Supreme Court Says Death Row Inmate Can Challenge Exclusion of Black Jurors
The New York Times • • general
Key Points:
- The Supreme Court ruled 5-4 in favor of Terry Pitchford, a Black death row inmate from Mississippi, who accused a white prosecutor of racially discriminating against Black jurors during jury selection.
- Pitchford was convicted in 2006 by a jury with only one Black member, despite the county being 40 percent Black, and the Court's decision entitles him to a new trial.
- The ruling reaffirmed a 40-year-old precedent prohibiting race discrimination in jury selection and criticized the prosecutor’s justification for striking nearly all potential Black jurors.
- The same prosecutor, Doug Evans, was previously condemned by the Supreme Court in 2019 for racially biased jury selection in the case of Curtis Flowers, who was tried six times and spent 23 years in prison before charges were dropped.
- The Pitchford decision highlights ongoing concerns about racial bias in jury selection and the justice system, particularly in cases involving Black defendants and predominantly white prosecutors.