# People v. Columbo

> Appellate Court of Illinois · June 24, 1983 · 118 Ill. App. 3d 882

URL: https://www.frixlaw.com/law-library/cases/2046305

## Case

- **Full name:** The PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, Plaintiff-Appellee, v. PATRICIA COLUMBO Et Al., Defendants-Appellants
- **Court:** Appellate Court of Illinois
- **Decided:** June 24, 1983
- **Citations:** 118 Ill. App. 3d 882; 74 Ill. Dec. 304; 455 N.E.2d 733; 1983 Ill. App. LEXIS 2411
- **Precedential status:** Published
- **Opinion:** Opinion by Wilson
- **Judges:** Wilson
- **Cited by:** 83 later opinions in the Frix Law Library

## Citator (automated)

- No negative treatment found by the automated citator. That is not the same as a confirmation that the case is good law; read the citing cases.
- Full citator and citing cases: https://www.frixlaw.com/law-library/cases/2046305

## Opinion text

PRESIDING JUSTICE WILSON
delivered the opinion of the court:
Following a jury trial, defendants Patricia Columbo and Frank DeLuca were found guilty of three counts of murder, conspiracy and solicitation. Defendants’ post-trial motions were denied. The trial court sentenced defendant,Columbo to concurrent sentences of 20 to 50 years for solicitation and 200 to 300 years for the murders of Frank, Mary and Michael Columbo. The court then sentenced defendant DeLuca to concurrent sentences of 10 to 50 years for solicitation and 200 to 300 years for the three counts of murder. Because the court held that the conspiracy charge merged in law with the murder charge, no sentence was imposed with respect to the conspiracy counts.
On appeal, defendants contend that their convictions should be reversed or, in the alternative, that they should be granted a new trial on the grounds that: (1) the trial court improperly denied defendant Columbo a severance; (2) the court improperly admitted evidence seized at defendant Columbo’s home and failed to suppress her oral and written statements; (3) defendants were denied their constitutional due process rights to a fair trial; (4) the court erroneously entered judgments and sentences for solicitation; (5) defendants were not proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt; (6) the court erred in denying defendant DeLuca’s attempts to develop and present his theory of defense; (7) the court improperly admitted opinion evidence given by an unqualified witness; and (8) the jury was improperly instructed. For the reasons that follow, we affirm the trial court’s judgment.
I. Pretrial Motions
Prior to trial, defendant Columbo filed motions to quash arrest, to quash a search warrant, to suppress statements and to suppress physical evidence. The court quashed the search warrant but denied the other motions. Testimony pertinent to the court’s decisions regarding the pretrial motions follows.
I-A. Motion to Quash Arrest of Patricia Columbo
Investigator Raymond J. Rose, an Elk Grove Village police officer, testified that on May 15, 1976, approximately 7 a.m., he arrested defendant Columbo at the apartment she shared with defendant De-Luca at 2015 Finley Road, Lombard, Illinois. Present at the arrest were Lieutenant Frank Braun, Deputy Chief Bill Kohnke, Investigator Ray Fiske and Investigator Glenn Gable, Assistant State’s Attorneys Terry Sullivan and Collins Simpson, and members of the Lombard police department.
On cross-examination, Rose testified that on May 14, 1976, approximately 11 p.m., he was present when a statement was given by Lanyon (Lannie) Mitchell concerning Columbo’s solicitation of him to murder her family. Mitchell related that Columbo informed him that he could enter her parents’ home through patio doors which she would leave unlocked. In corroboration of Mitchell’s statement, Rose testified that he had had a prior conversation with Investigator Gargano regarding a conversation Gargano had had with Carolyn Tygrett, sister of deceased Mary Columbo. Tygrett told Gargano that one evening when she was visiting the Columbo home, Patricia Columbo arrived to pick up something. After Patricia left without ever picking up the item she came for, Mary Columbo noticed that the sliding glass patio doors, which had been locked before Patricia Columbo arrived, were unlocked. Mary Columbo then locked them herself.
Rose further testified that prior to defendant Columbo’s arrest, Mitchell had viewed at the police station three Polaroid photographs of Frank, Mary and Michael Columbo, one handwritten dossier con-taming personal information relating to the Columbo family and one hand-drawn diagram of the Columbo home. Mitchell told Rose that Columbo had given him these items in preparation for his murdering the Columbo family.
On redirect, Rose conceded that during the conversation on May 14, 1976, Mitchell never related that Columbo had told him that she had killed her parents. Rose further stated that, although Mitchell was brought to the Elk Grove Village police station in a squad car, he came voluntarily and was not in custody and voluntarily gave a statement to Assistant State’s Attorney Terry Sullivan.
Testifying further, Rose stated that after Columbo’s arrest, he obtained an arrest warrant for her which was made out for the purpose of having a mittimus to the Cook County jail issued. After hearing this testimony, the trial court denied the motion to quash arrest.
I-B. Motion to Suppress Physical Evidence
Investigator Rose testified that on May 15, 1976, approximately 6:20 a.m., he left the Elk Grove Village police station with several other officers and proceeded to defendants’ apartment. Upon arriving at the apartment, Lieutenant Braun of the Cook County sheriff’s police, knocked on the door of defendants’ apartment, announced his office and stated that he possessed a search warrant for the apartment. DeLuca responded that he wanted to make some phone calls before opening the door. Lieutenant Braun continued to knock on the door, identified himself again and requested that the door be opened. At this point, Columbo shouted from inside the apartment, “You m— f— ~s aren’t coming in here.” Lieutenant Braun continued to knock on the door and to request that it be opened. He further stated that if the door were not opened, he would kick it in. In response, Columbo shouted, “You guys are f-— animals.” Subsequently, Officers Salvatore and Severens began kicking at the door. After 10 to 15 minutes, DeLuca yelled, “Wait a f-— minute. I’ll open the door.” When De-Luca opened the door, Columbo was standing behind him, holding a German shepherd dog. Rose then handed DeLuca a copy of the search warrant, and informed him that it authorized the officers to search the apartment. At that point, Investigator Fiske asked Columbo to put the dog in another room before someone got hurt, which she did.
Rose further testified that while in defendants’ apartment, he observed a tablet of unruled white notebook paper and a pocket telephone directory on top of a small kitchen-type table. Because the paper was similar to that on which the Columbo family dossier had been written, Rose told his fellow officers to take the paper back to police headquarters. The officers also recovered an address book in order to verify whether it contained numbers of a Club Claremont, which Mitchell frequented.
Further testifying, Rose stated that Columbo exited the apartment, not handcuffed, between two investigators. DeLuca left shortly thereafter, not handcuffed, with Investigator Bloomquist. After both defendants were out of the apartment, the remaining officers searched the premises for those items named in the search warrant. Rose did not remain behind for the full search.
On cross-examination, Rose testified that while he was in the apartment, he took several items off shelves, looked through drawers, and removed sheets from the beds. He also saw one of the police officers kick a hole through a wall.
On redirect, after being shown a photograph of a hole in one of the walls of the apartment, Rose stated that the hole was already there when the police arrived; however, it was enlarged by police officers in an effort to determine if anything had been dropped into the wall. Rose further indicated that while he was in the apartment, he observed a gun and bullets located in a box in a bedroom closet. The gun, bullets, and other items were taken to the Elk Grove Village police department by evidence technicians.
Lieutenant Frank Braun
1
of the Cook County sheriff’s police department testified that on May 15, 1976, approximately 6:30 a.m., he left the Elk Grove Village police station with Investigator Rose and Assistant State’s Attorney Sullivan and proceeded to defendants’ apartment in Lombard. They arrived at the apartment approximately 6:50 a.m. where they met several other police officers. Once inside the apartment, Braun observed an ash tray containing More cigarettes and full packs of More cigarettes in the kitchen. He had seen More cigarettes previously at the Columbo residence the day the bodies were discovered and he also knew that More cigarettes had been found in the Columbo’s Oldsmobile. Furthermore, Braun had seen Columbo smoking that brand. Braun also observed a stack of 15 or 20 photographs in the immediate vicinity. The top photograph depicted Columbo and an unknown male. Because Braun knew that Columbo had had sexual relations with Mitchell, he looked through the photos and recovered them as evidence. In addition, the More cigarettes on the kitchen counter and the cigarette butts in the ash tray were seized and removed. Braun further testified that at the time he saw the photographs and the More cigarettes, Columbo was still in the apartment.
On cross-examination, Braun stated that when he arrived at the defendants’ apartment, Investigator Rose had a search warrant which Braun himself had not read. After the search, Rose told Braun that he had found a note pad. Braun, however, never put that information into any police reports or notes. Regarding the photographs, Braun admitted that Mitchell had never said that photographs were taken of sex acts between himself and Columbo. However, Mitchell did admit that he had had sexual intercourse with Columbo in defendants’ apartment.
On redirect, Braun testified that Rose prepared the police reports regarding the arrest and search of defendants’ apartment, and that he did not prepare any such reports himself. Further, an inventory was taken of all items recovered from the search.
After Braun’s testimony, counsel for Columbo moved for a directed finding. The motion was denied.
Defendant DeLuca next testified that on May 15, 1976, approximately 6:50 a.m., he was sleeping in his apartment when he was awakened by a loud banging on the front door and shouts of, “Open the door, this is the police.” Defendant Columbo telephoned the Elk Grove Village police department to verify that it was the police at the front door, but was unable to get verification. She then called the Lombard police department and was told that the Elk Grove Village police were at the door. When DeLuca opened the door, 10 guns were pointed at him. The police entered the apartment, flashed a white paper, informed DeLuca that he was under arrest, and handcuffed him.
DeLuca further stated that it was either Rose or Kohnke who flashed the warrant at him, without giving him the opportunity to read it. When DeLuca was escorted out of the apartment, he saw Columbo leaving the apartment with Kohnke.
Testifying further, DeLuca said that he was driven to the Elk Grove Village police department in an unmarked car. Regarding the evidence seized from his apartment, DeLuca stated that the notebook pad and paper were on a shelf in a closed dining room closet, the address book was kept in the top drawer of a cabinet, and the photographs were on the top shelf of a kitchen cabinet. When DeLuca returned to his apartment the day after his arrest, he noticed that it was completely messed up.
On cross-examination, DeLuca admitted that he last saw the two notebook pads in the closet about one week before the search warrant was executed. Further, he observed that Columbo was handcuffed when she came out of the apartment. In addition, during the knocking on the door defendant Columbo became upset and said, “You f-— animals.”
Following the hearing, the trial court denied the motion to suppress physical evidence on the grounds that the cigarette butts in the ash tray, the photographs, the notebook paper and the address book on the dining room table were in plain view and that the seizure was neither unreasonable nor a violation of constitutional rights.
I-C. Motion to Suppress Defendant Columbo’s Oral and Written Statements
Investigator Rose testified that he left the defendants’ apartment and drove to the Elk Grove Village police department, arriving there approximately 8:30 or 8:45 a.m. Approximately 11 a.m., he saw defendant Columbo in a juvenile detention room talking with Laura Kolmar, a police employee. When Rose entered the room with Braun and Kohnke, Kolmar left and Kohnke proceeded to read the Miranda warnings to defendant Columbo from a preprinted card. After they were read, Columbo indicated that she understood her rights.
When Rose questioned Columbo about her overdue rent payments, she became angry and began to shout obscenities. Rose then asked her if she knew Mitchell. When Columbo said that she did not, Rose told her that Mitchell was in the police station and he began to read portions of the dossier to her which he had received from Mitchell. At that point, Columbo looked over Rose’s shoulder and saw Mitchell standing at the door, looking through the window. She then said, “All right, all right, I wrote it,” referring to the dossier. Columbo then told Rose that for some reason these people wanted to kill her parents, and that they had forced her to participate in numerous sexual activities, although they had not actually raped her. She then explained that she never told the police because she was afraid that she would be harmed. In fact, she never even told DeLuca.
When Rose asked Columbo about nude photographs taken of her which had been seized from her apartment, she stated that DeLuca would not care about the photographs because he knew that she had previously sent similar photographs to a magazine in Pennsylvania. She then admitted that she had the telephone number of Club Claremont which Mitchell frequented, and had called there on several occasions. Finally, Columbo stated that she did not want to talk to Rose any further. Instead, she wanted to talk to Investigator Landers or Gragano. Subsequently, Landers entered the room.
Later that day, Rose saw Columbo for a brief time approximately 3:30 or 4 p.m. and later at 10 p.m. He then transported her via an unmarked police car to Chicago police department headquarters where she appeared before a judge for issuance of a mittimus. She was then transported to Cook County jail. Rose testified that at no time from defendant Columbo’s arrest to the time she entered the Cook County jail was she threatened, struck or physically abused in his presence.
