People v. Reyes
221 N.E.3d 455
Ill. App. Ct.2022Background:
- In May 2012 Reyes pleaded guilty to aggravated DUI under a plea agreement calling for three years’ imprisonment and “zero fines, court costs only,” but the written judgment listed multiple fees/assessments totaling $1,605.00.
- Reyes did not appeal or move to withdraw the plea; years later he learned he owed money (including interest) and filed multiple pro se petitions (Aug 2018, Feb 2019, May 2019) under 730 ILCS 5/5-9-2 seeking revocation of fines due to indigence.
- The trial court held hearings and twice denied petitions for failure to show good cause; one May 2019 petition was denied sua sponte 16 days after filing (before 30 days elapsed).
- On remand for Rule 472 issues the parties agreed Reyes was entitled to presentence credit, reducing the outstanding balance to $135.
- The appellate court addressed (1) whether the court was required to wait 30 days before sua sponte denying a 5-9-2 petition and (2) whether the listed assessments were revocable under section 5-9-2.
- The court affirmed: Rules 105/106 do not govern 5-9-2 petitions (so no mandatory 30-day waiting period), and section 5-9-2 applies only to discretionary penal fines under the Corrections Code, not mandatory statutory assessments/fees charged here.
Issues:
| Issue | Plaintiff's Argument | Defendant's Argument | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| Whether the trial court must wait 30 days before sua sponte denying a 5-9-2 petition | People: Rules 105/106 apply; State entitled to 30 days to answer | Reyes: Court must wait 30 days after service before ruling | Held: Rules 105/106 do not govern 5-9-2 petitions; Rule 104 applied, no 30-day bar |
| Whether the listed assessments are revocable under 730 ILCS 5/5-9-2 | People: Only discretionary penal fines under Corrections Code are revocable; mandatory statutory fees aren’t | Reyes: All fines (except Chapter 15 Vehicle Code) are subject to revocation on good cause | Held: 5-9-2 authorizes revocation only of discretionary penal fines under section 5-9-1; mandatory statutory assessments/fees here are not revocable |
Key Cases Cited
- People v. Jones, 223 Ill. 2d 569 (explaining many court fees/assessments are mandatory statutory charges)
- People v. Laugharn, 233 Ill. 2d 318 (trial court may not short-circuit opposing party’s time to plead under rules governing 2-1401 petitions)
- People v. Mingo, 403 Ill. App. 3d 968 (treating petitions to revoke fines as collateral actions but not extending Rule 105/106 automatically)
- People v. Bennett, 144 Ill. App. 3d 184 (section 5-9-2 applies to penal fines under Corrections Code, not mandatory victims’ fund fines)
- People v. Ullrich, 135 Ill. 2d 477 (distinguishing discretionary Corrections Code fines from mandatory Vehicle Code fines; Corrections Code discretionary language means ‘may’ implies discretion)