By Howard Packowitz
BLOOMINGTON – A special prosecutor will be assigned the case of a convicted killer from Bloomington who claims he was too young to receive a life in prison sentence without hope for parole.
McLean County State’s Attorney Jason Chambers said in a court filing that he represented Michael Carlos in a previous post-conviction matter, possibly creating a conflict of interest or an appearance of impropriety.
Carlos was 18 when he was found guilty of the December 1992 shooting deaths of Jerome McDonald and Terry Williams at the now-closed Third Ward Club near Downtown Bloomington.
The trial judge spared Carlos the death penalty, and a life sentence was the judge’s only other option.
Carlos, now 43, argues recent caselaw shows it’s unconstitutional to sentence young adults to life in prison.
When he was in private practice, Chambers said he was Carlos’ court-appointed public defender.
Chambers estimated there are about a dozen cases a year in which potential conflicts require a special prosecutor.
The Office of the State’s Attorney Appellate Prosectutor has been assigned the Carlos case. Chambers said McLean County pays that office an annual fee of about $35,000 to assume the special prosecutor’s role, and to handle all appeals.
A hearing in the Carlos case is set for Nov. 21.
Howard Packowitz can be reached at [email protected].
