{ "id": 1472361, "name": "THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, Plaintiff-Appellee, v. CHARLES J. LIKAR, Defendant-Appellant", "name_abbreviation": "People v. Likar", "decision_date": "2002-03-29", "docket_number": "No. 1\u201401\u20140453", "first_page": "654", "last_page": "665", "citations": [ { "type": "official", "cite": "329 Ill. App. 3d 654" } ], "court": { "name_abbreviation": "Ill. App. Ct.", "id": 8837, "name": "Illinois Appellate Court" }, "jurisdiction": { "id": 29, "name_long": "Illinois", "name": "Ill." }, "cites_to": [ { "cite": "584 N.E.2d 1040", "category": "reporters:state_regional", "reporter": "N.E.2d", "weight": 2, "year": 1991, "pin_cites": [ { "page": "1042" } ], "opinion_index": 0 }, { "cite": "223 Ill. App. 3d 126", "category": "reporters:state", "reporter": "Ill. App. 3d", "case_ids": [ 5255837 ], "weight": 2, "year": 1991, "pin_cites": [ { "page": "128-29" } ], "opinion_index": 0, "case_paths": [ "/ill-app-3d/223/0126-01" ] }, { "cite": "622 N.E.2d 1236", "category": "reporters:state_regional", "reporter": "N.E.2d", "year": 1993, "pin_cites": [ { "page": "1243" } ], "opinion_index": 0 }, { "cite": "251 Ill. App. 3d 872", "category": "reporters:state", "reporter": "Ill. App. 3d", "case_ids": [ 2962768 ], "year": 1993, "pin_cites": [ { "page": "882" } ], "opinion_index": 0, "case_paths": [ "/ill-app-3d/251/0872-01" ] }, { "cite": "744 N.E.2d 891", "category": "reporters:state_regional", "reporter": "N.E.2d", "year": 2001, "pin_cites": [ { "page": "901" } ], "opinion_index": 0 }, { "cite": "319 Ill. App. 3d 370", "category": "reporters:state", "reporter": "Ill. App. 3d", "case_ids": [ 1527786 ], "year": 2001, "pin_cites": [ { "page": "380" } ], "opinion_index": 0, "case_paths": [ "/ill-app-3d/319/0370-01" ] }, { "cite": "730 N.E.2d 545", "category": "reporters:state_regional", "reporter": "N.E.2d", "year": 2000, "pin_cites": [ { "page": "551" } ], "opinion_index": 0 }, { "cite": "313 Ill. App. 3d 718", "category": "reporters:state", "reporter": "Ill. App. 3d", "case_ids": [ 186507 ], "year": 2000, "pin_cites": [ { "page": "724" } ], "opinion_index": 0, "case_paths": [ "/ill-app-3d/313/0718-01" ] }, { "cite": "718 N.E.2d 58", "category": "reporters:state_regional", "reporter": "N.E.2d", "year": 1999, "pin_cites": [ { "page": "85" } ], "opinion_index": 0 }, { "cite": "187 Ill. 2d 36", "category": "reporters:state", "reporter": "Ill. 2d", "case_ids": [ 1131030 ], "year": 1999, "pin_cites": [ { "page": "85" } ], "opinion_index": 0, "case_paths": [ "/ill-2d/187/0036-01" ] }, { "cite": "592 N.E.2d 960", "category": "reporters:state_regional", "reporter": "N.E.2d", "weight": 3, "year": 1992, "pin_cites": [ { "page": "970" }, { "page": "970" } ], "opinion_index": 0 }, { "cite": "148 Ill. 2d 116", "category": "reporters:state", "reporter": "Ill. 2d", "case_ids": [ 3283229 ], "weight": 3, "year": 1992, "pin_cites": [ { "page": "137" }, { "page": "137" } ], "opinion_index": 0, "case_paths": [ "/ill-2d/148/0116-01" ] }, { "cite": "309 N.E.2d 544", "category": "reporters:state_regional", "reporter": "N.E.2d", "weight": 4, "year": 1974, "pin_cites": [ { "page": "547" }, { "page": "547" }, { "page": "547" } ], "opinion_index": 0 }, { "cite": "56 Ill. 2d 536", "category": "reporters:state", "reporter": "Ill. 2d", "case_ids": [ 5405478 ], "weight": 4, "year": 1974, "pin_cites": [ { "page": "543" }, { "page": "543" }, { "page": "543" } ], "opinion_index": 0, "case_paths": [ "/ill-2d/56/0536-01" ] }, { "cite": "244 N.E.2d 136", "category": "reporters:state_regional", "reporter": "N.E.2d", "weight": 2, "year": 1969, "pin_cites": [ { "page": "141" } ], "opinion_index": 0 }, { "cite": "41 Ill. 2d 483", "category": "reporters:state", "reporter": "Ill. 2d", "case_ids": [ 2852796 ], "weight": 2, "year": 1969, "pin_cites": [ { "page": "492" } ], "opinion_index": 0, "case_paths": [ "/ill-2d/41/0483-01" ] }, { "cite": "335 N.E.2d 437", "category": "reporters:state_regional", "reporter": "N.E.2d", "year": 1975, "pin_cites": [ { "page": "440" } ], "opinion_index": 0 }, { "cite": "61 Ill. 2d 335", "category": "reporters:state", "reporter": "Ill. 2d", "case_ids": [ 2965685 ], "year": 1975, "pin_cites": [ { "page": "339" } ], "opinion_index": 0, "case_paths": [ "/ill-2d/61/0335-01" ] }, { "cite": "344 N.E.2d 456", "category": "reporters:state_regional", "reporter": "N.E.2d", "year": 1976, "pin_cites": [ { "page": "460" } ], "opinion_index": 0 }, { "cite": "63 Ill. 2d 23", "category": "reporters:state", "reporter": "Ill. 2d", "case_ids": [ 5427199 ], "year": 1976, "pin_cites": [ { "page": "29" } ], "opinion_index": 0, "case_paths": [ "/ill-2d/63/0023-01" ] } ], "analysis": { "cardinality": 981, "char_count": 26705, "ocr_confidence": 0.758, "pagerank": { "raw": 4.2015679030204994e-08, "percentile": 0.26793125776831006 }, "sha256": "38286876f83d28e6b35da6bb98f39ea2808434612ba38b433984af25099d9ed8", "simhash": "1:8d702cc4bd9fb821", "word_count": 4437 }, "last_updated": "2023-07-14T18:00:16.668960+00:00", "provenance": { "date_added": "2019-08-29", "source": "Harvard", "batch": "2018" }, "casebody": { "judges": [], "parties": [ "THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, Plaintiff-Appellee, v. CHARLES J. LIKAR, Defendant-Appellant." ], "opinions": [ { "text": "JUSTICE GORDON\ndelivered the opinion of the court:\nFollowing a bench trial, defendant Charles J. Likar was found guilty of criminal trespass to property and sentenced to one year of supervision. As part of his supervision, defendant was ordered to avoid contact with the complainants, complete a mental health examination and follow all treatment recommendations. On appeal, defendant contends that the order of supervision entered against him should be vacated because he was found guilty of an uncharged offense. In the alternative, defendant contends that the evidence was insufficient to support a finding of guilt beyond a reasonable doubt. We affirm the judgment of the trial court.\nBACKGROUND\nThe record demonstrates that a complaint was filed against defendant for the offense of criminal trespass to real property in violation of section 21 \u2014 3(a) of the Illinois Criminal Code of 1961 (Code) (720 ILCS 5/21\u20143(a) (West 2000)). Although section 21 \u2014 3(a) contains several subsections, the complaint failed to cite to any of the subsections specifically. However, the description of the offense set forth in the complaint utilized the language of 21 \u2014 3(a)(3) (subsection (a)(3)) of the statute and alleged that defendant \u201cknowingly remained upon the land of Sergio Parisi, 1221 Meadowcrest, LaGrange Park, Cook County, IL., after rec\u00e9iving verbal notice from the owner Sergio Parisi to depart.\u201d\nAt trial, the evidence in this case established that, on May 13, 2000, defendant, who resided at 1209 Meadowcrest in LaGrange Park, received a letter from the Department of Children and Family Services (DCFS) concerning a complaint he made against his neighbor, Rose Parisi (Rose), alleging that Rose was operating an \u201cunlicenced daycare\u201d in her home. At about 12:10 p.m., defendant walked to the Pari-sis\u2019 property located at 1221 Meadowcrest with the letter in hand in order to discuss the situation with the Parisis.\nSergio Parisi (Parisi), the complainant in this case, was outside mowing the lawn when defendant arrived and stood on the sidewalk in front of the Parisi residence. Parisi testified that he was wearing ear protectors and could not hear defendant, but saw that defendant was signaling that he wanted to have a conversation. Parisi told defendant, \u201cI have nothing to say to you. Get away from me\u201d and defen-dont walked back toward his house. Parisi asserted that, prior to his initial May 13, 2000, visit, defendant had been given written and verbal notice to stay off the Parisi property.