On cross-examination, Rose stated that he asked Columbo if the photographs recovered from the apartment were DeLuca’s idea and she answered in the affirmative. Rose denied calling defendants “degenerates” and also denied pushing a chair into Columbo’s leg during questioning.
Lieutenant Frank Braun testified that on May 15, 1976, approximately 11 a.m., he saw defendant Columbo with a police matron in a juvenile detention room in the Elk Grove Village police station.
2
On cross-examination, Braun testified that Columbo told him that she was afraid Mitchell might kill her if she said anything. She also stated that “they” were going to kill her family and had forced her to have all sorts of sex with them. Braun admitted that he never asked defendant Columbo to whom she was referring when she used the term “they” or “them.” Also, Braun stated that he never threatened, struck or threw any physical object at Columbo.
Investigator Glenn Gable, a member of the Cook County sheriff’s police, testified that on May 15, 1976, he handcuffed defendant Columbo at her apartment and he and Investigator Fiske escorted her to Fiske’s squad car. When defendant Columbo was in the car, she said, “You f-— animals. You pigs. What is going to happen to my dog?” Gable then read Columbo the Miranda warnings from a preprinted card. After arriving at the police station, Columbo appeared to be calm and asked to make a telephone call. She was then escorted to a telephone, where she made a call.
On cross-examination, Gable testified that after he read the Miranda warnings to defendant Columbo, he did not ask her any further questions, and she remained silent for the remainder of the ride to the police station. At one point during the ride, Gable commented to Fiske, “Very funny” or “Very amusing, Miss Columbo calling us animals.”
Gable further testified that on May 15, 1976, he was present in the juvenile detention room at 2:30 p.m. with John Landers. At that time, Landers asked Columbo if she would give a written statement to the police in the presence of a court reporter. She replied that she would. In response to another question, Columbo indicated that she wanted to make a telephone call, which she was permitted to do.
Investigator Ray Fiske, a member of the Cook County sheriff’s police, testified that he and Gable took Columbo into custody and transported her to the Elk Grove Village police department. He heard Gable read the Miranda warnings to Columbo. - Fiske stated that he did not question Columbo, nor did he threaten or hit her. Further, the only comment she made during the ride to the station was regarding the safety of her dog. She did not complain that the handcuffs were too tight.
On cross-examination, Fiske testified that Landers told him that Columbo said in her statement that she was abused in the squad car while going to the police station.
During redirect, Fiske stated that before Columbo entered the car, she refused to put on her shoes. However, after she stepped into a large rain puddle, she asked to put them on, but was told to wait until she got to the car. At this point, she became very angry.
Investigator John G. Landers, administrative assistant to the Director of Law Enforcement for the State of Illinois, testified that on May 15, 1976, he gave Columbo her Miranda warnings at the police station and then questioned her in the presence of Investigator Gargano. Landers indicated that he and Gargano first became acquainted with Columbo the previous summer when Columbo filed a complaint against her father for assaulting DeLuca. During questioning on May 15, Columbo admitted to Landers that her relationship with DeLuca was the source of her problems with her parents. She also admitted that she had discussed her parents with Mitchell and his friend, Roman Sobczynski. At that point in the questioning, Columbo said that she was willing to give a written statement. When Landers asked Columbo if she wanted to call an attorney before making the written statement, she indicated that she wanted to call her godmother, which she did. After talking to her godmother, Columbo gave her written statement in the presence of Landers, Gargano, two other police personnel and an assistant State’s Attorney.
Landers further stated that before taking the written statement, the assistant State’s Attorney again advised Columbo of her rights. After listening to the Miranda warnings, Columbo stated, “I have already heard this before. I understand my rights and I want to talk.” During the statement, she detailed her relationship with Mitchell and Sobczynski, including her plan to have them kill her parents. After the statement was taken, Landers asked Columbo what she meant when she said that she was abused on the way to the police station. Columbo answered that the two officers who brought her to the station refused to let her put on her shoes and coat when she left the apartment.
After the statement was transcribed, Columbo read it, initialed each page and signed the statement. Approximately an hour later, Landers was notified that Columbo wanted to make another statement. Landers again advised Columbo of her rights. She then talked about Mitchell and Sobczynski more extensively, describing their meetings and sexual relationships. After approximately 45 minutes, Landers told Columbo, “The statement doesn’t make sense to me. You should get your thoughts together.” He then left the room. The statement was never completed. Landers testified that he never threatened or struck Columbo and never saw anyone else do so either. Landers also stated that Columbo appeared normal while giving the statement, drinking pop and smoking cigarettes.
Two days later, Landers was present at the Niles courthouse when defendant Columbo was arraigned. Shortly after leaving the courthouse, he was called by the Cook County jail and told that defendant Columbo wanted to see him and Gargano. When they arrived, Columbo greeted them by saying, “I’m glad you guys could be here.” Landers again advised her of her rights and told her that if she wanted her attorney present, he would call him. Columbo replied that her attorney knew that she wanted to talk to Landers and Gargano and that she was going to do so even if her attorney advised her against it. She then informed them that she had had a vision while in the Niles lockup. Regarding the vision, Landers testified:
“[I]n this vision that she had [she] saw her mother and father [lying] on the floor in the living room of the house next to a chair by the rail, and he was laying on his back. He was wearing dark colored pants and she said he had socks on, but no shoes.
She said that she went - she saw in the hallway her mother. Her mother was laying on the floor and that her mother was wearing *** a nightgown and a bathrobe.
She said she saw her brother in the bedroom and she said the bedroom was dark, she couldn’t tell if he had on any clothes or not, any pajamas or not. She said there was a hall light on, she said that she then saw a scissors with blood on it.
At that time I asked her if she saw herself in the house and she said yes.
I said, ‘Do you see yourself involved in the killing of your mother, your father, or your brother?’ And she says, ‘I’m not certain, I’m confused.’
At that time I asked her to go on with the statement, and she said that her - she saw her father and her father told her that Jesus, Jesus would forgive her, that she had been wrong.
* * *
She said that she saw herself there [in the Columbo house when the murders occurred], she thought she was there. She said she might have been involved and that she saw them all laying there together.
* * *
She then started talking about how she had been living with fear, fear of what her parents would do to her and also would do, and then hate, hate for her parents.”
Landers then refreshed his recollection from a typewritten report, signed by himself and Investigator Gargano, regarding their conversation with Columbo at the Women’s Correctional Center, and further stated:
“She told us, ‘I told my attorneys that I wanted to talk to you. I told them I didn’t care what they say, I want to talk to you guys, I want to see you guys.’
* * *
As we were getting ready to leave, she said she didn’t-she was having problems at the jail, she was having physical problems and she stated that she didn’t know how long more she could stand being locked up. She said that she had considered suicide, that she’s tried it before.”
Landers again refreshed his recollection by looking at the report, and stated:
“Q. Would you recall for the jury, please, if your memory is refreshed, the specific language used by Miss Columbo with respect to her involvement in the murders? Can you refresh your memory, please?
A. Yes, I can.
Q. What specifically did she say?
A. She said, ‘I’m afraid that I was there and did it.’ ”
Following her vision statement, Columbo complained about her physical condition and said that she needed medical attention, adding that she had attempted suicide before and might do it again. Landers then informed the superintendent of the Women’s Correctional Center that Columbo needed medical treatment.
On cross-examination, Landers stated that he was aware that public defenders had been appointed to represent Columbo. Nonetheless, he did not ask the appointed public defenders for permission to speak to Columbo at the Niles lockup. Landers farther testified that on May 19, 1976, he received a message that defendant Columbo wanted to speak with him again. In response, he and Gargano went to the Cook County jail complex. Again, they did seek permission to do so from the appointed public defenders. At that time, Landers had not yet received a statement from defendant Columbo that she had killed her family.
On redirect, Landers stated that when he and Gargano saw Columbo on May 19, she was in a hospital room in Cermak Memorial Hospital. When they arrived, she told them that she did not want to talk to them. Landers and Gargano then left the hospital without attempting to question her.
William Kohnke, deputy chief of police of the Elk Grove Village police department, next testified that on May 15, 1976, approximately 7 a.m., he first saw Columbo at the defendants’ apartment in Lombard. When Kohnke returned to the Elk Grove Village police station, he saw Columbo again, introduced himself to her and advised her of her Miranda rights by reading them from a preprinted card. Investigator Rose then commenced questioning. Kohnke stated that he never threatened Columbo, nor did he see anyone else threaten or coerce her.
3
On cross-examination, Kohnke stated that Rose and Landers were specifically in charge of the Columbo murder investigation under his direct supervision. During the questioning, Columbo asked Kohnke if she could see DeLuca and he told her that she could later that day.
Thelma Hawkins, secretary to the superintendent of the women’s jail, then testified that she was present on May 17, 1976, when Investigators Landers and Gargano interviewed Columbo in a visiting room of the jail. Hawkins did not hear Landers ask Columbo if she wanted to speak to him, nor did she hear Landers advise Columbo of her constitutional rights.
On cross-examination, Hawkins stated that when Landers and Gargano arrived and told her that they wanted to talk to Columbo, she informed the superintendent who indicated that if Columbo wanted to see the officers, they could talk to her. Hawkins then telephoned the tier, talked to the monitor officer who, in turn, contacted Columbo. The monitor officer informed Hawkins that Columbo wanted to see Landers and Gargano. Hawkins was not present during the subsequent interview.
Doctor Paul Cherian, psychiatrist of Cermak Memorial Hospital, testified that on May 17, 1976, he examined Columbo and diagnosed her condition as “acute situational reaction, depressive type.” Cherian stated that the illness was probably precipitated by the loss of her family. One of the symptoms of the illness was psychomotor retardation, i.e., a slowing of the thought processes, a condition that could temporarily impair her judgment. Cherian further stated that Columbo appeared anxious and confused at the time of the examination and, considering her depression and suicide potential, he had prescribed a tranquilizer for her and recommended that she be hospitalized.
On cross-examination, Cherian testified that during his examination of Columbo, she expressed feelings of hostility toward her parents and brother.
Claudia McCormick, superintendent of the Women’s Correctional Center, testified that on May 17, 1976, she received a request from two police investigators to see Columbo. McCormick saw Columbo in the interview room but was not present during the interview with the police investigators. On May 19, 1976, McCormick requested the investigating unit of the Cook County Department of Corrections to conduct an investigation of the two investigators because they had gone into Cermak Memorial Hospital to visit Columbo without obtaining McCormick’s authorization.
On cross-examination, McCormick stated that she did not talk to either the investigators or to Columbo.
Richard Kavitt, assistant public defender, testified that on May 17, 1976, while assigned to the Niles court, he and his partner, Allan Spector, were appointed to represent Columbo. When Kavitt attempted to interview Columbo, he found her in a hysterical condition. Consequently, he requested that she be examined at the Behavior Clinic. Kavitt stated that Columbo did not ask for his permission to speak to any law enforcement agent and no agent asked him for permission to speak to her.
On cross-examination, Kavitt stated that he did not believe the Behavior Clinic examination was performed. When he spoke with Columbo prior to the arraignment, he thought that she might be suffering from some mental disorder because she was crying and would not cooperate. Later that afternoon or the next day, Kavitt was informed that the public defender’s task force would be representing her.
Allan Spector, assistant public defender, next testified.
4
On cross-examination, Spector stated that the request that defendant Columbo be hospitalized was based on conversations with her and a resulting concern for her personal safety.
On redirect, Spector testified that at the request of both assistant public defenders, the Niles court marked Columbo’s mittimus “Cermak Hospital.”
Ellen Zimmerman, Columbo’s godmother, testified that on May 15, 1976, she received a telephone call from defendant Columbo who told her that she was at the Elk Grove Village police station and was being charged with the murder of her mother, father and brother. She then told Zimmerman that she was going to sign a statement after which DeLuca would be released. When Zimmerman asked Columbo whether she was telling the truth, Columbo replied, “No, Ellen, that is the way it has to.be.”
On cross-examination, Zimmerman testified that she did not recall any conversation with Columbo about obtaining a lawyer and that she did not know if the police told Columbo that DeLuca would be released if she signed the statement.
