Kory Alexander v. Alex Jones, Acting Warden

Kory Alexander was charged by indictment with first degree murder with the specific allegation that he personally discharged a firearm during the commission of the offense. The personal discharge allegation increased the mandatory minimum sentence to which Alexander was exposed by twenty-five years. The jury returned a general verdict of guilty of first degree murder, but found on a special interrogatory that the State had not proven Alexander personally discharged a firearm. The trial court entered a conviction for first degree murder. Under Illinois law, a defendant cannot be convicted of a lesser included offense at a jury trial unless the jury is instructed on the lesser offense. In Alleyne v. United States, this Court held that any fact that increases the minimum sentence for an offense is an element of a distinct and aggravated crime. This case presents the question of whether the Illinois Appellate Court unreasonably applied Alleyne v. United States when it held that personal discharge of a firearm was not an element of an aggravated form of first degree murder, but rather was a “sentencing factor” that was not relevant to the question of guilt.