Friday, April 29, 2016

Juror's Objection to Lack of Diversity in Jury Panel Results in New Trial

The issue of racial makeup of juries came to a head when a juror arose in a Tennessee courtroom and stated that he felt it was unfair for two black men to be tried when no person of color was on the jury panel.
Here is a link to the newspaper article which discusses BATSON challenges to an attorney's peremptory strikes of jurors.  If there is an objection to a strike as being racially-motivated, the striking lawyer must establish a race-neutral basis for striking that juror.


The fact relevant to this blog is that it is alleged that during a break the juror's were discussing this issue, thereby violating the judge's admonition not to discuss the case:


http://www.tennessean.com/story/news/crime/2016/04/25/nashville-jurors-objection-race-leads-new-trial/83290360/

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