## Facts

- Michael L. Perry and his family lived in a suite at an Embassy Suites hotel in Lombard, Illinois, from January through April 2000.
- Perry negotiated a reduced rate and asked that charges be billed to “Prolific Development Corporation,” claiming to be its president.
- The hotel and Perry signed a “rate agreement” setting a nightly rate of $130 for a two-room suite and referencing a minimum of 100 nights annually.
- The hotel confirmed billing terms requiring payment within 30 days of statements; multiple bills sent to the provided business address went unpaid.
- The hotel could not reach Prolific using the information Perry provided; an attempt to charge a credit card Perry supplied (in another person’s name) was disputed by the cardholder.
- In May 2000, Perry left the hotel without paying a balance exceeding $15,000, including room occupancy and other charges.
- A jury convicted Perry of theft by deception under 720 ILCS 5/16-1(a)(2); the trial court treated the value as exceeding $10,000 and sentenced him as a Class 2 felon.

## Issues

1. Whether the right to occupy a hotel room for an extended period constitutes “property” under Illinois theft statutes, permitting inclusion of room-occupancy value in the valuation threshold.
2. Whether Perry was denied effective assistance of counsel at trial.

## Decision

- The Illinois Supreme Court reversed the appellate court and affirmed the circuit court judgment.
- The Court held that hotel-room occupancy (the right of exclusive use) qualifies as “property” under the theft statute.
- Because occupancy value could be included, the stolen property value exceeded $10,000, supporting Class 2 felony classification and the imposed sentence.
- The Court denied Perry’s request for cross-relief based on ineffective assistance of counsel.

## Legal Principles

- Illinois’s theft statutes define “property” broadly to include intangible interests and rights of use that have economic value, not only tangible items.
- For theft by deception, a defendant “obtains” property when deception induces the owner to confer control over a valuable right or benefit, including a right of occupancy.
- In determining felony classification by value, courts may include the monetary value of use-rights and related benefits obtained by deception when those interests constitute “property.”
- Ineffective assistance claims require proof of deficient performance and resulting prejudice; absent both, relief is denied.

## Conclusion

The Illinois Supreme Court held that a hotel’s grant of occupancy is “property” capable of being stolen by deception and that its value may be counted toward the $10,000 felony threshold, reinstating Perry’s Class 2 felony conviction and sentence while rejecting his ineffective assistance claim.


People v. Perry, 224 Ill. 2d 312, 864 N.E.2d 196 (Ill. 2007)