CHAMPAIGN-URBANA, Ill. (WCIA) — A man who was ordered to spend more than four decades in prison for shooting a Champaign man in his driveway will be resentenced following a ruling from the Illinois Appellate Court.
35-year-old Allen M. Williams of Calumet City was convicted of attempted first-degree murder and aggravated battery after a two-day trial in March of 2025. About a month later, he was sentenced to 45 years in the Illinois Department of Corrections with credit for 372 days of time already served.
More than a year after Williams was sentenced, however, Williams argued he was denied his constitutional right to counsel at his post-trial motion and at sentencing. The ruling from the appellate court reveals that Williams had been appointed a public defender, but he requested new counsel in October of 2024.
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“The trial court explained to [Williams] that he could have the public defender’s office continue to represent him. However, the court declined to appoint another attorney outside of the public defender’s office. The court advised [Williams] that he could represent himself or he could hire private counsel,” the appellate court explained. “The trial court agreed that defendant was ‘not equipped to represent’ himself. The court noted that it ‘would strongly advise against it.’ [Williams] continued to be represented by appointed counsel.”…