Conviction reinstated in child's 1996 Aurora murder
The Illinois Supreme Court has reinstated the conviction of Mark A. Downs for the 1996 murder of 6-year-old Nicholas "Nico" Contreras of Aurora.
The court announced its decision Thursday morning.
Downs had appealed his conviction and asked for a new trial. He contended the judge in his 2009 trial gave improper instructions to a jury when it asked about the meaning of "reasonable doubt." He also contended he had an ineffective lawyer. The 2nd District Appellate Court overturned his conviction on the first issue, and did not address the second.
The jury's note to the judge asked "What is your definition of reasonable doubt, 80 percent, 70 percent, 60 percent?"
The judge, after consulting with the prosecutor and Downs' attorney, wrote to the jury, "We cannot give you a definition, it is your duty to define."
Illinois law does not define "reasonable doubt," and state court rules urge judges to not give any definition when asked, according to the Supreme Court's decision.
The Supreme Court remanded Downs' case back to the appellate court for consideration of whether he had an ineffective lawyer.
Downs, of Montgomery, now 39, was sentenced to 70 years in prison for the murder. Nico was killed by a gunshot fired into a window as he slept in a bedroom at his grandmother's house on the east side of Aurora.
Downs and another man were charged with Nico's death in 2007. Prosecutors argued a gang leader ordered Downs to kill Nico's uncle, who was in a rival gang. The uncle normally slept in that room.
Downs remains in the Stateville Correctional Center.