\nWithin five minutes of his departure, defendant returned to the Parisi residence on his bicycle. Defendant was standing on the \u201cedge\u201d of the Parisis\u2019 driveway, \u201c[o]n the driveway part just right in front of the sidewalk,\u201d and was holding \u201cpapers\u201d and an envelope in his hands. Defendant stated that he needed to show the papers to Parisi, but Pa-risi refused to have a conversation with defendant. Specifically, Parisi told defendant, \u201c[g]et away from me. I have nothing to say to you. If you step foot on my property, I will have you arrested\u201d and reiterated this statement six times. Defendant did not leave the property but, instead, threw the \u201cpapers\u201d on the Parisis\u2019 property. He then walked about \u201cten feet off the front driveway *** onto [the] front lawn\u201d in order to retrieve them. Once defendant walked on the lawn, Parisi told his wife to call 911. Defendant then returned to the sidewalk, apologized for entering the property and left.\nOn cross-examination, defense counsel asked Parisi if defendant entered his property prior to walking onto the lawn to retrieve his papers, and Parisi testified that defendant had not. This testimony was significant because, on direct examination, Parisi asserted that defendant stood on his driveway prior to throwing the papers on the lawn. On redirect examination, however, Parisi clarified his testimony regarding this issue and twice stated that defendant was standing on the driveway during his second attempt to speak with Parisi prior to entering the lawn area.\nDetective Rompa of the LaGrange Park police department testified that he was called to the Parisi residence on the date in question. When he arrived, he saw defendant standing in his own driveway, which was two doors down from the Parisis\u2019 house. Detective Rompa spoke to defendant and learned that defendant went to the Parisi residence earlier that day on two occasions because he wanted to show the Parisis the DCFS letter. Defendant maintained that he stood on the public sidewalk in front of the Parisis\u2019 property during both visits until the wind blew the DCFS envelope out of his hands onto the Pari-sis\u2019 front lawn. Defendant then walked onto the Parisis\u2019 lawn to retrieve the DCFS envelope. Defendant admitted that, prior to entering the Parisi property, he had received a verbal warning not to enter.\nRichard Mike testified that he lives at 1217 Meadowcrest. On May 13, 2000, he and Parisi were standing in their respective backyards having a conversation over the hedges. Parisi then began yelling \u201c[g]et off my property.\u201d At that point, Mike noticed defendant, whom he could see \u201cvery clearly,\u201d standing in front of the Parisis\u2019 property on \u201ca little corner of grass\u201d which was located \u201cnext to the walk that goes to the front door.\u201d Mike stated that Parisi ordered defendant off his property five or six times. Mike subsequently heard Parisi tell his wife to call 911 but was not aware of defendant\u2019s whereabouts at that time.\nAt the close of the State\u2019s case in chief, defendant made a motion for a directed finding, arguing that the evidence presented by the State was insufficient to prove the elements of the crime beyond a reasonable doubt. Defendant also argued that his presence on the Parisis\u2019 property was lawful under the emergency exception to the criminal trespass to property statute. See 725 ILCS 5/21\u20143(f) (West 2000). The trial court rejected these arguments and denied defendant\u2019s motion.\nDefendant then testified on his own behalf. He explained that he went to the Parisi residence the first time on May 13, 2000, in order to tell the Parisis that DCFS was investigating Rose\u2019s \u201cunlicenced daycare\u201d and that he was the individual who spurred the investigation. As he stood on the sidewalk near the Parisis\u2019 front lawn, defendant noticed that Parisi was mowing the lawn and wearing ear muffs. When he realized that Parisi would not be able to hear anything he said, he went back to his own residence.\nDefendant testified that he returned to the Parisi residence approximately 15 minutes later. He saw Parisi in the rear of his house. Defendant stood on the sidewalk \u201cthree feet to the left of the driveway\u201d and told Parisi that he would like to speak with him. When Parisi did not respond, defendant removed the DCFS letter from the envelope and held it up for Parisi to see. A gust of wind then caused defendant to drop the envelope, which no longer held the letter, and the empty envelope fluttered into the Parisis\u2019 front lawn. Defendant asserted that he made a \u201creflexive movement\u201d to retrieve the envelope which brought him into the lawn as well. As soon as he retrieved the envelope, he returned to the sidewalk. During this time, Parisi was yelling, \u201c[i]f you don\u2019t leave I am going to call the police and have you arrested *** for trespassing.