People v. Armstrong
Case Date: 12/31/1969
Court: Supreme Court
Docket No: 78197
|
Docket No. 78197--Agenda 1--November 1997. THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, Appellee, v. DONALD ARMSTRONG, Appellant. Opinion filed March 19, 1998. JUSTICE HEIPLE delivered the opinion of the court: A jury found the defendant, Donald Armstrong, guilty of five counts of first degree murder, and one count each of armed robbery, residential burglary and burglary, in connection with the death of Marion Smigiel. The same jury found the defendant eligible for the death penalty and that no mitigating circumstances existed sufficient to preclude imposition of that sentence. The circuit court entered judgment on the jury's finding and sentenced the defendant to death.[fn1] The defendant's sentence has been stayed pending direct review by this court. Ill. Const. 1970, art. VI, sec. 4(b); 134 Ill. 2d Rs. 603, 609(a). In this appeal, the defendant raises 25 issues challenging his conviction and death sentence. We affirm in all respects. I At the time of her death, 86-year-old Marion Smigiel stood 5 feet 4 inches tall and weighed 123 pounds. She lived in an apartment building which she owned at 4301 West Haddon in Chicago. Stooped over and arthritic, Smigiel walked with a metal cane, but nonetheless managed to collect her tenants' trash, which she would carry to the garage each evening. On the morning of February 4, 1992, police found Smigiel's body lying in a pool of blood on the floor of her garage. Her skull had been smashed into several pieces leaving a gaping hole in her head measuring 5 inches by 2 |