Testifying in her own behalf, Columbo stated that on May 15, 1976, she was at home, asleep, when she was awakened by her dog’s barking. She then heard knocking at the door and a male voice saying, “Elk Grove police department ***. Open the door.” When she replied that she would open the door after she put on some clothes, the male voice allegedly told her to open the door first. Despite this warning, defendant Columbo put on a black jumpsuit, looked through the peephole in the door and saw two males with guns drawn. She backed away from the door and asked to see police identification. When she received no reply other than “[ojpen the door,” she told them that she was going to call the Elk Grove Village police department to verify their identity. She then placed the call and talked to a Sergeant Iden, who told Columbo that the officers had been sent to her apartment. Subsequently, she removed the board which had been placed as a barricade across the door and unlocked the two locks on the door. When she unlocked the second lock, the door opened and several men entered the apartment and immediately handcuffed her. When she was told to put her dog away, Columbo called the dog out to the balcony.
Columbo further testified that she asked Officer Kohnke if he had a search warrant and was told that DeLuca had seen the warrant. She was then asked where her shoes and coat were. When an officer found her shoes, she could not put them on because she was handcuffed. Her coat was then thrown over her shoulders and she carried her shoes as she left the apartment with Investigators Gable and Fiske. While walking to the car, one officer held her arm and purposely directed her through several rain puddles which could have been avoided. When she reached the car and the door was opened, she tossed her shoes into the car. One of the officers then pushed her into the car, knocking her head on the top part of the car. After they left the apartment parking lot, Fiske commented that Kohnke was going to “fry this chick’s ass good.”
When Columbo reached the Elk Grove Village police department, she was taken to the records room office where her right hand was handcuffed to the right arm of the chair. While in the records room, Columbo asked police matron Kolmar to put a wastepaper basket beside her because she was not feeling well and thought that she might vomit. After 15 or 20 minutes, she was taken to the detention room where she was strip-searched. Investigator Rose and Officer Kohnke then entered the room and Rose asked her about rent payments on her apartment. Rose did not advise Columbo of her constitutional rights before he began the questioning. When Columbo denied knowing Mitchell after being shown his picture, Rose told her that Mitchell was in the police station and claimed to know her. She was then shown copies of some pictures and some papers. She denied writing the papers. At that point in the questioning, defendant Columbo heard a sound, looked up and saw Mitchell through the door window, laughing and running his hand across his throat. Columbo then told Rose that if that was Mitchell at the door, she knew him as “Lannie,” but never knew his last name.
Columbo further testified that Kohnke asked her if she preferred to have DeLuca or herself go to the electric chair. When she replied that she had nothing more to say to him, Rose and Kohnke left the room and Investigator Landers asked if she wanted to see him or Gargano. She replied that she would talk to Landers, but not to Gargano. At that point, Rose and Kohnke returned with several pictures that DeLuca had taken of Columbo. Rose then commented that she was “perverted” and her lifestyle was not up to his, after which he pushed her and hit her with a chair on her left thigh. Landers then reentered the room and called Gargano. When Columbo began crying, Gargano found DeLuca and brought him into the room to talk with Columbo. Later, Columbo told Landers that she was going to make a statement. However, first she wanted to call her godmother. After making the call, Columbo told Gargano that she would make a statement if it would help DeLuca. Gargano told her that if she would make the statement, he would make sure that DeLuca would be released after he took a polygraph test. Before Columbo gave the statement, she asked Assistant State’s Attorney Sullivan if he had spoken to Gargano about DeLuca’s release once she gave the statement and DeLuca took the polygraph test. Sullivan replied that he had talked to Gargano and that it was “all taken care of.” She then gave the statement and later initialed it and signed it. Later, when she informed Landers that she wanted to make a second statement from beginning to end, Landers brought in another court stenographer and Columbo commenced giving her second statement. The statement, however, was never completed. Columbo recalled that she heard her constitutional rights for the first time when Rose read them to her in the receiving room of the Women’s Correctional Center.
On cross-examination, Columbo denied saying to the arresting officers, “You f-— jackoffs ain’t coming in until I verify and know who you are” or “You guys are f-— animals.” However, she did admit that she may have used language of that type simply because she was scared when she heard the knocking on her door and someone saying, “Open the door.” Columbo further stated that she woke DeLuca after hearing the knocking, but did not get a gun. DeLuca also appeared to be scared and told her that he had to get her out of the apartment. When the men came through the door, they pushed her into the kitchen and handcuffed her. She saw guns pointed at her head and another gun pointed at her dog. When she moved between Rose and the dog and told Rose that the dog would not hurt anyone and did not bite, the officer lowered his gun. Columbo then called the dog out onto the balcony. When she asked Kohnke if she was under arrest, he did not answer her. Later, as she walked out of the door with the two officers, one of them tightened one side of the handcuffs.
Columbo further testified on cross-examination that while she was in the squad car en route to the Elk Grove Village police station, neither of the officers in the car informed her of her constitutional rights. Furthermore, after she saw Mitchell, she admitted to Rose that she knew Mitchell and that she had written the dossier on her family. During her conversation with Rose, they discussed sex and lifestyles. When Rose informed her that Mitchell had accused her of hiring him to kill her family, she became very upset. However, Rose did not hit her at any time during the conversation. Regarding her constitutional rights, Columbo did not recall Landers’ reading them to her, although she thought the assistant State’s Attorney may have done so. In any case, Colombo did not recall any rights being read to her prior to her written statement which she initialed and signed. In addition, Colombo stated that she gave the first statement so that the police woold release DeLoca. Later, she told the officers that she wanted to give a second statement and “tell it her way.” She coold not remember, however, whether Landers advised her of her constitotional rights before she gave the second statement. Both statements consisted wholly of Colombo’s own thooghts withoot any prompting from others.
As a rebottal witness for the prosecotion, Investigator Gene Gargano testified that on May 15, 1976, he and Landers went into the room where Colombo was being held at the Elk Grove Village police station, greeted her, and Landers then advised her of her rights. Colombo replied, “John, I have heard it before and I don’t need an attorney.” Colombo then began talking aboot the Joly 1975 incident when Frank Colombo had confronted her and DeLoca in the parking lot of Walgreen’s Drngstore in Elk Grove Village and knocked oot De-Luca’s teeth with a rifle bott. When Landers asked her aboot Mitchell, Colombo answered that she had met Mitchell and his friend, Sobczynski, throogh a girlfriend. Thereafter, they met on several occasions. Colombo admitted that she told Mitchell and Sobczynski aboot her problems with her family and her desire to have them killed. When Landers asked her if she woold give a written statement, Colombo indicated that she woold. Gargano denied that he ever told Colombo that DeLoca woold be released if she gave a statement and DeLoca took a polygraph test. Approximately 8:30 or 9 p.m. that evening, Gargano brooght DeLoca to visit Colombo.
5
Assistant State’s Attorney Terry Sollivan testified that on May 15, 1976, he read the Miranda rights to Colombo at the Elk Grove Village police station. When he asked her after each warning whether she nnderstood her rights, Colombo replied that she did. While Sollivan was talking with Colombo at the police station, she appeared calm and did not complain aboot being hit by a chair. Moreover, she did not ask for an attorney. The Miranda warnings were repeated while Colombo was giving her written statement. Colombo never told Sollivan that Gargano had told her that DeLoca woold be released if she gave a statement and if DeLoca took a polygraph test. Farther, no promises or threats were made to her before she gave the statement.
After the direct examination of Sullivan, the trial court, on its own motion, struck the testimony of Doctor Cherian, psychiatrist at Cermak Memorial Hospital, regarding any communications between himself and Columbo during his psychiatric examination of her. Subsequently, the court denied the motion to suppress oral and written statements.
II. The Trial
Officer Joseph Giuliano of the Chicago police department testified that on May 7, 1976, approximately 2 p.m., he received a call from dispatch regarding a suspicious auto parked at 140 South Whipple in Chicago. Upon arriving at the address, Officer Giuliano observed a red 1972 Thunderbird with an Elk Grove Village sticker in the front window, no hubcaps, a smashed right front window covered by a piece of cardboard and a pulled ignition. Because the car had not been stripped, Officer Giuliano surmised that the car had been stolen by amateurs. A check with headquarters revealed that no stolen auto report had been filed, but that the car was registered to Frank Columbo, 55 Brantwood, Elk Grove Village, Illinois. Officer Giuliano attempted to notify Mr. Columbo on and off for over an hour, but received a busy signal the entire time. He then transmitted the information to the Elk Grove Village police department.
Officer Kenneth Kvidera of the Elk Grove Village police department testified that on May 7, 1976, approximately 4:45 p.m., he was notified by dispatch to go to 55 Brantwood, Elk Grove Village and inform the Columbos that their car had been located in Chicago. When he arrived at the Columbo residence, Officer Kvidera knocked on the front door, but received no response other than a barking dog. He noticed, however, that the storm door was unlocked and that the inner door was partially open. Kvidera then called for a backup unit and, while waiting, walked around the house. He noticed that there were no cars in the Columbo driveway, newspapers and mail had accumulated on the front porch, all of the windows were intact, and the patio and garage doors were secure. When Officer Maculitis arrived, both he and Kvidera entered the house and discovered a male body at the top of the stairs and another body on the landing. Kvidera immediately called for evidence technicians and an investigative unit.
Investigator Raymond J. Rose of the Elk Grove Village police department testified that on May 7, 1976, approximately 5 p.m., he was directed to go to 55 Brantwood where he discovered the bodies of Frank, Mary and Michael Columbo. Frank Columbo, defendant Columbo’s father, was found lying on his back in the living room, surrounded by broken glass, with a torn and bloody lamp shade nearby. He was wearing a T-shirt, plaid pants and socks. Rose also observed a two-inch slash across his throat.
Mary Columbo, defendant Columbo’s mother was found lying on her back on the landing in front of the bathroom. She had a bullet wound on the ridge of her nose, right between her eyes, and a one-inch slash across her throat. Part of a bloodied magazine and fake fern were lying next to her body, with broken glass and beads lying near her head. Four human teeth were also found lying between the top of the stairs and the wall. Mary had a large diamond ring on her left hand. Her purse was found in the bathroom, the contents strewn on the floor along with a cigarette case containing Pall Mall Menthols, and an ash tray containing the same brand cigarette butts.
Michael Columbo, defendant Columbo’s 13-year-old brother, was found lying on his back on his bedroom floor, wearing a white T-shirt and blue sweatpants. Michael’s bloodied head had what appeared to be a bullet wound on the left side and a second bullet wound on the back. In addition, there were 98 puncture wounds on Michael’s neck and chest. A pair of bloodied scissors with crossed blades were found on Michael’s desk and a marble-based bowling trophy, covered with blood, was lying next to Michael’s body.
On the foyer floor, Rose found a bloodied crumpled magazine, loose change and some artificial ferns and beads. In the upstairs master bedroom, the sheets were pulled back on the bed, still smooth, as if the bed had not been slept in. The alarm clock, set for 9 a.m., was buzzing. All of the drawers were orderly. In the kitchen, the garbage had been dumped on the bloodied floor, the cabinet door was ajar, the telephone was off the hook, and a personal telephone directory was open to a page on which was written defendant Columbo’s name and phone number. Outside the house, Investigator Rose found a nine-inch knife lying next to the front stoop and a common steak knife was lying in a rock garden.
Although some attempt had been made to give the impression of a robbery, valuable items, i.e., portable color televisions, two air rifles, a .40 caliber shotgun, a CB radio, stereo equipment, an eight-track recorder, cameras and projectors, which were all clearly visible, were left untouched. The police later discovered a wall safe which contained $4,770 in cash which also had not been opened. In addition, the fact that all windows were intact, no phone lines were cut, the back door was locked, and there were no markings on the front door to indicate a forced entry made a home invasion even more unlikely.
Officer Christopher Markussen, evidence technician for the Elk Grove Village police department, testified that no foreign substance, except dirt, was found on the knife which Investigator Rose discovered lying next to the front stoop, and there were no pry marks on any doors.
Dr. Robert Stein, chief medical examiner of Cook County, testified that on May 8, 1976, he performed autopsies on Frank, Mary and Michael Columbo. Frank’s body contained irregular lacerations caused by a blunt object, four bullet wounds (right side of his face, left side of his face, left lower lip and left side of his head behind the ear) and cuts by a sharp instrument. Teeth were missing from his jaw. Dr. Stein further stated that, although he could not determine the exact time of death, based on the stomach remains and the fact there was no rigor mortis in the bodies, he estimated death to have occurred between 11 p.m., May 4, 1976, and 1 a.m., May 5, 1976. On cross-examination, Dr. Stein indicated that if it were shown that Mary Columbo had spoken to her nephew on the morning of May 5, 1976, approximately 6 a.m., he could reasonably adjust his opinion as to the time of death.