\u201d Defendant reported that he apologized to Parisi for stepping onto the lawn and explained that it was an accident, but Parisi nevertheless told his wife to call 911. Defendant denied standing on Parisi\u2019s driveway and denied that he had previously been told to stay off the property prior to May 13, 2000.\nAt the close of evidence, the trial court determined that \u201cthe issue is whether Defendant had received notice from Mr. Parisi not to enter his land or upon his land prior to him doing so.\u201d After considering the facts of the case and the reasonable inferences to be drawn therefrom, the court found defendant guilty of criminal trespass to property because the court believed that defendant \u201cdid go onto the land with notice that he was not supposed to be there.\u201d The trial court rejected defendant\u2019s argument that his entry onto the land was lawful under the emergency exception to the statute, stating:\n\u201cI don\u2019t think there was really any reasonable belief that this *** envelope was in imminent danger of damage or destruction, and I don\u2019t believe the envelope is the type of property that the exception contemplated.\u201d\nDefendant now appeals the trial court\u2019s judgment.\nANALYSIS\nFound Guilty of an Uncharged Offense\nDefendant was found guilty of the offense of criminal trespass to real property under a statute which provides as follows:\n\u201c\u00a7 21 \u2014 3. Criminal trespass to real property.\n(a) Whoever:\n(1) knowingly and without lawful authority enters or remains within or on a building; or\n(2) enters upon the land of another, after receiving, prior to such entry, notice from the owner or occupant that such entry is forbidden; or\n(3) remains upon the land of another, after receiving notice from the owner or occupant to depart).]\u201d 720 ILCS 5/21 \u2014 3(a) (West 2000).\nSubsection (f) of the statute provides an emergency exception and states:\n\u201cThis Section does not prohibit a person from entering a building or upon the land of another for emergency purposes. For purposes of subsection (f), \u2018emergency\u2019 means a condition or circumstance in which *** property is or is reasonably believed to be in imminent danger of damage or destruction.\u201d 720 ILCS 5/21\u20143(f) (West 2000).\nOn appeal, defendant first contends that the finding of guilt entered against him in this case must be vacated because he was unconstitutionally convicted of an uncharged offense. As a result of the defect in the complaint, defendant asserts that he was improperly prevented from preparing an adequate defense and was unprotected from subsequent prosecution arising from the same conduct. Defendant argues that he was found guilty of a violation of subsection (a)(2) of the criminal trespass to real property statute even though the complaint filed against him describes a violation of subsection (a)(3) of the statute. Defendant points out that subsection (a)(2) is not a lesser included offense of subsection (a)(3), and therefore, the trial court\u2019s finding of guilt was improper.\nThe State responds that the general citation to section 21 \u2014 3(a) of the Code in the complaint sufficiently notified defendant that he would be defending against all charges falling under the ambit of this section, which included the conduct described in subsections (a)(2) and (a)(3), and that defendant was properly found guilty under subsection (a)(2) because his conduct clearly violated that portion of the statute.\nBoth the United States and Illinois Constitutions provide a criminal defendant with the fundamental right to be informed of the nature and cause of the charges against him. U.S. Const., amend. VI; Ill. Const. 