People v. Burns

NOTICE 2025 IL App (5th) 230221-U NOTICE Decision filed 06/12/25. The This order was filed under text of this decision may be NO. 5-23-0221 Supreme Court Rule 23 and is changed or corrected prior to not precedent except in the the filing of a Petition for IN THE limited circumstances allowed Rehearing or the disposition of under Rule 23(e)(1). the same. APPELLATE COURT OF ILLINOIS FIFTH DISTRICT ______________________________________________________________________________ THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, ) Appeal from the ) Circuit Court of Plaintiff-Appellee, ) Saline County. ) v. ) No. 16-CF-90 ) BRIAN T. BURNS, ) Honorable ) Walden E. Morris, Defendant-Appellant. ) Judge, presiding. ______________________________________________________________________________ JUSTICE VAUGHAN delivered the judgment of the court. Justices Cates and Sholar concurred in the judgment. ORDER ¶1 Held: The defendant’s sentence is affirmed where the trial court did not abuse its discretion when it sentenced him to 40 years’ imprisonment for first degree murder and 5 years’ imprisonment for concealment of a homicidal death. ¶2 Following a jury trial, the defendant was found guilty of first degree murder (720 ILCS 5/9-1(a)(2) (West 2016)) and concealment of a homicidal death (id. § 9-3.4(a)). The trial court subsequently sentenced him to 40 years’ and 5 years’ imprisonment in the Illinois Department of Corrections (IDOC), respectively, to be served consecutively, for an aggregate sentence of 45 years’ imprisonment. On appeal, the defendant argues that his sentence was excessive. For the following reasons, we affirm the defendant’s sentence. 1 ¶3 I. BACKGROUND ¶4 On March 17, 2016, the defendant was charged with two counts of first degree murder and one count of concealment of a homicidal death in connection with the death of his estranged wife, Carla Burns, who disappeared on March 8, 2016. The defendant initially told police that he had not seen Carla since the previous week. Police subsequently discovered charred skeletal remains on a property adjacent to the defendant’s property. In a custodial interview after his arrest, the defendant stated that Carla accidentally shot herself while the two of them were target-shooting. He admitted putting Carla’s body on a brush pile and burning it. He stated he did so due to panic, a desire for Carla’s family not to see her deceased body, and a promise that he and Carla had made to each other that whoever of the two died last would cremate the body of the one who died first. The defendant maintained his version of events throughout his testimony at trial. ¶5 Before trial, the defendant’s attorney sought a psychological evaluation of the defendant due to his belief that there was a bona fide doubt as to the defendant’s fitness to stand trial. The trial court granted the request. ¶6 Dr. Fred D. Klug performed the evaluation. Dr. Klug met with the defendant on April 23, 2019, and the evaluation report was filed with the court on May 22, 2019. In his report, Dr. Klug noted an Axis I diagnostic impression of “Adult Antisocial Behavior.” He concluded, “It is my opinion that Mr. Burns is competent to stand trial at this time. The issues [sic] of ‘getting off task’ is easily remedied by redirecting him.” ¶7 The defendant’s jury trial commenced on December 9, 2019. The jury ultimately found the defendant guilty of one count of first degree murder as well as concealment of a homicidal death. The trial court ordered the probation department to prepare a presentence investigation report (PSI) for sentencing. The defendant did not file a motion for a new trial. 2 ¶8 The defendant’s PSI, which was filed February 6, 2020, set forth the defendant’s date of birth as April 1, 1959. It noted that prior to the murder charges herein, the defendant’s only criminal