Robert Gonsowski, trained expert in blood identification and a microscopist, testified that the liquid blood samples from Frank and Mary Columbo were not suitable for comparison with blood found on recovered evidence because the samples were contaminated with bacteria due to putrification. Michael’s blood sample, however, was suitable and subsequently typed as being Group A, MN subgroup. The blood on items recovered from the Columbo residence wa also classified as Group A blood. These items included a pair of scissors, a trophy, and a piece of glass. There was no blood on the recovered knife or on defendant DeLuca’s shoes which had been taken from his apartment at the time of his arrest. Markings on the trunk of the Columbo’s Thunderbird which may have been blood were contaminated and, thus, unsuitable for comparison. On cross-examination, Gonsowski indicated that 40% of the population has Group A blood and half of that group, or 20% of the population, has MN subgroup.
Susan M. Twardosz, criminalist at the Illinois Bureau of Identification and specialist in the firearms and toolmark section, testified that Officer Gonsowski gave her four complete bullets and a fragment of a fifth to identify. By using a comparison microscope, Twardosz identified the bullets and fragments as .32-caliber. Further, she identified the nonmutilated bullets as coming from the same weapon which, in her opinion, was a .32-caliber gun. She could not discern with certainty whether the projectiles were fired from a rifle, automatic or revolver. In addition, Twardosz testified that her examination of four locks taken from the doors of the Columbo house revealed that nothing but a key had been used to open them. On cross-examination, however, Twardosz admitted that a lock could be opened with shim device such as a credit card or thin-bladed knife and escape detection. Some of the locks taken from the Columbo house were equipped with an antishim device.
Michael Podlecki, criminalist employed by the Illinois Bureau of Identification, testified as to his examination of the hair standards found on Michael Columbo’s T-shirt. See section III-J of this opinion for a detailed discussion of Podlecki’s testimony.
Blair Schultz, criminalist employed by the Illinois Bureau of Identification in the trace section, trained in glass analysis, testified as to her findings regarding 28 exhibits she received from the crime scene, from a 1968 Buick which defendants had rented around the time of the murders, and from Frank Columbo’s 1972 Thunderbird and 1972 Oldsmobile. Fifteen of the 28 items had glass in them. Schultz stated that there are three ways to analyze glass fragments: (1) fit the pieces together, (2) analyze the chemical properties and densities, or (3) analyze the refractive index of the fragments. By using the refraction method, Schultz concluded that two of the fragments, one from the broken lamp base found on Columbo’s living room floor and one found in the 1968 Buick had the same degree of tolerance and, thus, could have originated from the same source. Schultz substantiated her conclusion by stating that only five times in 1,000 previous glass tolerance tests has glass with the identical degree of tolerance not been from the same source. On cross-examination, Schultz stated that the matched glass fragment recovered from the Buick could have come from any of thousands of pieces of glass with the same optical properties as the lamp base.
Professor Eugene Giles, professor of anthropology at the University of Illinois in Champaign-Urbana, next testified as to his examination of hand-print smudges found on the trunk of Columbo’s Thunderbird. See section III-K of this opinion for a detailed discussion of Giles’ testimony.
Sergeant Henry E. Thomka of the Wood Dale police department, testified that on May 8, 1976, late in the evening, he heard on the teletype that the Elk Grove Village police department was looking for a 1972 Oldsmobile ’98, registered to Frank Columbo. Shortly thereafter, Thomka received a call from another Wood Dale police officer reporting that he had located the Columbo Oldsmobile in the parking lot of a condominium complex in Wood Dale. There was nothing unusual about the car’s appearance. Neither the locks nor the ignition appeared to have been tampered with.
John Leto, resident of the condominium complex where the Oldsmobile was found, testified that when he left for work at 5:30 a.m. on May 5, 1976, there was no car parked in the parking spot next to his. When he returned home later that evening, about 5:30 p.m., Columbo’s Oldsmobile was parked in that spot.
Jack Lilly, owner of Jack’s Top and Trim in Addison, Illinois, testified that on April 30, 1976, he rented a 1968 Buick Skylark to defendant Columbo while her car was being repaired elsewhere. At the time it was rented, the car was filthy inside and out. On May 7, 1976, defendant Columbo called Lilly and told him that the Buick had broken down and she would need another loaner. Lilly then gave her a 1970 or 1971 Mercury to use until her own car was repaired. Lilly towed the Buick to his shop and when he started to work on it, he noticed that the inside of the car was exceptionally clean, although the outside was still filthy.
Investigator Gene Gargano of the Cook County sheriff’s police testified that he assisted the Elk Grove Village police in the processing of Columbo’s Oldsmobile and the 1968 Buick rented to defendant Columbo. Regarding the Oldsmobile, Gargano recovered five fingerprints, and some More and Pall Mall cigarette butts from the ash tray. In addition, he removed a blue blanket from the back seat and part of the roof liner which had red stains on it. Regarding the Buick, Gargano recovered More cigarette butts from the ash tray and from the ground next to the driver’s door while it was parked at Jack’s Top and Trim. Gargano further noted that the inside of the Buick was spotless and smelled of cleaning fluid while the outside was dirty and rusty. Gargano also stated that he had seen defendant Columbo smoking More cigarettes earlier at the Elk Grove Village police station.
Officer Chris Markussen, evidence technician for the Elk Grove Village police department, took the stand again and testified that on May 8, 1976, at the Elk Grove Village police department garage, he pried open the trunk of Columbo’s Thunderbird with a tire iron. At the time, he noted that there were smudges on the trunk which could be seen from five feet away. The smudges were darker maroon or red and could have been made by blood or grease. The next day, Markussen examined the interior of the Thunderbird and recovered glass from the floor, bags from a carry-out restaurant, a white box from the back seat and a bloodied artificial wheat stalk similar to that found next to Mary Columbo’s body. Markussen noted that the ignition was damaged and that one of the windows was shattered. On May 12, when Markussen took the fingerprints of both defendants, he noted that defendant DeLuca was missing the index finger and tip of his middle finger on the left hand. He did not, however, notice any nicks or scabs on defendant DeLuca’s hands. On May 15, Markussen went to defendants’ Lombard apartment and recovered an address book, pad of unruled notebook paper and More cigarette butts.
Lanyon (Lannie) Mitchell, age 25, testified that, in September 1975, while working as a salesman at Franklin Weber Pontiac in Schaumburg, he met Karin Burtt, a friend of defendant Columbo and asked Karin to arrange a date between Columbo and his friend Roman Sobczynski. A short time later, Lannie talked to Columbo personally on the telephone and told her that he would pay her to go out with a friend of his who was heavy into politics. During this conversation, Columbo mentioned that she was living with her boyfriend, but needed the money, and that her father had hit her boyfriend in the head with a rifle butt.
In mid-October, Karin arranged a meeting with Columbo, Lannie and Roman. They went to a nearby lounge and danced and drank for a few hours. While Columbo was dancing with Lannie, she noticed Lannie’s gun and asked him about it. He told her he was a “heavy” and could do favors for his friends, which impressed Columbo very much. When the four left the lounge, Columbo and Karin agreed to follow Roman and Lannie to a motel. However, Columbo drove to Karin’s house instead. When Roman and Lannie realized the girls were not following them, they drove to Karin’s house where Columbo and Karin were sitting out front in Columbo’s car. Roman and Columbo had an argument, after which Roman told Lannie to ride with Columbo in her car and he and Karin would follow them in his car to the Edgebrooke Motel. On the way to the motel, Columbo asked Lannie where she could get an unmarked gun and some bullets. Lannie told her he would get the bullets for her.
The following day, Columbo called Lannie at the dealership and told him that she needed .22-caliber bullets. Lannie got them for her and she picked them up. A week later, Columbo met Lannie for lunch and told him that DeLuca had been practicing with the bullets and they were working out well. She also discussed the animosity between her parents and DeLuca and expressed her desire to have her parents killed. Lannie told her that he could do it for $10,000 per person. Lannie testified that he never intended to kill the Columbos; he merely said he would to impress Columbo in order to have sex with her. After his conversation with Columbo about the hits, Lannie called Roman and told him about it.
Several times during October, Columbo called Lannie and asked him when he was going to kill her parents. Lannie kept stalling by asking her for a rundown on her parents’ activities. Late in October, Lannie told Columbo that his conscience was bothering him and that he wanted to back out of the deal. Columbo refused to let him out. The following week, Columbo gave Lannie some floor plan drawings of the Columbo residence, and told him about the wall safe, the CB radio, televisions, furs and diamonds.
One week later, in November, Columbo met with Lannie and Roman and again asked when the killings would take place. In response, Roman asked her for some front money. Columbo informed him that the money would come after the killings from a life insurance policy. In the interim, Columbo offered sex in payment for their services, which they accepted. That night, Columbo gave Lannie photographs of her family and a dossier of their activities. In mid-November, Columbo met Lannie and wanted him to case the house with her. Instead, the two of them met Roman and had a sex party.
In early December, Columbo again met Lannie and told him that she had been at her parents’ house earlier and had left the patio doors unlocked so that she and Lannie could go there and case it after her parents went out. Lannie noticed that Columbo was carrying a 12-inch knife for protection and suggested that she get a gun instead. Columbo asked him to get her one. When they arrived at the Columbo house, Mary Columbo answered the door. Lannie panicked and drove the car down the street and waited for Columbo. When she returned to the car, Columbo said that she and her mother had argued about DeLuca’s divorce and that she wanted the killings to go down that night. In mid-December, Lannie met Columbo at a bowling alley where she told him that her father had taken out a contract on DeLuca. She insisted that her parents be killed right away.
In January 1976, Roman and Lannie met Columbo in a restaurant and she told them that her little brother had to go, too, because he might figure things out later. She was also upset because she had given sex to Roman and Lannie, but had not received anything in return. She felt that she could do a better job herself. Lannie became upset and knocked a cigarette out of Columbo’s mouth.
Later in January, Lannie and Columbo met again because Columbo wanted him to case the house. She said that she had just been there and left the sliding patio doors open; but when they got there, the doors were locked. They went back to the restaurant where they met Roman. Columbo complained about the delay and said that DeLuca was getting anxious, too. At that point, she called someone on the telephone and Roman talked to him. Later, Roman told Lannie that he had talked to De-Luca.
In early February, Roman called Lannie and said that Columbo wanted to meet them at a restaurant. Columbo drove up in a 1973 Javelin, kissed the driver and got out. Lannie later learned that the driver was DeLuca. Once inside, Columbo told them that she and DeLuca were upset about the delay and either Lannie would do the hits or she would get someone else to do them or even do them herself. The three of them then drove over to the empty apartment of one of Roman’s friends to have sex. When they got there, Columbo pulled a Derringer out of her purse and pointed it at Lannie, commenting on how easy it was to kill someone. She put the gun away and had sex with Roman. Later that night, Lannie told Roman that he thought Columbo was crazy and that he wanted out.
In mid-March, Lannie called Columbo and asked her about the front money. She said that neither she nor Frank had the money and again asked when the hits would go down.
On May 14, 1976, when Lannie arrived at his Lake Villa home, the police were waiting for him. They asked him if he knew a girl named “Pat” and proceeded to search his house. Lannie gave the police his .38-caliber pistol plus the floor plan drawings Columbo had given him and the dossier on her parents. The police then took Lannie to the Elk Grove Village police station where he gave them a statement regarding his association with defendant Columbo. Subsequently, on May 21, 1976, Lannie received a letter of immunity from the State’s Attorney which stated that he would not be charged with conspiracy in consideration for his testimony. However, immunity would not extend to charges of murder if the evidence in any way revealed he was involved with the killings.
On cross-examination, Lannie testified that everything he told defendant Columbo was a lie and that he carried out the hit man hoax only to obtain sex. On redirect, Lannie further stated that defendant Columbo never said that DeLuca wanted her parents killed. It was totally Columbo’s idea, although DeLuca did go along with it.
Next to testify on behalf of the State was Roman Sobczynski (Roman), age 34, married with three children, recruiting officer for the Cook County Department of Personnel.
6
Lannie introduced Roman to defendant Columbo in October 1975 on a date prearranged by Lannie. That evening both Roman and Lannie were wearing guns to impress Columbo. Roman’s gun was a .38-caliber revolver.
In mid-November, Lannie arranged another meeting with Columbo at a local restaurant. When Roman arrived, Columbo asked him if Lannie had mentioned the killings to him. Roman indicated that Lannie had. She then inquired as to whether they could be done soon. Roman said that they could at $10,000 per hit. Roman stated that at no time did he intend to perform the hits; he was simply playing the role of Lannie’s boss, an influential person with friends in high places. Lannie was portrayed as his hit man.
In mid-January 1976, Roman met Columbo alone at a nearby restaurant and introduced her to his friend, Sal Terranova, who was interested in having a sex party with Columbo. From the restaurant, Columbo and Roman went to a motel. While there, Columbo asked about the hits and Roman assured her that plans were being made. In fact, Roman was stringing her along. Columbo mentioned that both she and DeLuca were getting anxious.