1970, art. I, \u00a7 8. When the sufficiency of a charging instrument is challenged for the first time on appeal, this court is called upon to determine whether the charging instrument apprised the defendant of the precise offense charged with enough specificity to allow preparation of his defense and to allow pleading of the judgment as a bar to future prosecution arising out of the same conduct. People v. Gilmore, 63 Ill. 2d 23, 29, 344 N.E.2d 456, 460 (1976); People v. Pujoue, 61 Ill. 2d 335, 339, 335 N.E.2d 437, 440 (1975).\nAs previously noted, defendant contends that, because the complaint describes a violation of subsection (a)(3) and the trial court found him guilty based on a violation of subsection (a)(2), the trial court\u2019s finding of guilt is erroneous. We disagree.\nDefendant\u2019s contention is predicated on the assumption that the conduct described in each subsection of section 21 \u2014 3(a) constitutes a separate and distinct criminal offense. We disagree with this contention in reliance on the cases of People v. Rosochacki, 41 Ill. 2d 483, 244 N.E.2d 136 (1969), People v. Allen, 56 Ill. 2d 536, 309 N.E.2d 544 (1974), and People v. Maxwell, 148 Ill. 2d 116, 592 N.E.2d 960 (1992), which are squarely on point. In each of those cases, the defendants were charged with murder under subsection (a)(1) or (a)(2) of section 9 \u2014 1 of the Code (720 ILCS 5/9\u20141 (West 2000)), which provides:\n\u201c(a) A person who kills an individual without lawful justification commits first degree murder if, in performing the acts which causes death:\n(1) he either intends to kill or do great bodily harm to that individual or another, or knows that such acts will cause death to that individual or another; or\n(2) he knows that such acts create a strong probability of death or great bodily harm to that individual or another[.]\u201d 720 ILCS 5/9\u20141(a)(1), (a)(2) (West 2000).\nHowever, at trial, the jury was instructed to determine defendant\u2019s guilt under these subsections, as well as subsection (a)(3), which was not charged in the indictments. Subsection (a)(3) provides that a person commits murder if:\n\u201c(3) he is attempting or committing a forcible felony other than second degree murder.\u201d 720 ILCS 5/9\u20141(a)(3) (West 2000).\nOn appeal, each of the defendants argued that he was prevented from preparing a defense and was subjected to double jeopardy violations because subsection (a)(3) of the statute, which the jury was allowed to consider, was not pied in the charging instrument. However, our supreme court rejected the defendants\u2019 claims and found that each of the subsections of the statute could be considered because each did not represent a separate, uncharged offense but, rather, described different ways in which a defendant could commit first degree murder, the offense charged.\nSpecifically, in Rosochacki, the court held that the defendant was not prejudiced by the instructions given to the jury because the defendant \u201cwas charged with murder and convicted of that crime\u201d and there was no evidence which suggested that the variance between the type of murder charged and the types described in the indictment surprised defendant or made it impossible to prepare a defense based on the proof offered against him. Rosochacki, 41 Ill. 2d at 492, 244 N.E.2d at 141.\nLikewise, in addressing the same allegation of error in Mien, the court stated:\n\u201cUnder section 9 \u2014 1 there is but one crime of murder, not three separate and distinct offenses as the defendant\u2019s argument assumes. Each of subparagraphs (1), (2) and (3) under section 9 \u2014 1(a) describes the mental state or the conduct of the defendant which must accompany the acts which cause the death. If the defendant were charged with murder under subparagraph (a)(1) and acquitted, he could not again be charged and tried for the murder of the same individual under subparagraph (a)(2) or (a)(3).\u201d Allen, 56 Ill. 2d at 543, 309 N.E.2d at 547.\nMost recently, in Maxwell, the court pointed out:\n\u201cIllinois law recognizes only a single offense of murder, which may be committed in a variety of ways. Just as the method of committing murder is not integral to the offense and therefore need not be specified in the charging instrument!,] *** the precise statutory theory of the offense of murder is not a matter that must be specifically alleged.