Supreme Court Overturns La. Murder Case

[margotb822]

Source: WaPo

The Supreme Court ruled today that a Louisiana prosecutor who secured a death sentence for a black murder defendant improperly excluded African-Americans from the jury in what the prosecutor called his "O.J. Simpson case.''

The court's 7-2 decision will overturn the conviction of Allen Snyder, who has been on death row after being convicted in 1996 of killing his estranged wife's boyfriend and seriously wounding her.

Former Jefferson Parish prosecutor James Williams, whose specialty was convincing juries to sentence murderers to death, compared Snyder's case to Simpson's and reminded jurors during the trial: "He got away with it.''

The court's opinion, written by Justice Samuel A. Alito Jr., did not mention the Simpson remarks, but focused narrowly on whether Williams had improperly excluded blacks from the jury.


Read more: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/03/19/AR2008031901252.html

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Taking down the corrupt...one at a time.

[kegler14]

1. How did I know that jerks

Thomas and Scalia would be the dissenters?

[margotb822]

2. Because they're jerks?

and predictable jerks, at that!

[jaysunb]

4. C'mon, they're not jerks

THEY'RE OUTLAWS ! :evilfrown:

[Gman]

7. If Scalia wrote a dissenting opinion

it would probably say that you don't have the right to a jury that contains AA's if you are an AA. Thomas would focus on some stupid, arcane but oblivious point of obscure law.

[darue]

3. why do people think killing a killer is justice? it just let's the killer off the hook

life in prison is a FAR harsher penalty than death.

[jus_the_facts]

5. So years of torture is the better way to go .....

....seems so hypocritical of the folks who are against the death penalty and also proclaim to be pacifists against torture.

[pdefalla]

6. Killing to end Killing?

If killing is NOT ok, then more killing cannot be the remedy. If killing IS ok, then why do we prosecute it?

[sergeiAK]

8. Hate to disappoint the black vs white crowd

But did you ever consider it might be conditional? As in all the justifiable homicide laws on the books. When the police shoot someone who shot at them, it's allowable. It's not allowable to wander out and kill the first person you meet. Conditional, you see?

Nice logical fallacy though.

[happyslug]

9. Here is the Opinion

http://www.supremecourtus.gov/opinions/07pdf/06-10119.pdf

Thomas and Scalia wrote the dissent