batson challenge
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Appeals court warns that prosecutor’s comments about her, victims’ race were improper
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Colorado’s second-highest court on Thursday agreed an Arapahoe County prosecutor did not intentionally dismiss a Hispanic juror for race-based reasons, but her attempt to justify the removal by citing her own race and the race of the victims was improper. A three-judge panel for the Court of Appeals noted the prosecutor, in dismissing the Hispanic…
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Colorado justices conflicted about using views on police bias to remove jurors of color
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For two hours on Tuesday, the Colorado Supreme Court grappled with a question that could significantly affect the composition of juries going forward: If a juror of color, based on her experiences, says that bias in policing exists, would removing that person from the jury pool be tantamount to dismissing her because of her race?…
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Appeals court finds no racial discrimination in jury selection for Weld, Adams County trials
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Colorado’s second-highest court last month concluded prosecutors in Weld and Adams counties did not purposefully remove multiple Hispanic jurors from a pair of criminal trials because of their race or ethnicity. Under longstanding U.S. Supreme Court precedent, intentional race-based discrimination in jury selection is unconstitutional. If a prosecutor tries to dismiss a juror of color,…
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Racial bias proposal for jury selection remains stalled in state Supreme Court
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In February, the Colorado Supreme Court held a lengthy public hearing on a proposed rule change that would make it more difficult to remove jurors of color from criminal trials for reasons that, while not explicitly racial, may still correlate with their race. But nearly seven months later, the Supreme Court has yet to take action…
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Colorado Supreme Court accepts 3 cases, including on racial bias in jury selection
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The Colorado Supreme Court announced on Monday it will decide whether a person’s belief that racial bias exists in policing is an acceptable reason to remove them from a jury, or whether doing so violates the longstanding prohibition against race discrimination in jury selection. At least three of the court’s seven members must consent to…
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Colorado’s jury selection process: Does ‘implicit’ bias create injustice?
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In 1985, James Batson, still smarting from a failed appeal in the Kentucky Supreme Court bidding to overturn burglary and stolen goods convictions, brought his case to the United States Supreme Court. He alleged that his Sixth and Fourteenth Amendment rights had been violated by a Kentucky prosecutor. During the jury selection process, Batson and…