On January 20, 1976, Roman called Columbo and asked her to meet him and another friend of his, Sam Bird, at a lounge. The men picked her up at her apartment, went to a lounge, then Sam drove her home. Three days later, Roman saw Columbo eating dinner at a restaurant with Lannie. Lannie informed Roman that Columbo wanted Roman to assure DeLuca that the hits would go down soon. Then Columbo telephoned DeLuca, said “Hello, Frank,” talked a bit, then gave the telephone to Roman. Roman said, “Hello, Frank” and the male voice responded, “Hello, Roman,” and stated that he was very nervous and feared for his and Columbo’s lives because he had just learned that Frank Columbo had taken out a contract on him.
On February 6, 1976, Roman telephoned Columbo and asked her to join him and Sam Bird for a sex party. She came by herself and the three of them went to an apartment. Roman and Columbo went into the bedroom where Roman talked to DeLuca on the telephone. During that conversation, DeLuca informed Roman that Michael Columbo had to be killed, too; that he had prepared Columbo to handle police questioning; and then asked if the photos and diagrams were sufficient.
On February 11, 1976, Roman again telephoned Columbo and asked her to meet him and Bird at a lounge. During the conversation, Columbo asked Roman to get her a gun. He then got her a .32-caliber seven-shot snubnose revolver with six cartridges. A few days later, Roman called Columbo and told her to get rid of the gun because it was hot. She agreed and later told Roman that she had thrown it in the lake. Roman testified that he told her the gun was hot so as to protect himself in case the gun was involved in an altercation with Frank Columbo.
On March 10, Roman returned Columbo’s message that she had left for Mm at the Club Claremont and spoke with DeLuca, who told him that Columbo had accidentally shot herself. DeLuca asked Roman what to do because he did not want Columbo to go to a hospital. During the conversation, DeLuca reiterated that the Mts had to come soon because he and Columbo were living in fear, with bolts on the door, a loaded gun in the apartment and a German shepherd dog for protection. On March 22, Larniie called Columbo from Roman’s house and told her that it was time to involve DeLuca. Roman testified that by involving DeLuca, they hoped to lessen Columbo’s involvement. In addition, they wanted to meet DeLuca face-to-face. However, they never did. In fact, the only way Roman recognized DeLuca at trial was by newspaper photographs. Roman did state, however, that the man named “Frank” with whom he spoke on the telephone several times was the same man every time. After March 22, Roman never spoke to either Columbo or DeLuca again.
On May 26, Roman received immumty from the State’s Attorney in return for Ms testimony against the defendants. The terms of Ms immumty stated that he would not be prosecuted uMess evidence revealed that he was active in the planning or carrying out of the Columbo murders.
On cross-examination for defendant Columbo, Roman testified that the police picked him up on May 14 or 15 and he was taken to the Elk Grove Village police station where he remained until 5 or 6 a.m. the following day. At that time, he did not discuss the killings. When he was taken before the grand jury, he refused to answer. After he received immurnty, however, he talked to the police and told them the truth about Ms association with Columbo. Roman further stated that he carried a gun only on Ms first date with Columbo and did so solely to impress her. In addition, Roman indicated that during Ms telephone conversations with Columbo in February 1976, she did not mention that there had been a reconciliation with her parents. Roman first heard about the Columbo killings on the late evening news on May 7. During cross-examination for defendant DeLuca, Roman testified that he had two guns, a .38 revolver and a .357 magnum; that he had conversed with DeLuca three times; and that he never saw the diagrams given to Larniie by Columbo. Furthermore, he first heard about the wall safe in the Columbo residence when he read about it in the newspapers.
Lieutenant Frank Braun of the Cook County sheriff’s department testified that on May 15, 1976, approximately 6:50 a.m., he and six other police officers went to the Columbo-DeLuea apartment with a search warrant and arrested defendants. See section HI-A of tMs opirnon for a detailed discussion of Lieutenant Braun’s testimony.
Investigator Raymond Rose of the Elk Grove Village police department again took the witness stand on behalf of the State and testified that on May 15, 1976, approximately 11 a.m., he saw defendant Columbo at the Elk Grove Village police station. He was the first police officer to speak with her at the station. Lieutenant Braun and Deputy Chief Kohnke accompanied him. At first, defendant Columbo denied knowing Lannie Mitchell. However, when Rose showed Columbo the photos of her family and the dossier of their activities given to the police by Lannie and when she saw Lannie himself standing at the window of the examining room, she admitted that she knew him, but did not think Lannie had killed her family. Columbo then told Rose that she had been forced to write the dossier at gunpoint and forced to have sex. She did not go to the police because she thought the police would eventually uncover the stoiy themselves. On cross-examination, Rose testified that Columbo repeatedly stated that she had been in fear of her life.
Jean Roti, part-time deputy sheriff for Cook County, testified that on May 17, 1976, she was standing guard outside defendant Columbo’s cell at the Niles lockup when Columbo began talking about God and asking Roti whether she thought God made things happen. About an hour later, Columbo suddenly jumped up from her cot in the cell and said, “That’s it. Oh, how could I forget. It’s so simple. That’s it, the paper bag.” At that point, Columbo asked Roti to try and find Investigators Landers and Gargano because she wanted to talk to them.
Investigator Gene Gargano of the Elk Grove Village police department again took the stand and testified on behalf of the State that on July 17, 1976, approximately 7 p.m., he, Investigator Rose and Lieutenant Braun went to defendant DeLuca’s apartment with a warrant for his arrest. The next time that Gargano saw DeLuca was at the Elk Grove Village police station approximately 11:30 p.m. that night. Investigator Landers was also there and advised DeLuca of his rights. DeLuca denied knowing anything about a conspiracy or a solicitation for the murder of the Columbo family. He did say, however, that he had been constantly harassed by Frank Columbo and that Michael Columbo used to come into the Walgreen’s Drugstore where DeLuca worked and just stare at him. These occurrences with the Columbos caused DeLuca to be very fearful for his life. In addition, DeLuca stated that he had had a telephone conversation with Roman during which Roman confirmed to him that Frank Columbo had a contract out on DeLuca’s life. Roman also told him that he had located the hit man and had bought off the contract. In a subsequent telephone conversation, Roman told DeLuca that Frank Columbo was looking for another contract on DeLuca and then offered to kill Frank Columbo himself for DeLuca. DeLuca agreed to the hit if there was no other way to stop the contract taken out on him. Near the end of the questioning, DeLuca asked Gargano, “Hypothetically speaking, if this guy did commit the murders, what would be the penalty?” No formal statement was ever taken from DeLuca.
Robert A. Cabanne, examiner of documents specializing in handwriting comparison at the State Bureau of Identification Crime Lab in Joliet, Illinois, testified on behalf of the State that the dossier of activities and the floor plans of the Columbo house turned over to the police by Lannie were written by defendant Columbo and that she was not under stress while writing them.
Connie Larocco, an employment agency counselor, testified that she met defendant Columbo on April 28, 1976, when she came into the agency to find a job. As her counselor, Larocco set up interviews for Columbo and made follow-up calls to find out how the interviews went. On May 3, Columbo had a 10 a.m. appointment which she had to cancel because her car broke down. Larocco rescheduled the interview for May 4 at 1:30 p.m. On May 4, Columbo missed a 10:30 a.m. interview because of car trouble again. Later that day, Larocco tried to contact Columbo to check up on the afternoon interview. She called Columbo’s apartment every 15 minutes from 3:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. from the agency, and when she got home, she continued trying every 15 minutes from 6:45 p.m. until 11:30 p.m. There was never any answer. Larocco explained that she was persistent because placing Columbo in a job was worth several hundred dollars to her and would have been her first job placement in her six months on the job. Larocco further testified that on May 5, Columbo had an 8:30 interview which Larocco did not believe she had completed. She was not certain, however, because she did not call Columbo to check. On May 7, Columbo had an interview scheduled for 10 a.m. which was also not completed because her car broke down. Larocco stated that when she talked to the police on May 18, she did not tell them what time her last call had been to Columbo on May 4. However, on May 20, she did tell police about the breakdown of Columbo’s car. On cross-examination, Larocco stated that she had not called any of her other clients from her home on May 3, 4 or 5.
Danielle McDonald, employment manager for Meyercord Company, testified that on May 5, 1976, she interviewed defendant Columbo from approximately 8:40 a.m. to 9:45 a.m. During the interview, Columbo conducted herself very well and appeared to be calm and relaxed. On cross-examination, McDonald indicated that Columbo had put DeLuca’s name on her application as a reference and stated that she was married and her husband worked at Walgreen’s.
Mario Columbo, Frank Columbo’s older brother who lived one block from the Columbo residence, testified on behalf of the State that he had not seen defendant Columbo since 1974, not even on holidays. On May 9, 1976, he received a telephone call from defendant Columbo during which she told him that all the funeral arrangements had been made and that cremation would follow the wake. Mario became veiy upset and told her that the family was Catholic and did not believe in cremation. Columbo answered, “You f-— a- — , who do you think you are? I’m the heir, I’ll do it my way. It’s all mine and not yours.” At the wake, defendant Columbo did not cry or show any visible signs of emotion.
John Norton, assistant manager at Walgreen’s Drugstore in Elk Grove Village, testified for the State that he worked with DeLuca at Walgreen’s from January 1976 to May 1976. DeLuca was store manager at the time. On May 4, 1976, Norton worked the evening shift from 2:15 p.m. to 10:45 p.m. DeLuca had the day shift and worked until 5 p.m. Although the store actually closed at 10 p.m., as assistant manager, Norton had the responsibility to balance the cash drawers before leaving. Ordinarily after balancing, Norton would call DeLuca at his apartment to assure him that the store was secure and to alert him to any problems which may have come up that night. On the evening of May 4, however, DeLuca called Norton first. Norton could not recall if this had ever happened before. The call came about 10:50 p.m., approximately 10 minutes after Norton regularly called DeLuca. DeLuca asked Norton why he was so late calling and said that he was getting ready to go to bed and did not want to be disturbed. On May 13, Norton was in Walgreen’s stock room when DeLuca asked him what time he had called Norton on May 4. Norton told him the call was made approximately 11 p.m. On cross-examination, Norton stated that he consistently made his calls to DeLuca at 10:40 p.m. He could not say with certainty that DeLuca asked why Norton was late making the call or whether Norton just told him. Norton further stated that he had never seen DeLuca with a gun.
Subsequently, when Norton was called to testify on behalf of defendant DeLuca, he stated that on May 7, he arrived at Walgreen’s at 2:15 p.m. and saw DeLuca in the lunchroom. DeLuca appeared to be upset over the news of the deaths of Frank and Mary Columbo, and had not yet heard about Michael’s death. Norton could not remember whether DeLuca was actually crying and did not remember whether DeLuca’s hands were cut or scratched on either May 4 or 5. On cross-examination by the State, Norton testified that DeLuca’s call to him on the evening of May 4 was not particularly unusual, although he did seem a little friendlier than usual and stated he was going to bed, which he had never said before.
Hubert Green testified for the State that at the time of the murders, he was employed as an assistant manager, working under Frank De-
Luca, at Walgreen’s in Elk Grove Village. He first met defendant Columbo in August, 1975, when she would come into the store to see De-Luca. Green stated that on April 11, 1976, DeLuca gave him a package, wrapped in brown paper and heavily taped, and asked Green to keep it for him. He was further instructed not to tell anyone that he had the package unless they used the code name “Duke.” A week later, DeLuca asked Green for the package and when he opened it, Green saw that it contained a gun, although he did not know what kind of gun. On April 19, 1976, DeLuca approached Green and said he needed someone he could trust to pick up defendant Columbo that night at the Lombard apartment and take her somewhere. When Green picked up Columbo, he noticed that she was not dressed in her usual flashy manner, but, instead, wore blue jeans, a long brown coat and a scarf. Columbo directed Green to drive to the Columbo family residence, but they only drove through the neighborhood and not actually past the house. Green then dropped Columbo off in the parking lot of a church due east of Walgreen’s and about a block from the Columbo residence. Later, DeLuca told Green that Mary and Frank Columbo had a contract out on defendant Columbo and because of this, DeLuca had hired two hit men to kill the Columbo family. However, the hits had not gone down yet. Green stated that DeLuca had never before discussed his personal affairs with him. On the evening of April 26, 1976, at DeLuca’s request, Green again picked up Columbo who was dressed in the same drab manner, and dropped her off at the same church parking lot. They did not drive around the neighborhood that time. Columbo told Green that the hits would go down that night. On cross-examination, Green stated that De-Luca had told him that he was going to work late on April 26 to cover his alibi. The following day, DeLuca informed Green that the hits had not gone down the previous night because defendant Columbo had answered a call from a relative while at her parents’ house and, thus, could be placed at the scene. The following Tuesday, DeLuca again told Green that the hits had not gone down and added that he and Columbo might have to do it themselves because “It’s them or us.”
