Governor JB Pritzker, I am writing in regards to the Resentencing Initiative (SB2129) you signed in July 2021 that became effective January 1, 2022 which allows prosecutors at their discretion to motion a sentencing judge to resentence incarcerated people whose original sentencing no longer advance the interest of Justice. Under this new Resentencing Law, I as well as many others believe that Gyasi Banner fits the criteria and deserves a second chance at life! Therefore, I am pleading to you to accept this petition and motion a judge to resentence him. Gyasi has been found guilty of Attempted 1st Degree Murder, Aggravated Discharge of a Firearm, Aggravated Sexual Assault and Violation of an Order of Protection. He was sentenced to 47 years in prison! Understandably, these are very serious offenses yet he always maintained his innocence when it comes to Aggravated Sexual Assault. He acknowledges the wrong in his action of discharging a firearm. His intent in discharging the firearm was not to kill or harm anyone but to scare them away.  

In the interest of justice, there was no justice in convicting Gyasi of a crime that can be clearly proven that he did not commit. I understand that the accusations of Sexual Assault are very serious and need not to be taken lightly but in every event that took place by the victim calls for questioning  which is also proven and shown on Public Records. The mother of Gyasi’s second son (who was 7 months at the time) accused him of sexually assaulting her. Her accounts of what took place after the alleged assault were fully contradicted by her aunt (witness testimony). She never made accusations of sexual assault when the police were called on 3 different occasions and she had an ample amount of opportunities to do so. She refused to complete a rape kit & refused to have her clothing tested for DNA which was corroborated by the nurse’s account and her hospital records.  Gyasi maintains his innocence even with the accusations within the records and lack of evidence saying that he committed such crime. There is no justice but a waste of precious time when you are convicted for 21 years because someone says you did something without proper evidence to prove it! I believe that because the seriousness of the crime he was accused of, it was easy for the him to be found guilty by jury just by saying he committed such a heinous act without any need for physical or corroborated evidence wrong support such accusations coupled with the jury knowledge of him committing another serious offense of 1st Degree Murder. Thankfully no one was injured or harmed. Gyasi admitted to firing the gun in the air only for his own protection, not at another person. Gyasi’s public defender could have easily made a claim of self defense but did not! Gyasi was not the aggressor in this situation. The records shows from the victim’s testimony itself that the victim’s uncle (who was 33 years old at the time which is a 13 year difference from how old Gyasi was) stated that he had no problems with Gyasi however he continued to confront Gyasi aggressively and headbutted Gyasi forcing Gyasi to engage in a fight with him. The uncle was not shot and no bullets were found in the direction he ran and there were no bullets lodged in any cars or buildings. This should give believable corroboration of Gyasi’s claim and admittance that he fired the gun into the air. His only intent was to scare the victim off to avoid further altercation.