\u201d Maxwell, 148 Ill. 2d at 137, 592 N.E.2d at 970.\nWe conclude that our supreme court\u2019s reasoning in Rosochacki, Mien and Maxwell is readily applicable to the case at bar. Essentially, in committing a criminal trespass to property, the fundamental criminal act is the actual unlawful entry on the property of another, just as, in committing murder, the fundamental criminal act is the actual unlawful killing of another without justification. As our supreme court stated in Maxwell, the method of committing the offense is not \u201cintegral\u201d to the actual crime and, therefore, does not need to be specified in the charging instrument. Maxwell, 148 Ill. 2d at 137, 592 N.E.2d at 970. The criminal trespass to real property statute describes one offense that can be committed several ways through various mental states and courses of conduct described in the subsections of the statute. Indeed, like the subsections in the murder statute, the subsections here do not define separate offenses but, rather, describe \u201cthe mental state or the conduct of the defendant which must accompany the [criminal] acts.\u201d Allen, 56 Ill. 2d at 543, 309 N.E.2d at 547. Thus, in the case at bar, defendant was not convicted of an uncharged offense but, rather, was convicted of the charged offense based on conduct not described in the complaint.\nWe are mindful that, when reviewing a challenge to the charging instrument as in the instant case, we must consider whether the complaint protected the defendant from double jeopardy concerns upon acquittal and apprised the defendant of the charged offense. In this case, the lack of specificity regarding defendant\u2019s actual conduct in the complaint did not place defendant in danger of double jeopardy. Indeed, as our supreme court concluded in Allen, when a statute describes one offense, a defendant convicted of that offense based on conduct described in a subsection of the statute cannot be retried based on conduct described in a different subsection of the same statute if acquitted. Allen, 56 Ill. 2d at 543, 309 N.E.2d at 547. Because we concluded that the subsections of section 21 \u2014 3(a) do not constitute separate offenses but, rather, describe specific mental states and conduct, the same principle must apply herein.\nFurther, as was the case is Rosochacki, Allen and Maxwell, a review of the record in the instant case does not show that defendant was surprised by or unable to defend against subsection (a)(2) of the criminal trespass to property statute. On the contrary, the record shows that defendant defended against subsection (a)(2) throughout trial by attempting to establish that Parisi did not warn him to stay off the land until defendant entered the land to retrieve his envelope on the date of the incident. This is evidenced by the following exchange between defense counsel and Parisi:\n\u201cQ. But when you told him you didn\u2019t want any contact, you didn\u2019t tell him to stay off your property?\nA. Yes I have. I have in the past.\nQ. On that particular day when you were mowing your lawn and you removed your earmuffs, at that time you said \u2018Stay away from me. I don\u2019t want to talk to you,\u2019 correct? Yes or no? Please just answer my question.\nA. I told him the previous week.\nQ. My question was on that date at that point in time when you took off your earmuffs, you just told him to stay away from you?\nA. Told him to get away from. I have nothing to say to you. Then he went home and came back.\u201d\nIt is apparent that, through this exchange, defendant was trying to establish that Parisi merely told defendant he did not want to speak to him, but did not tell defendant to stay away from his property before defendant entered upon it, which would constitute the violation described under subsection (a)(2) of the statute. If defendant believed that he was only required to defend against subsection (a)(3), this point would not have been a relevant or necessary part of his cross-examination of the complainant.