The 166 defendants were convicted of violating a section of the state’s Aggravated Unlawful Use of Weapons (AAUW) statute, which said in part that an offense occurred when a person “carries on or about his person or in any vehicle or concealed on or about his person except when on his land or in his abode or fixed place of business any pistol, revolver, stun gun or Taser or other firearm and the firearm is uncased, loaded and immediately accessible.”

The earliest conviction for these 121 defendants occurred in 1990. The most recent conviction occurred on August 15, 2013, a month before the Illinois Supreme Court ruling. Nearly all the members of this group pled guilty rather than go to trial. Four members of this group had two separate convictions that were vacated and dismissed.

The Illinois Supreme Court ruling, released on September 12, 2013, arose from an appeal filed by Alberto Aguilar, who was 17 years old at the time of his arrest. His attorneys argued that the Illinois law was too broad; the Second Amendment, which guarantees the right to keep and bear arms, did not limit the possession of a weapon to one’s house or business.

The court agreed, writing: “We cannot escape the reality that, in this case, we are dealing not with a reasonable regulation but with a comprehensive ban … that amounts to a wholesale statutory ban on the exercise of a personal right that is specifically named in and guaranteed by the United States Constitution, as construed by the United States Supreme Court. In no other context would we permit this, and we will not permit it here either.”

Aguilar had been convicted for a violation of the broader ban on possessing a weapon, as well as a lesser violation based on his age. The Supreme Court ruling affirmed the age-based conviction, stating that “We need only express our agreement with the obvious and undeniable conclusion that the possession of handguns by minors is conduct that falls outside the scope of the second amendment’s protection.”

After the Aguilar ruling, the first defendant to successfully vacate an AAUW conviction was Marcus Borne, who served 15 months in prison after pleading guilty to a weapons charge on December 15, 2004. Earlier that year, officers had arrested Borne, then 19 years old, at his father’s house in Chicago after discovering three handguns there. After Borne’s charge was dismissed in 2014, he filed a petition for a certificate of innocence. After receiving the certificate in 2016, Borne filed a claim for compensation with the Illinois Court of Claims and was awarded $30,000.

Following Borne’s success, other defendants began moving to vacate their convictions and sought dismissals of their charges. They then sought a state certificate of innocence, which is a condition for seeking compensation. The challenges trickled in at first, with only five succeeding through 2019. The pace then accelerated, with 50 defendants receiving certificates of innocence in 2022. Five defendants received certificates in 2023, as of late February.

The compensation these defendants received varied, in part based on their time in prison. For example, Stephen Crump, who was given probation for a weapons conviction in 2011, was awarded $24,000. Kenrod Jones, who served four years in prison, received $54,400 in compensation after his 2003 conviction was vacated. Separately, Alandis Craine filed a federal lawsuit against the City of Chicago and received $100,000 as a settlement in 2023. Craine also received $60,000 in state compensation.

The total known compensation to date for these individuals is $4.8 million. Although initially included in our main Registry, these cases, with the exception of Craine’s, were moved to the Groups Registry in 2023. 

Known members of this group

Here is a list of people known to be in this group, including those with multiple wrongful convictions under this statute. One defendant, Alandis Craine, is in the main Registry. Other members: Ron Adams, Ruben Alcazar, Cordero Amos, Douwan Andrew, Darryl Austin, Larry Austin, Damien Bailey, Undra Bailey, Nathaniel Banks, Jose Barriga, Deandre Barron, James Bean, Gerald Berry, Faison Black, Eric Blackmon, Christopher Bohannon, Marcus Borne, Marlon Boyce, Maurice Brooks, Ricardo Brooks, Darius Brown, Darnel Brown, Deonte Brown, Kenyatta Brown, Lenaris Brown, Dartagnan Burch, Peter Campbell, Trevonti Carson, Byron Champ, Kevell Chester, Christina Childress, Amos Cordero, Demond Christmas, Jonel Clark, Richard Coffey, Gregory Conway, James Cooper, Jerome Craft, Kerwin Cross (2), Stephen Crump, Michael Dawson, Eleizer Delgado, Edgar Diaz, Tarenzo Dillon, Derrick Edwards, Bryan Estrada, Bobby Ezell, Corey Fondren, D’Andre Fuller (2), Adrian Garcia, Samuel Gayden, Jerry Gilmore, Alexander Gonzalez (2), Thadeius Goods, Jeffrey Grafton, Cassidy Green, Jerome Green, Jerry Griffin, Armando Gutierrez, Steve Hamilton, Perry Hampton, Anthony Harris, Mario Hearring, Miguel Hernandez, Eric Hill, Michael Hill, Paul Hill, Ralph Holloway, Jeremy Holmes, Charles Howard, Reginald Hoskins, Demetrius Hymon, Commodore Jackson, Douglas Jackson, Enoch Jackson, Faison Jackson, Joseph Jackson, Ramone Jackson, Lester Jennings, James Jernigan, Donovan Johnson, Jermaine Johnson, Michael Johnson, Kenrod Jones, Melvin Jones, Maurice Jones, Thomas Jones, Howard Kyle, Gerald Lauderdale, Recardo Lee, Juan Lewis, Deandre Little, Brian Luckie, Kevin Lundy, Columbus Madkins, Anthony Maltbia, Anthony Manuel, Contrell Martinez, Aisha McClinton, Samuel McGee, Alton McReynolds, Willie McWilliam, Derrick Meeks, Calvin Mines, Esteban Miranda, Ideary Mooney, Vantrail Moore, Arkeith Mosby, Donte Myles, Ali Nakhleh, Nicole Nathan, Terrance Nevels, Jauan O’Neal, Brandon Owens, Ramone Palmer, Ishamael Parks, Jesus Parra, Aaron Payne, Donnell Pelts, Randal Perry, Herbert Pitts, Corey Rice, Henry Richardson, Emanuel Rivera, Delaurence Robinson, Gregory Rounds, Dontaneous Salley, Reno Sauceda, Alexander Scott, Ramone Shaffers, Donnell Simmons, Glenn Smith, Salletheo Smith, Zachary Smith, Zachery Smith, Damon Stewart, Lemuel Straughter, Jamal Streeter, John Tate, Terence Taylor, Aaron Terrell, Cornelius Thomas, Jesse Thomas, Standford Thomas, Rigoberto Toscano, Lucrecious Towers, Anthony Townsend, Eric Vaughn, Jose Vidaurri, Tyrese Ward, Spencer Wardell-Jackson, Jermail Washington, Garret Whittenburg, Emanuel Wiley, Bobby Williams, Cortez Williams, Claudious Williams, Daryl Williams, DeAaron Williams, James Williams, Kerry Williams, Vashaun Williams, Courtney Woods, Andree Wright, Zackary Wright.