delivered the opinion of the court:
Defendant, Gary Peterson, pleaded guilty to one count of unlawful possession of a controlled substance (Ill. Rev. Stat. 1989, ch. BQVz, par. 1402(b)), one count of unlawful delivery of a controlled substance (Ill. Rev. Stat. 1989, ch. SGVa, par. 1401(a)(2)), and one count of armed violence (Ill. Rev. Stat. 1989, ch. 38, par. 33A— 2). The circuit court of McHenry County sentenced defendant to a prison term of 18 months for the unlawful possession count, 11 years and $75,000 fíne for the unlawful delivery count, and 6 years for the armed violence count. On appeal, defendant argues that (1) the armed violence conviction must be vacated because it was based upon the same act as the unlawful delivery conviction, (2) the armed violence conviction should be reduced to a Class 2 felony if it is not vacated, (3) the trial judge relied upon improper factors in aggravation at sentencing, and (4) he is entitled to credit toward his fine for the days he was incarcerated on a bailable offense in accordance with section 110 — 14 of the Code of Criminal Procedure of 1963 (Ill. Rev. Stat. 1989, ch. 38, par. 110 — 14). We affirm in part and vacate in part.
On May 12, 1989, a police officer met with defendant and White (codefendant) in order to carry out a prearranged drug transaction. While in his car, defendant handed the officer two ounces of cocaine. The officer returned the cocaine and walked away from the car, allegedly to get $2,300 to accomplish the deal. The police then arrested defendant. The police found an unloaded gun in the car and an additional gram of cocaine in defendant’s personal property. At sentencing, defendant admitted that he was to be paid $200 to give White a ride in order to carry out the drug deal. Defendant also admitted that he received $60 to $80 before the transaction took place.
The presentence report stated that defendant had snakes and serpents tattooed on both his forearms. This was shown to be incorrect at the sentencing hearing when defendant held up his arms and showed the court that he did not have these tattoos. The prosecution stated that defendant was the subject of an ongoing investigation and had been involved in a previous drug deal and in conversations arranging drug deals. Defendant denied such involvement and contended that the State’s information was incorrect and was a matter of mistaken identity. Defendant also denied the accuracy of references in the presentence report that he had outstanding warrants for traffic offenses in Lake County. In support of this contention, defendant stated that he was called to court twice for DUIs allegedly committed while he was in custody for the present offense. Defendant also objected to the characterization of his criminal record by the presentence report as “lengthy,” when, in fact, he only committed two alcohol-related offenses as a minor and had been convicted of three criminal offenses as an adult. Finally, defendant objected to information in the presentence report indicating that he used an alias and that he maintained a Mexican bank account.
Defendant first argues that the armed violence conviction must be vacated because it was based upon the same act as his conviction of unlawful delivery of a controlled substance. The general rule is that where there is a single act there can be but one conviction of a crime. (People v. Donaldson (1982),
According to the Criminal Code of 1961, “[a] person commits armed violence when, while armed with a dangerous weapon, he commits any felony defined by Illinois Law.” (Ill. Rev. Stat., 1978 Supp., ch. 38, par. 33A — 2.) In Donaldson, the court identified the policy underlying this statute as one which seeks to “increase or enhance the minimum penalty upon conviction of a felony when the violator was in possession of a dangerous weapon while committing the felony.” (Donaldson,
In contrast, in People v. Green (1990),
In the present case, defendant’s armed violence conviction was predicated upon unlawful delivery. Thus, it arose out of the same act underlying the unlawful delivery conviction.
Under these circumstances, the general rule is that judgment should be entered and sentence imposed on the more serious offense. (Donaldson,
The most basic approach to sentencing for convictions involving an included offense is simply to hold that the predicate felony conviction is void and, therefore, must be vacated. (People v. Johnson (1990),
In the present case, we view defendant’s conviction of unlawful delivery of a controlled substance as the more serious offense. Therefore, we vacate defendant’s conviction of armed violence predicated upon unlawful delivery of a controlled substance. In effect, we defer to the trial judge’s determination that defendant’s conviction of the specific intent crime of unlawful delivery of a controlled substance was more deserving of a greater sentence than the general intent crime of armed violence. In light of this determination, it is unnecessary to address defendant’s request that the armed violence conviction be reduced to a Class 2 felony. Furthermore, because separate sentences were imposed, we see no need to remand for resentencing on this issue. People v. Payne (1983),
Defendant next argues that his 11-year sentence was excessive where the court considered compensation received as an aggravating factor in sentencing. According to People v. Conover (1981),
In the present case, defendant testified that he collected between $60 and $80 before the drug transaction took place. It would appear then, from defendant’s own testimony, that he was hired to partake in the offense. Under these circumstances, Conover would dictate that compensation is not an improper factor to be considered in aggravation at sentencing. Because defendant here received remuneration beyond the proceeds of the crime itself, we determine that the receipt of compensation was a proper factor to consider in aggravation at sentencing. See People v. Kendall (1991),
Defendant next argues that the imposition of an 11-year prison term for unlawful delivery of a controlled substance was excessive where the court considered unverified information about defendant’s criminal record and character in aggravation but ignored the mitigating factors that this was defendant’s first drug offense and that defendant demonstrated responsibility with his work and his son. We determine that defendant’s claim with respect to the trial court’s reliance on unverified information in the presentence report is not supported by the record. While defendant did receive a somewhat lengthy sentence, such a decision was well within the discretion of the trial court. Such a sentence is not, by itself, evidence that improper reliance was placed upon inaccurate information which the defendant effectively rebutted at sentencing. Moreover, considering that defendant could have received a 30-year sentence for the Class X offense he committed, 11 years do not appear to be an abuse of discretion.
Finally, defendant argues that he is entitled to $1,215 of credit toward his $75,000 fine in light of section 110 — 14 (Ill. Rev. Stat. 1989, ch. 38, par. 110 — 14). Section 110 — 14 provides that any person incarcerated on a bailable offense who does not supply bail is entitled to a credit toward levied fines of $5 a day for each day so incarcerated. The State agrees that defendant is entitled to $1,215 credit toward his $75,000 fine because of the 243 days he was incarcerated from the time of his arrest until sentencing. Because defendant was in compliance with section 110 — 14 and because the State concedes this point, we hold that defendant should receive a $1,215 credit toward his $75,000 fine pursuant to section 110 — 14 (Ill. Rev. Stat. 1989, ch. 38, par. 110 — 14).
The judgment of the circuit court of McHenry County is affirmed in part and vacated in part.
Affirmed in part; vacated in part.
GEIGER and NICKELS, JJ., concur.