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(705 ILCS 405/5-625)
Sec. 5-625. Absence of minor.
(1) When a minor after arrest and an initial court appearance for a felony,
fails to appear for trial, at the request of the State and after the State has
affirmatively proven through substantial evidence that the minor is willfully
avoiding trial, the court may commence trial in the absence of the minor. The
absent minor must be represented by retained or appointed counsel. If trial
had previously commenced in the presence of the minor and the minor is willfully absent
for 2 successive court days, the court shall proceed to
trial. All procedural rights guaranteed by the United States Constitution,
Constitution of the State of Illinois, statutes of the State of Illinois, and
rules of court shall apply to the proceedings the same as if the minor
were present in court. The court may set the case for a trial which may be
conducted under this Section despite the failure of the minor to appear at the
hearing at which the trial date is set. When the trial date is set the clerk
shall send to the minor, by certified mail at the minor's last known address,
notice of
the new date which has been set for trial. The notification shall be required
when the minor was not personally present in open court at the time when the
case was set for trial.
(2) The absence of the minor from a trial conducted under this Section
does not operate as a bar to concluding the trial, to a finding of guilty
resulting from the trial, or to a final disposition of the trial in favor of
the
minor.
(3) Upon a finding or verdict of not guilty the court shall enter a finding
for the
minor. Upon a finding or verdict
of guilty, the court shall set a date for the hearing of post-trial motions and
shall hear the motion in the absence of the minor. If post-trial motions are
denied, the court shall proceed to conduct a sentencing hearing and to impose a
sentence upon the minor. A social investigation is waived if the minor is
absent.
(4) A minor who is absent for part of the proceedings of trial, post-trial
motions, or sentencing, does not thereby forfeit the minor's right to be present
at all
remaining proceedings.
(5) When a minor who in the minor's absence has been either found guilty or
sentenced or both found guilty and sentenced appears before the court, the minor must
be granted a new trial or a new sentencing hearing if the minor can establish
that the minor's failure to appear in court was both without the minor's fault
and due to
circumstances beyond the minor's control. A hearing with notice to the
State's Attorney on the minors request for a new trial or a new sentencing
hearing must be held before any such request may be granted. At any such
hearing both the minor and the State may present evidence.
(6) If the court grants only the minor's request for a new sentencing
hearing, then a new sentencing hearing shall be held in accordance with the
provisions of this Article.
At any such hearing, both the minor and the State may offer
evidence of the minor's conduct during the minor's period of absence from the
court.
The court may impose any sentence authorized by this Article and in the case of
an extended juvenile jurisdiction prosecution the Unified
Code of Corrections and is not in any way limited or restricted by any sentence
previously imposed.
(7) A minor whose motion under subsection (5) for a new trial or new
sentencing hearing has been denied may file a notice of appeal from the denial.
The notice may also include a request for review of the finding and sentence
not vacated by the trial court.
(Source: P.A. 103-22, eff. 8-8-23.)
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