\nFurthermore, the record demonstrates that defendant became aware that the State intended to establish a violation of subsection (a)(2) early on in the trial when the State elicited testimony from Pa-risi and Detective Rompa that established that defendant was previously warned to stay off the Parisi property. Defendant did not object to this line of questioning at trial and did not raise claims of unfair surprise or inability to prepare a defense in his motion for a directed finding. For these reasons, we find that defendant was not deprived of his right to prepare a defense.\nInsufficient Evidence\nIn the alternative, defendant contends that the evidence against him was insufficient to sustain a conviction under either subsection (a)(2) or (a)(3) of the statute. Defendant concedes that he trespassed upon the Parisis\u2019 front lawn in order to retrieve an empty envelope, which previously contained the DCFS letter, but asserts that his entrance onto the property was lawful pursuant to subsection (f) of the statute, which provides that trespass is not prohibited in the event of an emergency which presents a danger to persons or property.\nWhen the sufficiency of the evidence in a criminal case is challenged, this court must consider whether, after viewing the evidence in the light most favorable to the State, any rational trier of fact could have found the essential elements of the crime beyond a reasonable doubt. People v. Heard, 187 Ill. 2d 36, 85, 718 N.E.2d 58, 85 (1999). In a bench trial, it is the trial judge\u2019s responsibility to determine the credibility of witnesses, to weigh and draw inferences from the evidence and to resolve evidentiary conflicts. People v. Mullen, 313 Ill. App. 3d 718, 724, 730 N.E.2d 545, 551 (2000). A defendant\u2019s conviction will not be overturned on the basis of insufficient evidence unless the proof is so unsatisfactory or improbable that a reasonable doubt of the defendant\u2019s guilt exists. People v. Joya, 319 Ill. App. 3d 370, 380, 744 N.E.2d 891, 901 (2001).\nIn the case at bar, Parisi\u2019s testimony established that defendant was told, prior to March 13, 2000, that he was prohibited from entering the Parisi property. Despite this knowledge, defendant went to the Parisi residence twice on the date in question. It is undisputed that defendant remained on the sidewalk without entering upon the Parisis\u2019 property during his first visit. However, Parisi\u2019s version of events established that defendant entered onto the Parisis\u2019 property during the second visit when defendant stood on the driveway. Although defendant was repeatedly told to leave and threatened with arrest while standing on the driveway, defendant nevertheless deliberately threw his empty envelope onto the front lawn and then ventured farther onto the Parisis\u2019 property in order to retrieve the empty envelope. While we acknowledge that Parisi\u2019s testimony was contradicted by defendant, who claimed that he never stood on Parisi\u2019s driveway and that a gust of wind, rather than his own volition, thrust the envelope onto the front lawn, we nevertheless must accept Parisi\u2019s testimony as credible, relying on the presumption that, in finding defendant guilty, the trier of fact resolved all evidentiary conflicts in favor of the State. People v. Beasley, 251 Ill. App. 3d 872, 882, 622 N.E.2d 1236, 1243 (1993). Thus, even if we were to agree with defendant\u2019s contention that an \u201cemergency\u201d was created when his empty envelope blew onto the Parisis\u2019 property, defendant would still be guilty of criminal trespass because he was standing on the Parisis\u2019 driveway with knowledge that he was prohibited from entering or remaining there prior to the alleged \u201cemergency.\u201d The trial court\u2019s finding of guilt can therefore be predicated on both subsections (a)(2) and (a)(3) of the statute.