Supreme Court Throws Out Death Sentence From All-White Jury

[askeptic]

Source: New York Times

WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court ruled decisively in favor of a death-row inmate in Georgia on Monday, chastising state prosecutors for improperly keeping African-Americans off the jury that convicted him of killing a white woman.

The justices ruled 7-1 in favor of death row inmate Timothy Tyrone Foster in underscoring the importance of rules they laid out in 1986 to prevent racial discrimination in the selection of juries.

Chief Justice John Roberts wrote for the court that Georgia "prosecutors were motivated in substantial part by race" when they struck African-Americans from the jury pool.

But the court did nothing to limit peremptory strikes, lawyers' ability to reject potential jurors without offering any reason. The late Thurgood Marshall once said that racial discrimination would persist in jury selection unless peremptory strikes were curtailed.

Read more: http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/2016/05/23/us/politics/ap-us-supreme-court-all-white-jury.html

---

Wouldn't you know the dissenter is Thomas

[Glimmer of Hope]

1. Wtf is it with Thomas? Ugh!

[forest444]

2. He probably craves acceptance from the very people who despise him.

That explains most right-wingers.

[truebluegreen]

4. Self-loathing, I'd say.

[IronLionZion]

9. Clarence Thomas is why we need Dem presidents to appoint judges

I'm disappointed in Joe Biden's role in his confirmation.

[Skittles]

19. repuke whore

[angstlessk]

3. Without reading the article, I thought Thomas was the 1 dissenter!

scroll down...and dern, I'm right!...er, he's right, I'm correct!

[3catwoman3]

5. why did I know it was going to be...

...good old Clarence before I even got to the bottom of your post.

[Democat]

6. Thomas is terrible

Sad that some Democrats voted to approve a right winger like him on the highest court in America.

[samsingh]

7. how truly evil is thomas?

[samsingh]

8. this would have been 7-2 had scalia been there

[procon]

10. I suspect that shutting out black jury members

is the standard throughout the south. Maybe this will send a message... nah, who am I kidding.

[lark]

11. Scalia would have dissented too.

The court sure is better without his presence.

[rurallib]

12. Scalia may have taken a couple more with him

in Alito and Roberts. so to reinforce what you said:
The court sure is better without his presence

[Else You Are Mad]

13. We can all thank David Brock...

For the one dissenting justice on this opinion. Please see what Brock did to Anita Hill during Thomas's confirmation hearing.

Good thing he is working on behalf of Hillary Clinton.

ETA: I know that he mostly did his character assassination after Thomas was appointed, but he was part of the right wing push to discredit her.

[rladdi]

14. And the Black sex abuser on the Supreme Court would not take part in the decision.

[happyslug]

15. Here is the actual opinion, extensive attack on the DA use of race in this case:

Last edited Mon May 23, 2016, 03:46 PM - Edit history (1)

http://www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/15pdf/14-8349_6k47.pdf

Please note this case was tried 30 years ago and the Defendant has been in and out of court ever since (while always staying in Jail on Death Row). The Defendant is a mentally Retarded Defendant whose case has been heard by the US Supreme Court before, but on the issue of IQ not racial discrimination..

[moriah]

16. Was watching this case, glad even if it doesn't go far enough that it's binding. Nt

[Judi Lynn]

17. Thank you for posting this information. n/t

[marble falls]

18. Shocked. But pleased.