CHICAGO (CBS) — An Illinois Court of Appeals panel on Friday overturned the conviction of former Northwestern University professor Wyndham Lathem found guilty of stabbing his friendTrenton Cornell-Duranleau, put to death in 2017 as part of a sexual fantasy hatched in an online chat room.
A three-judge panel of the appeals court ruled unanimously that the Cook County judge who oversaw Lathem’s trial unlawfully barred him from speaking to his attorney during an overnight break in the trial while Lathem was in custody. witness stand.
Lathem, a renowned microbiologist who was fired by the university after fleeing the Chicago area in the aftermath of the Cornell-Duranleau murder, was found guilty in October 2021, and later sentenced to 53 years in prison.
Lathem and co-defendant Andrew Warren were charged with Cornell-Duranleau stabbed dozens of times at Lathem’s Chicago apartment, nearly decapitating him. Prosecutors alleged that Lathem and Warren talked for months before the murder about “acting out their sexual fantasies of killing others and then themselves.”
Warren pleaded guilty in 2019 and testified at his trial against Lathem.
During the trial, Lathem testified in his own defense, claiming that Warren was the one who stabbed Cornell-Duranleau while he cowered in a nearby bathroom. After his direct testimony, but before his cross-examination, Cook County Judge Charles Burns told Lathem he could not speak to his attorneys during an overnight recess.
Illinois Court of Appeals Judges Sharon Johnson, David Navarro and Mary Mikva ruled Friday that Burns’ ruling violated Lathem’s Sixth Amendment right to consult with his attorney.
“Due to the court’s order prohibiting a testifying suspect from conferring with his attorney during an overnight recess, in violation of his right to an attorney, and our crystal clear and consistent precedent in this area, we have no choice but to reverse this and institute a provisional injunction. a new process. As gruesome as murder is, these rights are crucial to the effective administration of justice,” their ruling said.
While judges may ban attorneys from speaking to trial witnesses about their testimony while they are still on the witness stand to avoid teaching them what to say, the appeals court has ruled that banning any contact with their lawyer as a defendant, should only be done in extreme circumstances.
“Any restriction during a night recess should be the exception and not the rule and should only be given in urgent and unusual circumstances, and the suspect’s right to unrestricted access should prevail over the fear of coaching, which should be addressed through of exposure to cross-examination or through planning,” the opinion said.
The case against Lathem will now be sent back to court for a new trial.
