People v. Smith

Summary

The Illinois Supreme Court reversed the appellate court, affirmed the murder conviction, and remanded for consideration of unresolved appellate issues. It held that excluding defendant's mother as a potential witness did not implicate the public-trial right, the second lineup was not unduly suggestive, and the gunshot-residue testimony violated discovery rules but did not prejudice defendant sufficiently to require a new trial. The court also upheld submission of the admitted photograph to the jury and found no reversible or plain error in the challenged closing arguments.