\nMoreover, assuming arguendo that defendant was not standing on Parisi\u2019s driveway and did not enter Parisi\u2019s property until he walked onto the front lawn to retrieve his empty envelope, we simply cannot see how retrieval of defendant\u2019s empty envelope constitutes an emergency as contemplated by the statute. According to subsection (f), an emergency exists when property is or is reasonably believed to be in \u201cimminent danger of damage or destruction.\u201d 720 ILCS 5/21\u20143(f) (West 2000). In order to determine that subsection (0 applies to the case at bar, we would have to conclude that defendant\u2019s empty envelope constitutes property within the contemplation of the act which creates the emergency defense. We recognize that the statute does not break down or define the type or nature of the property covered by subsection (f), nor does it set forth the minimum required value of such property. However, we are driven to conclude that a used, empty envelope clearly traverses the line between \u201cproperty\u201d and \u201cwaste.\u201d To conclude otherwise would denote that a person could lawfully trespass on the property of another under the guise of an \u201cemergency\u201d in order to recover any trivial object, such as a candy wrapper or piece of tissue, as constituting \u201cproperty\u201d under the provisions of the emergency exception.\nFinally, even if we were to consider defendant\u2019s envelope as \u201cproperty,\u201d we cannot see how retrieval of an empty envelope constitutes an emergency under the statute because there is no evidence in the record which suggests, because of weather conditions or other conditions on Parisi\u2019s property, that defendant\u2019s empty envelope was in danger of damage or destruction. Moreover, even if these conditions existed, the fact remains that defendant had other options, aside from unlawful trespass, that would have allowed him to retrieve his envelope.\nIn this respect, the facts of the case at bar are analogous to People v. Haynes, 223 Ill. App. 3d 126, 584 N.E.2d 1040 (1991). There, defendant argued trial counsel was ineffective for failing to assert a necessity defense where the evidence demonstrated that the defendant attempted to criminally trespass on a trailer home in order to use the telephone because he believed that he was in danger of physical assault. This court held that there was no justification for criminal trespass because defendant had alternative choices to obtain use of a phone which did not involve a criminal act, such as using the public phone in the trailer park or asking neighboring residents for assistance. Haynes, 223 Ill. App. 3d at 128-29, 584 N.E.2d at 1042. Here, as in Haynes, defendant had the option to retrieve his envelope by means other than unlawful trespass. Defendant could have asked another neighbor to retrieve the envelope, could have waited for the envelope to flutter out of the Parisis\u2019 yard or could have asked Parisi to either retrieve the envelope or grant defendant permission to do so. For these reasons, we conclude, as the trial court concluded, there was no \u201creasonable belief that this *** envelope was in imminent danger of damage or destruction\u201d and that the envelope was not \u201cthe type of property that the exception contemplated.\u201d\nCONCLUSION\nFor the foregoing reasons, we affirm the judgment of the trial court.\nAffirmed.\nCAHILL and McBRIDE, JJ., concur.", "type": "majority", "author": "JUSTICE GORDON" } ], "attorneys": [ "Bruce Rose, of Dvorak & Edmonds, Ltd., of Westchester, for appellant.", "Richard A. Devine, State\u2019s Attorney, of Chicago (Renee Goldfarb, Annette Collins, and Elizabeth E. Hewlett, Assistant State\u2019s Attorneys, of counsel), for the People." ], "corrections": "", "head_matter": "THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, Plaintiff-Appellee, v. CHARLES J. LIKAR, Defendant-Appellant.\nFirst District (2nd Division)\nNo. 1\u201401\u20140453\nOpinion filed March 29, 2002.\nBruce Rose, of Dvorak & Edmonds, Ltd., of Westchester, for appellant.\nRichard A. Devine, State\u2019s Attorney, of Chicago (Renee Goldfarb, Annette Collins, and Elizabeth E. Hewlett, Assistant State\u2019s Attorneys, of counsel), for the People." }, "file_name": "0654-01", "first_page_order": 672, "last_page_order": 683 }