Green further testified that on May 3, approximately 9 p.m. Green once again picked up Columbo at the Lombard apartment and dropped her off at the church. As on both prior occasions, Columbo was dressed in blue jeans, a long brown coat and a scarf. The next morning, when Green arrived at work, DeLuca told him that the hits had not gone down the previous night, and that the Columbos had bought off the contract that DeLuca had out on them. Green further noted that DeLuca appeared to be nervous and upset that day. On May 5, when Green arrived at work approximately 8:30 a.m., DeLuca was coming out of the ineinerator room where the afterburner was glowing. Green had never seen De-Luca at work that early before. When DeLuca saw Green, he said that the hits had gone down the night before; that the Columbo house was a “f-— mess” and that he himself had been covered in blood from head to toe. Green and DeLuca then walked into the coffee room where DeLuca suddenly became very upset and started talking very fast. Green noticed that DeLuca’s hands were covered with small cuts which DeLuca explained he received when he smashed a lamp over Frank Columbo’s head. DeLuca then began to describe the killings to Green: he shot Frank twice, once in the back of the head which blew his teeth out; he then went up the stairs and shot Mary; and then Michael. DeLuca commented that Frank Columbo was a “tough bird,” and he had to smash a lamp over his head to knock him out. DeLuca further explained that because there were no lights on in the house, and he could not find a flashlight, he had to use a candle to clean up the mess. DeLuca also told Green that he had put a stocking cap in a bag and burned it along with bloody clothes, and dropped the gun and pieces of the lamp into the river.
The next day, May 6, when Green saw DeLuca in the stock room at Walgreen’s, DeLuca said he could not believe the bodies had not yet been found. No one else was present during this conversation. The next day, Green saw DeLuca in the stock room again and noticed that DeLuca looked extremely nervous and upset. DeLuca again told Green that he could not believe that the bodies had not been found. No one else was present during the conversation.
When DeLuca was released after his first arrest on May 15, Green picked him up and drove him to Marilyn DeLuca’s (defendant DeLuca’s estranged wife) house in Addison. That was the last time Green saw De-Luca.
On cross-examination for defendant Columbo, Green stated that he was never close to either Columbo or DeLuca, although he had gone to a few parties at Columbo’s apartment. Green further explained that he never went to the police; they came to him. Furthermore, he never told either the police or the assistant State’s Attorney what he told the jury at trial.
On cross-examination for defendant DeLuca, Green testified that Joy Heysek, an old girlfriend of DeLuca’s, worked at Walgreen’s when he first started there. Green stated that he never dated Heysek although they did go to dinner once. Heysek told Green that she was afraid of DeLuca and that DeLuca had taken some pornographic photographs of her which he refused to give her. Heysek also told Green that she would do anything to get the photos from DeLuca. After DeLuca’s arrest, Heysek and Green met almost daily at Walgreen’s to discuss the Columbo case during which time they reviewed their forthcoming testimony. Green further stated that he did not tell the police about the hits because he thought DeLuca was connected with the Mafia and that the police would not be able to protect him and his family. In summer 1976, Green was transferred to the Walgreen’s store in Oak Brook as the result of his being caught in a sexual act in the stock room of the Elk Grove Village store with a female employee.
On redirect by the State, Green testified that on May 28, 1976, he spoke with two lawyers about what he knew regarding the Columbo murders. Neither of them advised him to go to the police. He told his ■wife about what he knew sometime in June 1976.
Next, Joy Heysek, married with two children, testified on behalf of the State and indicated that she first met defendant DeLuca in 1969 when she started working as a cosmetician at the Walgreen’s Drugstore in Elk Grove Village and that they had a sexual relationship between 1970 and 1973. DeLuca once confided to Heysek that Frank Columbo had knocked his teeth out with a rifle butt and that he would get even ■with him for it. In late November 1975, in the Walgreen’s stock room, DeLuca told Heysek that Frank Columbo had hired someone to kill him and defendant Columbo, but that he had stopped the contract and put one out on Frank Columbo instead which he wanted completed before Christmas. Shortly thereafter, DeLuca asked Heysek to let him know every time 13-year-old Michael Columbo came into the store.
In April 1976, DeLuca told Heysek that the hit man had deserted him and that he would have to commit the murders himself, and would make it look like a robbery. Near the end of April, DeLuca threatened Heysek with harm to her children if she dared to tell anyone what he had told her about his plans to kill the Columbos. Approximately one month before the murders, Heysek saw DeLuca in the back room of Walgreen’s with a gun. When she asked him why he had a gun, he told her there was another contract out on him.
On May 4, 1976, approximately 4 p.m., Heysek saw DeLuca leaving the store. On his way out, he asked Heysek to see “One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest” that night at the movies and report the details to him the next day. When Heysek asked him why, he did not answer. Heysek then told DeLuca that she could not see the movie that night because she had other plans. The following day, May 5, approximately 9 a.m., Heysek saw DeLuca sitting alone in the lunchroom at Walgreen’s. He appeared to be very high and elated and she noticed cuts and scratches on his hands. DeLuca then began telling Heysek about the Columbo murders which he had committed the night before. He said that he had shot Frank Columbo once in the back of the head, knocking out his teeth, and then had to shoot him again, and, finally, had to take him down by hand. He said that Mary, however, had been no problem. She came around the railing on the landing and DeLuca let her have it, right between the eyes. He then shot Michael. DeLuca also told Heysek that he had been wearing gloves and used an old “junker” car because his car was being repaired. At that point, Heysek became upset and left the lunchroom. About 20 minutes later, DeLuca called her back and said that he had just wanted to see what her reaction would be and told her to forget everything he had said. DeLuca then denied he had said anything about the murders.
On May 6, when Heysek saw DeLuca in the back room of Walgreen’s, she noticed that he was talking to himself, wondering why the Columbo family bodies had not been found. The following day, approximately 5:30 p.m., Heysek saw DeLuca crying in the back room. John Norton was also there, but left before Heysek did. After Norton left, De-Luca told Heysek that the bodies of Frank and Mary Columbo had been found, but not Michael’s. He then started laughing and Heysek left. In mid-May, Heysek received a phone call from DeLuca who said that he heard the police were calling people in from Walgreen’s and he wanted to meet with her. When Heysek refused to meet him, DeLuca threatened to follow through on previous threats to hurt Heysek’s children if she said anything to the police.
On cross-examination, Heysek stated that she had been married since 1972 to her current husband and that she had two children, ages 13 and 17. She began her sexual relationship with DeLuca in 1972 and they met secretly about once every other month for several years. Their relationship changed when Heysek realized that she could not be the “swinger” that DeLuca wanted her to be. After this, she saw DeLuca only in the store. In 1973, Heysek quit Walgreen’s for six months. While she was gone, she noticed that DeLuca and Columbo were having contacts other than those of an employee-employer relationship. Later, De-Luca told Heysek about his relationship with Columbo. Heysek then discussed the pornographic photographs taken of her by DeLuca with other women and a dog. See section HI-K of this opinion for a detailed discussion of Heysek’s testimony regarding these photographs.
Heysek further testified that between November 1975 and April 1976, DeLuca would talk about his plans to have the Columbo family killed. He talked about the hit men, wondering where they were and if they were going to deliver a gun. DeLuca also told Heysek that when the Columbos were finally dead, he would have their money, pay off his wife’s mortgage, and sail around the world. Heysek thought about calling the Columbos to warn them, but assumed that they would just think it was a prank call. Regarding the actual killings, DeLuca told Heysek that he wore gloves, but took them off to clean something. He also told her that he ran out of bullets during the murders. Heysek thought that DeLuca told her all of this because it was his nature to brag and he felt that he had everyone so intimidated that no one would ever go to the police. In the past, DeLuca had bragged about being in the Mafia and that the Mafia owed him a favor and would do the hits.
After the killings, Heysek discussed them with Hubert Green. There were usually quite a few people around during these conversations. Heysek stated that she never told Green everything that she knew because she did not think that Green told her everything that he knew.
Next, Clifford X. Childs, inmate at the Cook County jail, testified on behalf of the State. At the time of trial, there were three armed robbery indictments pending against Childs. Prior to his testimony, the court conducted a voir dire of Childs outside the presence of the jury and stated that, under the law, any conversation which Childs had had with DeLuca would not be admissible as evidence against defendant Columbo. The court further instructed Childs that if the answer to any question asked of him would inculpate or involve Columbo, it was not to be given.
Childs testified that for six months, commencing in August 1976, he was DeLuca’s cell mate at Cook County jail. Near the end of September 1976, DeLuca told Childs that he wanted Green and Heysek murdered and asked Childs if he knew how to arrange for it to be done. Childs told him that he would do it if he could get the money to pay his bail, and the hits would cost about $10,000 each. DeLuca then gave Childs the physical descriptions of Green and Heysek and directions on how to get to their homes. DeLuca’s plan called for Marilyn DeLuca to post bond for Childs which Childs would pay back with interest once he received a workmen’s compensation claim awarded to him. Once out of jail, Childs was to abduct Green and Heysek in a van, kill them, then bury them in lime somewhere in Indiana or another place south.
In mid-October 1976, DeLuca drew maps for Childs detailing with more particularity how to get to Heysek’s and Green’s houses and also how to get to Walgreen’s. In addition, he prepared a dossier outlining Heysek’s and Green’s activities and gave everything to Childs who copied them and mailed the copies to his mother in New York where he had to go to pick up his workmen’s compensation award. Childs stated that he never intended to kill either Heysek or Green; he simply saw his agreement with DeLuca as a way to get bonded out of jail. On November 25, 1976, Childs received two money orders from Marilyn DeLuca sent via Western Union, totalling $3,420. It was not sufficient to pay his bond, so Childs had to wait while Marilyn accumulated the remaining $830. On February 24, 1977, Childs’ bond was paid by Marilyn DeLuca. She then drove him to her house in Addison and, per DeLuca’s instructions, gave Childs an additional $1,300 in cash plus use of the 1973 Javelin. Childs used the money to fly to Atlanta, then to Philadelphia where his parents picked him up and drove him to New Jersey. On March 7, 1977, Childs returned to Chicago for a scheduled court date. After his court appearance, he was arrested by investigators from the sheriff’s department.
Childs further testified that while in the cell with DeLuca, DeLuca bragged that he had come up with the perfect plan to kill the Columbo family and confessed that he had shot them himself. The plan originated with an apparent reconciliation which enabled DeLuca to enter the Columbo residence on the evening of May 4. A meeting had been arranged between defendants and Frank and Mary Columbo for 8 p.m. that night, but DeLuca purposely delayed his arrival by going shopping until 10 p.m. so that he could set up his alibi by calling Walgreen’s between 10:30 p.m. and 11 p.m. DeLuca told Childs that he had borrowed one of the Columbo family cars earlier and put a change of clothes into it, drove a rented car to Columbo’s neighborhood and parked it within a few blocks of their house, then drove Columbo’s car to their residence where he parked it in the driveway. When he arrived, all the lights were out. Frank Columbo answered the doorbell, turned and started to walk up the stairs. When he got close to the top of the stairs, DeLuca shot him in the back of the head with the .32 caliber revolver he had received from the hit men. He then shot Mary and Michael, and proceeded to mess up the house so as to make it look like a robbery. DeLuca told Childs that he wore gloves and later burned his clothes in an open field.
To create the appearance of a robbery, DeLuca took $150 in cash, some jewelry and a few small household appliances which he put into the Columbo Thunderbird which was eventually driven to a west-side neighborhood in Chicago and left there with the intent that it would be broken into, the contents stolen and eventually traced to the Columbos, thereby giving the impression that someone from the west side had committed the murders. The Columbo Oldsmobile was driven back to DeLuca’s car and either DeLuca or defendant Columbo followed the Oldsmobile in the rented car to the spot where the Oldsmobile was left. Defendants then returned to their apartment.'
Childs admitted that in consideration for his testimony, the State’s Attorney agreed to recommend a reduced charge from armed robbery to robbery with a minimum sentence, conditioned upon Childs’ plea of guilty to the armed robbery charges. Childs also stated that he had the same agreement with the State regarding his probation violation for a prior conviction.
