Retiring Texas Judge Says, “Jurors Who Came Through My Court” Provide His Most Lasting Memories
Judge Jim Jordan, recently of the 160th District Court of Dallas County, gives an inspiring reflection on his years as a trial judge. Truly a jury-centric jurist.
Kansas Commission on Judicial Qualifications Admonishes Trial Judge for Holding Prospective Juror in Criminal Contempt
After a prospective juror failed to return to his courtroom for the second day of jury selection, Judge Christopher Magana subsequently held a criminal contempt hearing and imposed a 30-day period of incarceration. The Kansas Commission found the judge violated the Kansas Code of Judicial Conduct by predetermining the facts, not giving the juror a chance to explain herself during the hearing, and imposing an “abusive and unduly harsh” sentence. The juror in fact called the jury coordinator’s office on the morning of her absence to explain she is a single parent with no day care because her mother was sick on that day. Noteworthy too, Kansas law provides that a juror scofflaw can only be fined up to $100 for each day of unexcused absence.
Bill Advances in New York State Legislature to Restore Jury Service Rights to Ex-Felons
The Senate Judiciary Committee approved a bill to allow felons to serve on trial juries. The legislation will likely go to the Senate floor for a vote later this month or next. With strong support in both the Senate and State Assembly, New York may join Colorado and Maine as the third state to restore this right of citizenship.
The Recurring Trouble with Enforcing the Batson Doctrine
Writing in this month’s issue of Forbes magazine, trial attorney Brian Jacobs criticizes the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 2nd Circuit for its baffling denial of a Batson challenge in a cash-smuggling prosecution of a defendant of Arab descent. In United States v. Altareb, the only prospective juror of Arab heritage was peremptorily struck by the prosecutor because the juror’s husband was a taxi driver (the defendant used to be one), the juror was unemployed, and the juror received her news from Al Jazeera and the BBC. The author highlights the court of appeals’ statement that “while we might have reached a different conclusion if we were deciding this case de novo or if the only reason given by the Government was that Al Jazeera was the source of the juror’s news, we affirm the court’s rejection of the Batson challenge.” This tension between the 2nd Circuit Court’s criticism of the trial judge’s conclusion and its affirmance of the conviction again demonstrates the shortcomings of enforcing the Batson doctrine.
SCOTUS to Hear New Batson Case
A Mississippi murder case involving six retrials of the same defendant is now headed to the U.S. Supreme Court for oral argument next month. In all six prosecutions, the state prosecutor worked hard to peremptorily strike black jurors during the jury selection stage of the trial. All but the last trial ended in a mistrial. The New York Times reports that the prosecutor in each case made a practice of excluding a disproportionate number of black people from juries. The article cites research in a podcast, “In the Dark,” showing that in 225 trials handled by the prosecutor’s office over 25 years, involving 6,763 potential jurors, the prosecutor used peremptory challenges against 50 percent of black potential jurors and against 11 percent of white ones. In Flowers v. Mississippi, the Supreme Court will face the issue of whether a prosecutor’s conduct during jury selection of prior cases against the same defendant can be used to evaluate the validity of the prosecutor’s peremptory strikes in the final case that led to a conviction.
Judge Argues Against a Complexity Exception for Civil Jury Trials
In the latest issue of Jury Matters, a publication of the NYU Law School’s Civil Jury Project, Judge Kathleen O’Malley of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit argues against the proposition that there should be a “complexity exception” to the right to a jury trial in cases involving claims such as patent infringement.
North Carolina Jury Selection Thus Far Nets Only 7 Out of 400 Potential Jurors
Hurricane Florence last year heavily damaged the Pender County, North Carolina courthouse. Thus, a murder trial has been shifted to neighboring New Hanover County. The distance apparently is causing difficulty in selecting a jury panel. The traveling distance to the new courthouse appears to be an impediment thus far to obtaining a complete petit jury.
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