In re Darlene Blanks

OPINION

Storino, J.

This claim arises out of an incident that occurred on October 31, 2009.

Darlene Blanks, sister of the deceased victim, Terry Whisby, seeks compensation pursuant to the provisions of the Crime Victims Compensation Act, hereafter referred to as the Act, 740 ILCS 45/1, et seq. (2000).

This Court has carefully considered the application for benefits submitted on Thursday, April 01, 2010, on the form prescribed by the Illinois Attorney General, and an investigatory report of the Illinois Attorney General which substantiates matters set forth in the application.

Based upon these documents and other evidence submitted to the Illinois Attorney General's Office, the Court finds:

1. That on Friday, June 03, 1988, Terry Whisby, age 23, was the victim of a violent crime as defined in §2(c) of the Act, to wit:

Aggravated Battery with a Firearm 720 ILCS 5/12-4.2 (2000).

However, the victim did not expire from the [*259] injuries he incurred as a result of the crime until October 31, 2009.

The death certificate lists the date of death as October 31, 2009, the category/manner of death as homicide, and the immediate cause of death as multi organ system failure, due to or as a result of gunshot wound to neck.

Therefore, on October 31, 2009, Terry Whisby, age 45, was the victim of a violent crime as defined in §2(c) of the Act, to wit:

First Degree Murder 720 ILCS5/9-1 (2000).

2. That pursuant to §6.1(a) of the Act, a person is entitled to compensation under the Act if within 2 years of the occurrence of the crime, or within one year after a criminal indictment of a person for an offense, upon which the claim is based, he filed an application, under oath, with the Court of Claims and on a form prescribed in accordance with Section 7.1 furnished by the Attorney General.

If the person entitled to compensation is under 18 years of age or under other legal disability at the time of the occurrence, he may file the application within two years after he attains the age of eighteen years or the disability is removed, as the case may be.

Legal disability includes a diagnosis of posttraumatic stress disorder.

3. That in In re Application of Martha Ricardo, 49 Ill.Ct.Cl.322 (1996) the victim of an aggravated battery died thirteen years later, at which time the claimant filed an application for funeral expenses.

The Court determined that the claimant was not eligible for compensation on the premise that an aggravated battery was committed due to the expiration of the required time limit for filing a claim after the aggravated battery occurred.

However, the Court indicated that under certain circumstances it may be possible to establish eligibility based on the theory that a [*260] murder was committed and that the final element of the murder did not occur until the victim expired.

After the Ricardo claim was referred back to the Attorney General for further investigation regarding whether a murder was committed, it was dismissed for want of prosecution after the claimant's failure to attend a hearing.

Under Illinois law, a crime is complete only "when the elements of that offense are satisfied."

See People v. Modrowski, 696 N.E.2d 28, 34 (Ill. App. 1998).

See also People v. Mudd, 507 N.E. 2d 869, 873 (Ill. App. 1987) (a crime is only complete "upon the existence of the last element, the death of the victim.").

See People v.

Carter. 552 N.E. 2d 653, 659 (Ill. App. 1988) (defendant may be charged with murder despite victim's death occurring more than a year-and-a-day after the initial crime; the Illinois criminal code abolished the common law "one-year-and-a-day" rule); See also People v. Amigon, 903 N.E.2d 843, 851 (Ill.App. 2009) (the State may charge a defendant with murder despite a significant time lapse between the defendant's last acts and the victim's death.

The defendant shot the victim in 1995, which rendered him a quadriplegic.

The victim dies in 2001, which the medical examiner concluded was "as a result of pneumonia due to quadriplegia due to a gunshot wound to the neck."

The medical examiner ruled the victim's death a homicide, and the appeals court sustained the defendant's murder conviction.); See People v. Carrillo, 646 N.E.2d 582, 586 (Ill.Ct.1995) (an exception to the double jeopardy rule exists where the State cannot charge the defendant with the greater offense of murder because elements to support the charge have not yet occurred; a defendant previously convicted of assault and battery may be later charged with murder arising out of the same circumstances as the initial crime citing Diaz v.

[*261] United States, 56 L.Ed. 500, 503 (1912)).

Additionally, in Carter in which the court affirmed the defendant's murder conviction, the court stated that "extensive medical testimony is not always necessary" to demonstrate the causal link between the victim's death and the defendant's acts when a time lapse exists between them.

Carter, 522 N.E.2d at 658.

When the facts surrounding the victim's death clearly illustrate that the death resulted from the defendant's acts, "no strenuous technical explanations are required by law as adequate proof."

Id.

4. That therefore, in cases where the victim of a violent crime dies after the initial crime and as a result of that crime, a claimant can file an application for the crime victim compensation program within 2 years of the date of the victim's death pursuant to §6.1 of the Act.

5. That the crime occurred in Chicago, Illinois, and all of the eligibility requirements of §6.1 of the Act have been met.

6. That the claimant seeks compensation for funeral and burial expenses.

7. That the claimant incurred funeral and burial expenses in the amount of $10,172.90, all of which have been paid.

Pursuant to §2(h) of the Act, funeral and burial expenses are compensable to a maximum amount of $5,000.00.

8. That the claimant has received no reimbursements that can be counted as an applicable deduction under §10.1 (e) of the Act.

9. That the claimant has complied with all pertinent provisions of the Act and qualifies for compensation thereunder.

[*262] IT IS HEREBY ORDERED that the sum of $5,000.00 (FIVE THOUSAND DOLLARS) be and is hereby awarded to Darlene Blanks, sister of Terry Whisby, an innocent victim of a violent crime.