On cross-examination by counsel for defendant DeLuca, Childs testified that he had first heard about the Columbo killings on television while in jail, but did not pay much attention to them. In August 1976, DeLuca asked the jail personnel if he could be Childs’ cell mate. Childs further stated that DeLuca had some discovery papers and letters relating to his case in his cell, and admitted reading some of the letters, but not the discovery papers.
On cross-examination by counsel for defendant Columbo, Childs stated that he would do whatever was necessary to obtain money. He further stated that DeLuca kept papers pertaining to his case on top of a box in his cell and under his mattress and admitted that he might have seen some of DeLuca’s discovery materials. Childs denied discussing De-Luca with Clifford Jackson-Bey, a fellow inmate, and further denied conning DeLuca. Childs admitted that he signed a promissory note to De-Luca which stated that he would pay DeLuca $5,000 on the original $3,500 loan. Childs had told DeLuca that he was expecting a disability payment which he would receive when he arrived in New York. In actuality, however, Childs never had any intention to pay the note; it was just executed as part of DeLuca’s alibi and was solely DeLuca’s idea. Childs further stated that the only reason he went to the prosecutor with De-Luca’s plans was to protect himself in case someone else killed Green or Heysek. Regarding the actual murders, DeLuca told Childs that he was in the Columbo house no longer than 25 minutes; that he stuffed his glove where his finger was missing; and that DeLuca did not say he burned his clothes in an incinerator. In fact, DeLuca told Childs that his clothes were not very bloody.
Marilyn DeLuca next testified on behalf of defendant DeLuca, stating that she married defendant DeLuca in 1960; they had five children and were divorced in May, 1976. On May 5, 1976, she had dinner with defendant DeLuca and noticed no cuts on his hands. Regarding Clifford Childs, Marilyn admitted that she bonded Childs out of jail at defendant DeLuca’s request and that Childs had signed a promissory note which he would pay once he received a disability payment from Ms previous employer.
On cross-examination, Marilyn stated that she posted Childs’ bond on February 24, 1977, and when he got out of jail, she loaned him DeLuca’s Javelin per DeLuca’s instructions. Marilyn testified that she accumulated the money from several sources: DeLuca’s bonus check, DeLuca’s vacation pay, and second mortgage on some stocks. Marilyn further admitted that she was living on A.D.C. at the time and was in deep financial trouble. She also stated that she knew nothing about Childs’ record and simply relied on his promissory note and DeLuca’s assurances that she would be repaid. On redirect, Marilyn testified that DeLuca had an additional promissory note from Childs for the extra spending money she had given Childs when he was released from jail.
Next, Clifford Jackson-Bey testified on behalf of defendant DeLuca and identified himself as an inmate at the Cook County jail, serving a sentence of 15 to 18 years for armed robbery, a concurrent 15-year sentence on a Federal charge of bank robbery, and two additional concurrent 15-year sentences for attempted robbery and intimidation. Jackson-Bey testified that he met Childs in August 1975 at Cook County jail. Shortly thereafter, Jackson-Bey was transferred out of Cook County jail, but returned there on January 21, 1977. When he returned, Jackson-Bey talked to Childs who told him about his “master plan” for getting out of jail. The plan revolved around Childs’ cell mate, DeLuca, from whom Childs was trying to borrow money for his bond. Childs admitted that he never intended to repay the loan. In addition, Childs confided to Jackson-Bey that he had looked through DeLuca’s police reports and witness statements and planned to use that information to get around his armed robbery charges by telling the State’s Attorney that DeLuca had admitted to the crimes. As a further part of the “master plan,” Childs intended to get rearrested after he was released on bond, make a deal with the prosecution, then tell the authorities that DeLuca had hired him to kill Green and Heysek. Jackson-Bey further testified that Childs told him that another person was involved in getting him rearrested. Later, Jackson-Bey heard that after Childs was released, another inmate, Whiter Bush, wrote to the State’s Attorney, stating that he had overheard DeLuca and Childs talking and that Bush had information regarding the fact that DeLuca hired Childs. Bush’s charges and time were reduced shortly thereafter. When Jackson-Bey confronted Bush about his deal, Bush denied it, but was removed from the tier five minutes later.
On cross-examination, Jackson-Bey admitted that he had certain animosities toward the law enforcement system in general and toward the Federal government in particular for putting him in prison, and, thus, never had had any desire to talk to the State’s Attorney about Childs’ “master plan.” Jackson-Bey also admitted that his intimidation charges resulted from mailing dead rats from Cook County jail to State’s witnesses. Further, Jackson-Bey stated that he was a Moorish American Moslem and faithfully practiced that religion’s tenets of love, truth, peace, freedom and justice. In contradiction to these beliefs, however, he admitted that on April 28, 1977, he fractured his right hand in an altercation with a prison guard. On redirect, Jackson-Bey testified that Childs gained DeLuca’s confidence by convincing him that he was a “jail-house lawyer.” Further, he had not been promised any leniency or other consideration for his testimony.
After defendant Columbo rested her case, defendant DeLuca took the stand on his own behalf. On direct examination, DeLuca testified that in 1961 or 1962, after graduating from Purdue University with a B.S. degree in pharmacy, he began working for Walgreen’s. After seven or eight years, he was promoted to store manager in Elk Grove Village. DeLuca met defendant Columbo in 1972 at Walgreen’s. Sometime in late June-early July 1975, DeLuca separated from his wife and moved in with defendant Columbo. When Frank Columbo heard about DeLuca’s pending divorce and his daughter’s involvement with DeLuca, he called De-Luca and arranged to meet him that night in the store parking lot. Defendant Columbo was with DeLuca when her father arrived. When DeLuca walked up to Frank Columbo’s car, Frank pointed a rifle at De-Luca’s head and said, “I’m going to blow your head off.” When DeLuca crouched down, Frank Columbo hit him across the mouth with the rifle, knocking DeLuca to the ground. When he started to get up, Frank Columbo hit him again in the stomach with the rifle butt. While DeLuca was laying on the ground, Frank said, “You’re dead, you m-— f- — , you’re dead.” He then got in his car and drove away. Defendant Columbo filed a complaint with the police against her father which was later withdrawn. DeLuca denied losing any teeth in the altercation.
DeLuca did not have any contact with Frank Columbo again until March 1976, when Frank Columbo called his daughter to discuss her plans to marry DeLuca. In April 1976, DeLuca again spoke to Frank Columbo about the marriage, and Frank Columbo said, “She’ll be your problem now.” He then discussed giving defendants a washer-dryer as a wedding gift. DeLuca’s divorce was to be final at the end of May and defendants’ wedding date was set for June 5,1976.
DeLuca further testified that on May 4, 1976, he arrived at Walgreen’s slightly before 9 a.m. and worked until 5 p.m. On the way home, he picked up some fast food for dinner and then about 7 or 7:30 p.m., he and defendant Columbo left their apartment to go shopping at Yorktown Shopping Center, about a 10-minute ride from their apartment. They arrived home approximately 10:15 p.m. and watched television, waiting for Norton’s call which regularly came about 10:40 p.m. When Norton did not call by 10:45 p.m., DeLuca called him and Norton told him that he had had trouble balancing the cash drawers. After the call, DeLuca went to bed.
The following morning, May 5, DeLuca woke up approximately 6:30 a.m. and arrived at Walgreen’s approximately 8 a.m. He denied having had any conversation with either Green or Heysek regarding the Columbo murders. Furthermore, DeLuca denied ever having had a gun tucked into his pants at Walgreen’s, ever bringing a package to Walgreen’s that contained a gun, ever having conversations with Green during which DeLuca asked Green to pick up defendant Columbo and take her somewhere, and ever talking to Green about potential hits on the Columbo family.
DeLuca further testified that he learned about the Columbo murders on Friday, May 7, from one of the employees at his store who lived a few houses from the Columbo residence. The employee had left Walgreen’s approximately 5:15 p.m. and when she arrived home a few minutes later, heard about the murders. She immediately called DeLuca. After DeLuca heard the news, he called the Elk Grove Village police department for verification, but they would not give out any information at that time. DeLuca then went into the lunchroom where he saw John Norton and told him about it. DeLuca denied laughing or crying when he was talking to Norton, but admitted that he was very upset. He did not see anyone else in the lunchroom.
On May 15, 1976, DeLuca was arrested at his Lombard apartment and taken to the Elk Grove Village police station for questioning'. When he was released on May 17, Green picked him up at the police station and drove him to Marilyn DeLuca’s apartment. While driving to Marilyn’s, DeLuca told Green everything that had happened to him since his arrest.
DeLuca was next arrested on July 17, 1976, and incarcerated in Cook County jail. Within a few days, he met Clifford Childs and became his cell mate in August. While they were cell mates, Childs and DeLuca became good friends and DeLuca talked with Childs about his case. Childs read some of the reports from DeLuca’s attorney and they discussed details of the police reports as well as statements made by Green and Heysek. DeLuca denied that he told Childs he had committed the Columbo murders. Childs told DeLuca that he had three armed robbery charges pending against him, but that he was going to beat them. In February 1977, at his attorney’s request, DeLuca drew some diagrams of directions to Green’s house and Heysek’s house and outlined physical descriptions of both Green and Heysek. DeLuca stated his attorney needed the information because he had been unable to locate either Green or Heysek. Childs had access to the diagrams and DeLuca felt he must have looked at them. Finally, DeLuca denied shooting, killing or stabbing Frank, Mary or Michael Columbo.
On cross-examination, DeLuca testified that he met defendant Columbo in 1972 and started dating her that year. In 1974, Columbo moved out of her parents’ home and, with her father’s permission, moved into DeLuca’s home in addition with his wife and five children. At that time, Frank Columbo did not know about the defendants’ romantic involvement. Defendants moved out of the Addision house in July 1975, and moved into an apartment in Lombard. Two months later, Marilyn De-Luca filed for divorce.
DeLuca stated that the source of Frank Columbo’s animosity toward him was his intention to marry defendant Columbo once DeLuca’s divorce was final. Regarding Lannie Mitchell and Roman Sobczynski, De-Luca denied that defendant Columbo told him that she had met with Lannie and Roman on October 17, 1975. However, on October 18, defendant Columbo did bring home a box of bullets. DeLuca did not see defendant Columbo prepare a diagram of the Columbo residence for Lannie, nor did he know about any meeting that defendant Columbo, Lannie and Roman had had in early January 1976. However, on January 23, 1976, DeLuca received a telephone call from defendant Columbo during which she said, “Here’s someone whose very close to me.” Then a male voice said, “Hi, I’m Roman.” Roman told DeLuca that Frank Columbo had had a contract out on him, but that he (Roman) had bought it off. That was the extent of that particular conversation. On February 6, 1976, defendant Columbo again called DeLuca at his apartment and put Roman on the phone. Roman told DeLuca that Frank Columbo was out looking for another contract on DeLuca and the only way to stop him was to kill him first. DeLuca agreed that if there was no other way, Frank Columbo had to be killed. They never discussed killing Mary or Michael Columbo. DeLuca admitted dropping Columbo off at a restaurant on the evening of February 17, 1976, but denied knowing that she was meeting Lannie and Roman.
DeLuca further testified that on May 4, 1976, he arrived at Walgreen’s before 9 a.m. and left approximately 5 p.m. That evening he and defendant Columbo went shopping. Before they left, defendant Columbo received a phone call. The conversation was short and Columbo was laughing. At this time, defendants were on better terms with Frank Columbo who had discussed the wedding with his daughter. The actual reconciliation took place in April, and was a gradual one.
On May 5, 1976, DeLuca woke up between 4 a.m. and 6 a.m. and noticed that defendant Columbo was not in bed. When he got up, he found her in the living room, turning off the stereo. Defendants left the apartment at 7:30 a.m. and Columbo dropped DeLuca off at Waigreen’s about 8 a.m. DeLuca admitted seeing Joy Heysek that morning, but denied telling her that he had killed the Columbos.
Regarding his relationship with Heysek, DeLuca stated that he had met her about 10 years earlier and they had been sexually involved for several years. He further stated that he had taken most of the pornographic photos of Heysek. Regarding Hubert Green, DeLuca denied that he had ever asked Green to pick up defendant Columbo and take her anywhere.
