A Jacksonville man sentenced to 50 years in the Illinois Department of Corrections for murder in a 2014 shooting is once again pursuing a motion about ineffective assistance of counsel.
26 year old Avery Berry has filed a post conviction petition to the Morgan County Circuit due to ineffective counsel. In the petition, Berry contends that his trial lawyer, Bruce Locher of Springfield, did not properly represent him in the 2014 murder case of Marcus Jackson.
This is the second time Berry has filed such an appeal about his representation in the case. In 2019, after his appeal in the initial case was remanded back to Morgan County Court, Berry contended that Locher did not investigate his mental health history and fitness for court proceedings. Sangamon Circuit Judge John Madonia was assigned the remanded case, and will once again preside over Berry’s post-conviction petition.
Berry’s petition will be heard in Morgan County Court on August 19th at 1:30.