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Illinois

State Resource Guide

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The Post-Conviction Process

Click on the underlined links to view more information. 

To help you better use this state-by-state resource, here is a glossary of terms used throughout this site.

Post-Sentencing Review

Direct Appeal

State Post-Conviction Motions

Federal Habeas Corpus

Early Release Programs

Prosecutorial Review

Clemency

Victims have rights throughout this whole process. Click here to learn more.

A criminal case may not go through each stage included in this visual representation, or these stages may occur in a different order than they appear in this graphic. Additionally, some cases may go through these stages several times. Each case is unique, and this chart is intended only as a visual aid to help victims and survivors understand the post-sentencing process.

Post-Sentencing Review

After an individual accused of a crime has been convicted and sentenced, they may file motions in the trial court to challenge their conviction or sentence.
  • These can include motions to arrest the judgment, to withdraw the plea, to be resentenced, or for a new trial based on new evidence or problems with how the case has been handled. In certain situations, the prosecution may also file a motion to modify the person’s sentence.
  • Victims can receive information about post-trial motions from the State’s Attorney in the county where the crime was prosecuted.

Direct Appeal

After any post-sentencing motions are decided by the court (or if no post-trial motions are filed), an individual convicted of a crime may ask a higher court to review the trial court’s and jury’s decisions. This is called a “direct appeal.”
  • On appeal, the court does not admit new evidence or call witnesses but instead reviews what happened in the trial court. If the convicted person pursues an appeal, they may ask to be released while it is pending.
  • The Office of the State’s Attorney is required to give victims notification of direct appeal. Victims can receive information about direct appeal from the State’s Attorney in the county where the crime was prosecuted.

State Post-Conviction Motions

Post-conviction motions are requests to have the conviction or sentence reviewed that are filed after the direct appeal process has ended.
  • These motions can seek many outcomes, including invalidation of the conviction, shortening the amount of time the convicted person must spend in prison, or permission from the court for that individual to view or find additional information relevant to the case – such as new DNA testing.
  • The Office of the State’s Attorney or the Office of the Attorney General represents the State in post-conviction proceedings. Victims can receive information about post-conviction from the State’s Attorney in the county where the crime was prosecuted or by calling the Office of the Attorney General at 1-800-228-3368.

Federal Habeas Corpus

After seeking post-conviction relief in state court, a person convicted under Illinois law may go to federal court in a process called “habeas corpus.”
  • Relief in federal habeas corpus is available only in specific and rare circumstances. Issues often raised in federal habeas cases include claims that the convicted person had an inept attorney, claims that police or prosecutors violated their rights, hid evidence, or committed other misconduct.
  • The Office of the State’s Attorney or the Office of the Attorney General represents the State in post-conviction proceedings. Victims can receive information about post-conviction from the State’s Attorney in the county where the crime was prosecuted or by calling the Office of the Attorney General at 1-800-228-3368.

Early Release Programs

These programs can include parole, medical parole, or earning “credits” in prison.
  • If someone is sentenced to a term of imprisonment, they may be released from prison earlier than expected through several programs available in Illinois, including parole, medical parole, and earning “good-time credits,” which are reductions in a person’s sentence for good behavior or completion of rehabilitative, educational, or vocational programs in prison.
  • For updates on early release programs, victims can register through the Illinois Prisoner Review Board’s Victims Notification Unit. Victims can track the status of an incarcerated person via the Victim Information and Notification Everyday (VINE) website at www.vinelink.com.

Prosecutorial Review

Prosecutors can reconsider the conviction to be sure it is just.
  • A state-wide conviction-review unit, called the Illinois Attorney General Conviction Integrity Unit (CIU), identifies, reviews, and investigates post-conviction claims of innocence to determine whether new, credible evidence substantially proves that a convicted person is innocent. Certain local prosecutors’ offices – including Cook County, Kankakee County, and Lake County – have their conviction-review divisions.

Clemency

In rare cases, the governor may grant the convicted person relief from their sentence or conviction.
  • The governor can grant clemency to people convicted under Illinois law. The Illinois Prisoner Review Board helps the governor in this process. Clemency in Illinois usually takes the form of a pardon (which forgives a conviction) or a commutation (which shortens a person’s sentence).
  • For clemency notification, victims can register through the Illinois Prisoner Review Board’s Victims Notification Unit and call the Attorney General’s Crime Victim Assistance Line at 1-800-228-3368.

Victims Rights
Post-Conviction

In Illinois, victims have the right to:
  • Be treated with fairness and respect for their dignity and privacy and freedom from harassment, intimidation, and abuse
  • Timely notification of all court proceedings*
  • Communicate with the prosecution
  • Be present and be heard at court proceedings 
  • Be present and be heard at any court proceeding involving a release or sentencing decision
  • Notification of the imprisonment and release of the convicted individual*
  • Timely ending of the case
  • Protection from the accused throughout the criminal justice process
  • Have their safety considered in decisions about the conditions of the incarcerated individual’s release
  • Request restitution and apply for victim’s compensation

 

* All rights to notification require the victim to provide and update their information with the District Attorney, Attorney General, Department of Corrections, and/or the Board of Paroles and Pardons.

Compensation

  • Restitution is a court-ordered payment from the defendant to the victim to account for the victim’s economic loss. Apart from court-ordered restitution, the Illinois Crime Victim Compensation Program reimburses victims for expenses related to the crime, such as healthcare, lost wages, and funeral expenses.
  • Victims can receive information about restitution by contacting the State’s Attorney’s office where the case was prosecuted. Additionally, victims can request funds from the Illinois Victims’ Compensation Assistance Program through an online application or by calling the Crime Victims Assistance Line at 800-228-3368. Applications must be filed within 5 years of the crime date or 3 years after the age of eighteen if the victim was a minor at the time of the crime.
Click here to learn more about the post-conviction process and victims’ rights in Illinois

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