On redirect, DeLuca testified that defendant Columbo told him that Roman was her godfather and that Roman told DeLuca that Frank Columbo had Mafia connections. DeLuca last spoke to Roman in January or February 1976. In March 1976, he told defendant Columbo to call Roman and tell him that they did not need his protection any longer because of the reconciliation. He did not know of any other conversation that Columbo may have had with either Lannie or Roman. When asked why he thought Green would testify against him, DeLuca stated that in April 1976, Green asked him about making controlled drugs “disappear.” DeLuca told him that you could short each prescription a couple of tablets and thereby accumulate quite a few. After that day, DeLuca noticed that Green’s mannerisms changed and that his thinking seemed impaired. In addition, Green was involved in a romantic relationship with Heysek, which resulted in Green’s wife leaving him. When asked why he thought Heysek would testify against him, DeLuca stated that Heysek was revengeful because he had left her for defendant Columbo. In addition, Heysek wanted DeLuca to give her the pornographic photographs, which DeLuca refused to do. He denied ever having told Heysek that he had destroyed the photographs. Defendant DeLuca then rested his case.
After final arguments, the court instructed the jury. For a more detailed discussion of the jury instructions, see section III-M of this opinion. Defendant Columbo then moved for a mistrial on the ground that the State’s closing argument was improper. The motion was denied. Subsequently, the jury returned with its verdict of guilty for both defendants on charges of conspiracy, solicitation and the murders of Frank, Mary and Michael Columbo. The jury was then polled, and defendants’ bond revoked.
Approximately one month later, on July 25, 1977, DeLuca moved orally for a new trial. In response to the State’s objections to the use of an oral motion, the court ruled that the defendant had until August 8 to file a written motion for a new trial. Thereafter, on August 8, defendant Columbo filed a motion for a new trial and to vacate judgment on the verdicts of conspiracy and solicitation. Defendant DeLuca also filed a motion for a new trial, adopting all allegations of error urged by defendant Columbo. The court denied the motions.
Subsequently, counsel for DeLuca moved for leave to file a motion for fees on behalf of himself on the ground that the State was barred by laches and the principle of fundamental fairness from demanding that counsel receive payment directly from DeLuca when he was declared at his arraignment to be indigent. In response, the State argued that it believed a fraud had been perpetrated upon the court when the court was led to believe that DeLuca was indigent because DeLuca was found to be entitled to monthly benefits from a pension fund. The court granted defense counsel’s motion for fees, stating:
“I think it would be unfair at this late juncture, assets to Mr. De-Luca being discovered in March before trial, where the parties had an opportunity to come into Court and vacate the appointment, and have Mr. DeLuca obtain private Counsel, to say at this late date, after the services have been rendered in good faith on the assumption that they would be compensated, to say to them now they have to proceed against Mr. DeLuca, and I am not going to do that.”
The next matter before the court was a hearing in aggravation and mitigation. In that regard, the court tendered presentence reports to counsel which were made part of the record. Following the State’s argument in aggravation and defense counsel’s waiver and argument, the trial court sentenced defendant Columbo to concurrent sentences of 20 to 50 years for solicitation and 200 to 300 years for the murders of Frank, Mary and Michael Columbo. The court denied defense counsel’s motion to set an appeal bond, but granted the motion to stay of mittimus for 60 days. The court then sentenced defendant DeLuca to concurrent sentences of 10 to 50 years for solicitation and 200 to 300 years for the murders of Frank, Mary and Michael Columbo. Further, the court stated that the conspiracy verdict merged in law with the murder charge and, thus, no sentence would be entered on the conspiracy verdict. On defense counsel’s motion, mittimus was stayed for 30 days. Timely appeals were filed.
On September 26, 1977, a hearing was held on DeLuca’s motion to have counsel appointed for his appeal. Trial counsel for DeLuca asked the court to appoint him as DeLuca’s appellate counsel. The court stated that the office of the Appellate Defender should properly handle the appeal.
Next, the State presented a petition for costs pertaining to DeLuca and asked for judgment on them. The court granted the State’s motions for costs, excluding the cost for the jury, stating that to tax jury costs against the defendant' would have a chilling effect on the exercise of the constitutional right to be tried by a jury.
III. Opinion
III-A. Admission of Physical Evidence
We first consider defendant Columbo’s contention that the warrant-less arrest which took place in her apartment on May 15, 1976, was unlawful and that evidence of items taken from her apartment should have been suppressed on the grounds that they were illegally seized. Columbo contends that there was neither consent to enter her home nor exigent circumstances to justify such an arrest.
The fact that there was probable cause to arrest Columbo is undisputed. The rule in Illinois, however, is that the police cannot enter a person’s apartment or home to effect a warrantless arrest based on probable cause alone. There must be factors of exigency justifying prompt police action (Payton v. New York (1980), 445 U.S. 573 , 63 L. Ed. 2d 639 , 100 S. Ct. 1371 ; People v. Eichelberger (1982), 91 Ill. 2d 359 , 438 N.E.2d 140 ; People v. Abney (1980), 81 Ill. 2d 159 , 407 N.E.2d 543 ), or a showing of consent to enter (People v. Bean (1981), 84 Ill. 2d 64 , 417 N.E.2d 608 ). In warrantless arrest situations, the standard for valid consent to enter a dwelling which has been applied by the Supreme Court is whether the consent was voluntarily given. (Schneckloth v. Bustamonte (1973) , 412 U.S. 218 , 36 L. Ed. 2d 854 , 93 S. Ct. 2041 .) That consent need not be given by the defendant; it may be obtained from a third party who has control over the premises. United States v. Matlock (1974) , 415 U.S. 164 , 39 L. Ed. 2d 242 , 94 S. Ct. 988 ; People v. Bean (1981), 84 Ill. 2d 64 , 417 N.E.2d 608 .
In the case at bar, the record reveals that after the police identified who they were and asked that the door be opened, they began to use force (kicking) to gain entry. During this time, DeLuca stood at the door while Columbo called the Elk Grove Village police department to verify that the men at their door were police officers. According to the State, the police continued to kick the door, but they did not open it. Instead, they remained outside while Columbo yelled obscenities and told them that she would not let them in. After Columbo was informed that officers had in fact been sent to the apartment, DeLuca opened the door. Columbo contends that in view of the strong language she used and the aggressive force that the police officers exerted, the entry into her apartment was not consensual. We agree for the following reasons.
In Johnson v. United States (1948), 333 U.S. 10 , 92 L. Ed. 436 , 68 S. Ct. 367 , Federal narcotics agents went to defendant’s hotel room after receiving information from a confidential informer that defendant possessed narcotics. The officers had not obtained a search or arrest warrant. When the agents knocked at defendant’s door, a voice inside the room asked who was there. “Lieutenant Belland,” was the reply. After a slight delay and some shuffling in the room, the defendant opened the door. An officer then told the defendant that he wanted “to talk [to the defendant] a little bit.” Defendant stepped back acquiescently and admitted the officers into the room. When the officers detected the smell of opium, they placed the defendant under arrest. In reversing the court of appeals’ affirmance of defendant’s conviction, the Supreme Court held that entry to the hotel room was demanded “under color of office” and that it was granted in submission to authority rather than as an understanding and intentional waiver of a constitutional right. ( 333 U.S. 10, 13, 17 , 92 L. Ed. 436, 440, 442 , 68 S. Ct. 367, 368, 370 .) We believe the court’s reasoning in Johnson is applicable to the facts before us. The entry was clearly demanded under color of office and was granted in submission to authority. Had DeLuca not opened the door when he did, the police would have knocked the door down. According to Lieutenant Braun, the police were, in fact, ready to radio the Lombard police and ask them to send the fire department with an ax. Under these circumstances, we find that the entry was not consensual. We, therefore, disagree with the trial court which held that defendants Columbo and De-Luca voluntarily consented to admit the police into the apartment.
We further believe, however, the the officers’ decision to proceed without an arrest warrant was justified by exigent circumstances. The court stated in People v. Henderson (1981), 96 Ill. App. 3d 232 , 421 N.E.2d 219 , that many factors may be considered in determining whether prompt police action is necessary to enter a dwelling and effect an arrest without a warrant. These factors are:
“(1) [that] a grave offense is involved, particularly a crime of violence; (2) the suspect is believed to be armed; (3) there exists not merely the minimum of probable cause but a clear showing of probable cause; (4) there is strong reason to believe the suspect is in the premises being entered; (5) there is a likelihood the suspect may escape if not swiftly apprehended; (6) the entry into the premises is peaceful; and (7) there has been no unjustified and inordinate delay in which time a warrant could have been obtained.” 96 Ill. App. 3d 232, 236 . Also see People v. Abney (1980), 81 Ill. 2d 159 , 407 N.E.2d 543 , and People v. Robinson (1980), 91 Ill. App. 3d 1128 , 415 N.E.2d 585 , aff'd (1982), 89 Ill. 2d 469 , 433 N.E.2d 674 .
Further, in determining whether exigent circumstances existed, the court must look at the period of time just prior to the police entry into defendants’ apartment and query whether, at that time, the circumstances justified prompt police action. People v. Abney (1980), 81 Ill. 2d 159, 173 ; People v. Davis (1981), 93 Ill. App. 3d 217 , 416 N.E.2d 1197 ; People v. Henderson (1981), 96 Ill. App. 3d 232 , 421 N.E.2d 219 .
Applying the above principle and the Henderson factors to the case at bar, we conclude that exigent circumstances did exist at the time of entry. First, there undoubtedly was a grave and most violent offense committed. Second, since a firearm was obviously used to commit the murders, the police could have reasonably believed that the defendants were armed and that they should be promptly apprehended. Third, Mitchell’s statements to the police presented probable cause that Columbo was involved in the murders. Fourth, because the police arrived at the defendants’ apartment at approximately 7 a.m., it was very likely that Columbo and DeLuca would be there. Fifth, in view of the violent nature of the murders, it could easily be assumed that one or both of the perpetrators would try to escape if not swiftly apprehended. It was important, therefore, that the officers proceed to Columbo’s apartment within hours after they received Mitchell’s information. Sixth, because defendants refused to open the door, the police, under the circumstances, had no alternative but to use force or threaten to use force to gain entry into the apartment. Accordingly, in view of the nature of the crime and compelling evidence given to the police only a few hours before the arrest, we find that the police acted in a reasonable manner to effect the swift apprehension of prime murder suspects.
Moreover, there was no unjustified or inordinate delay during which a warrant could have been obtained. Although the police had discovered the bodies of Frank, Mary and Michael Columbo a week earlier, they did not receive any strongly incriminating evidence against Patricia Columbo or DeLuca until just prior to the arrest. The police then acted quickly to make the arrest before anyone could contact the defendants and warn them.
The question of whether exigent circumstances are present is a legal one, subject to consideration by a reviewing court due novo. (People v. Abney (1980), 81 Ill. 2d 159 , 407 N.E.2d 543 .) In addition, all of the factors mentioned in Abney need not be present, nor are those factors exclusive in determining whether exigent circumstances justify entry. The ultimate question is whether the police acted reasonably and whether there was exigency. (People v. Henderson (1981), 96 Ill. App. 3d 232 , 421 N.E.2d 219 .) After careful review of the record, we find that sufficient exigent circumstances were present to necessitate prompt police action. Therefore, we find that Columbo’s contention that her warrantless arrest was unlawful is untenable.
Having established that the entry into Columbo’s apartment was justified by exigent circumstances and that her arrest was lawful, we next consider whether the evidence found in the apartment was properly admitted into evidence by the trial court. The items included More cigarette butts, white notebook paper and an address book. The trial court denied Columbo’s motion to suppress the evidence and held that although the search warrant itself was defective, the items were properly seized as items in plain view as well as incident to a lawful arrest. We agree.
The well-settled rule in Illinois is that where an arrest is justified, an accompanying search without a warrant is also justified if it is reasonable. (People v. Williams (1967), 36 Ill. 2d 505 , 224 N.E.2d 225 , cert. denied (1967), 389 U.S. 828 , 19 L. Ed. 2d 82 , 88 S. Ct. 76 ; People v. Boozer (1957), 12 Ill. 2d 184 , 145 N.E.2d 619 ; People v. Bradford (1981), 97 Ill. App. 3d 998 , 423 N.E.2d 1179 .) The test of reasonableness with respect to a search or seizure is whether the facts available to the officer at the moment of search or seizure were such as to warrant a person of reasonable caution to believe the action taken was appropriate. (People v. Miezio (1968), 103 Ill. App. 2d 398 , 242 N.E.2d 795 .) Moreover, to be admissible at trial, evidence taken as incident to an arrest must be competent and relevant. Applying these often-cited rules to the facts before us, we agree with the trial court that the evidence was lawfully seized. We further agree that the evidence was competent and relevant and, therefore, admissible.
In our opinion, the arresting officers at Columbo’s apartment had reasonable grounds to believe that the items taken were relevant to the crime they were att

[Text truncated at 120,000 characters. The full text is on the page linked above.]

---

Source: Frix Law Library, https://www.frixlaw.com/law-library/cases/2046305. Public record. Not legal advice.