A jury convicted him of the 2023 drive-by shooting in Ottawa. Anthony Brito thinks the jury got it wrong. Now, he’s arguing for a new trial and without a lawyer’s help.

Anthony Brito, 32, appeared Wednesday in La Salle County Circuit Court in his ongoing bid to reverse his conviction for attempted murder, a charge filed after shots were fired outside La Salle County’s downtown courthouse.

If his conviction is upheld, Brito is going to prison for up to 50 years.

Sentencing has been on hold since autumn, when his trial lawyer withdrew and the public defender entered the case to argue for post-conviction relief. Brito apparently disagreed with the public defender, too, because now he’s acting as his own lawyer. (Pro se, in legal parlance.)

Chief Judge H. Chris Ryan Jr. gave Brito a March 4 status hearing to review the trial transcripts. He’ll read them in jail: Brito remains convicted of a Class X felony and won’t go free unless he persuades the judge he’s entitled to relief.

Brito stood for trial in August and was convicted of four felonies, including attempted murder. A jury rejected his claims that there wasn’t enough direct evidence to link him to the shots fired at Larry Burns, who was not injured. Prosecutors persuaded jurors that Brito was trying to silence Burns, who was cooperating in a separate investigation against Brito.

Sentencing was scheduled for mid-October when Brito disagreed with Chicago defense attorney Charles Snowden, who was permitted to withdraw from the case. The public defender agreed to fill in for Snowden but Wednesday’s hearing suggests an attorney-client disagreement there, too.

Brito’s motions are pending in La Salle County Circuit Court, but in a handwritten filing entered previously, he said he was not adequately represented at trial and wants new proceedings.