s motion to supplement the record with Pike’s affidavit and for further proceedings as warranted.

Issue	Plaintiff's Argument	Defendant's Argument	Held
Whether Merriweather may raise an as-applied Eighth Amendment challenge under Miller to his 70-year sentence for the first time on appeal from denial of leave to file a successive postconviction petition	State: The as-applied challenge is forfeited when raised for the first time on appeal; the trial court is the proper forum to develop facts	Merriweather: His 70-year sentence is a de facto life term for a juvenile and unconstitutional under Miller v. Alabama	Court: Forfeited — as-applied challenges require a developed record and may not be raised for the first time on appeal (issue deemed forfeited)
Whether the trial court erred in denying leave to file a successive postconviction petition based on newly discovered affidavits asserting actual innocence	State: The affidavits were not newly discovered; witnesses were known or could have been discovered with diligence	Merriweather: Affidavits (Slayton, Valentino Merriweather, Davidson, Givan, and Pike) show Troy Wells was the shooter and constitute newly discovered, noncumulative, potentially conclusive evidence of actual innocence	Court: Remanded — trial court must rule on Merriweather’s motion to supplement the record with Pike’s affidavit and then determine whether leave to file a successive petition should be granted under the cause-and-prejudice or actual-innocence standards

Miller v. Alabama, 567 U.S. 460 (2012) (mandatory life without parole for juveniles violates the Eighth Amendment)
Montgomery v. Louisiana, 577 U.S. (2016) (new substantive constitutional rules must be applied retroactively in state collateral proceedings)
People v. Thompson, 2015 IL 118151 (Illinois 2015) (as-applied challenges may be forfeited when raised for first time on appeal; trial court is best forum for factual development)
People v. Davis, 2014 IL 115595 (Illinois 2014) (Miller constitutes a new substantive rule with retroactive effect)
People v. Ortiz, 235 Ill. 2d 319 (2009) (procedural bar and waiver rules for postconviction petitions)