Justice McMORROW delivered the opinion of the court:
At issue in this case is whether the trial court abused its discretion by starting defendant's trial in her absence without first determining whether she was willfully absent. The defendant, Ernestine Smith, was convicted of unlawful possession of a controlled substance (720 ILCS 570/402(c) (West 1996)) and sentenced to six years' imprisonment. Defendant appealed her conviction, contending that the trial court abused...
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