U.S. Supreme Court Reverses Another Alabama Death Penalty Case

<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEmO7Sxl9DNil3OtfIhNzbcg4CS9MmIbPlCY081Za6toTAUDsYKD5Q6FttSoPxVp_51615DOufWFIcLGpNpVHL61I_6HPzHKLWngEf2t-Pcd1avkqpWBc-hg_l1RDk9H83OCrLpE8Aouc/s1600/welcome-alabama.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="214" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEmO7Sxl9DNil3OtfIhNzbcg4CS9MmIbPlCY081Za6toTAUDsYKD5Q6FttSoPxVp_51615DOufWFIcLGpNpVHL61I_6HPzHKLWngEf2t-Pcd1avkqpWBc-hg_l1RDk9H83OCrLpE8Aouc/s320/welcome-alabama.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: justify;">For the 4th time in 2 months, the United States Supreme Court today overturned an Alabama death penalty case in which EJI challenged the conviction and sentence affirmed by state courts. This time, the Court reversed because of concerns about racial bias in jury selection.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Christopher Floyd was tried by an all-white jury in Houston County, Alabama, where African Americans comprise 27 % of the population. The prosecutor, Doug Valeska, has a documented history of racial discrimination in jury selection. The prosecution marked African American potential jurors with a "B" on its list of jurors to remove, then removed 10 of 11 qualified black prospective jurors.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">1 of the black jurors barred from jury service provided answers to all of the prosecution's questions during jury selection, but the prosecutor said that she did not respond to any questions and so he could not provide a race-neutral reason for removing her. EJI argued on appeal that because the prosecutor's assertion was not true, relief was required. The state courts nonetheless refused to grant relief.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">The Supreme Court today granted Mr. Floyd's request for review, reversed the state court decision, and ordered the state court to re-examine the case. The Court referred to its recent decision in <i>Foster v. Chatman</i>, in which it held that Georgia prosecutors illegally barred African Americans from serving on Mr. Foster's jury because of their race.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Racial bias has been a longstanding problem in Alabama, where more than 2 dozen cases have been reversed after courts found that prosecutors engaged in intentional racial discrimination during jury selection. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">The Equal Justice Initiative has long argued that racial bias in jury selection is a serious problem in Alabama, particularly in capital trials, where too few prosecutors have ended the practice of unfairly excluding African Americans.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Source: Equal Justice Initiative, June 21, 2016</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><b><span style="font-size: large;">SCOTUS demands new look at race of jurors of death penalty conviction in Alabama</span></b></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">The U.S. Supreme Court says lower courts in Alabama, Louisiana and Mississippi must re-examine 3 death penalty convictions for evidence of racial prejudice in jury selection.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">The court ruled Monday in the cases of Christopher Floyd of Alabama, Jabari Williams of Louisiana and Curtis Giovanni Flowers of Mississippi.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">The brief decisions followed the court's May decision to overturn the conviction and death sentence of a Georgia man because of evidence that prosecutors intentionally excluded black people from the jury.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">The May decision broke no new ground in efforts to fight racial discrimination in jury selection, but underscored a 30-year-old high court ruling that took aim at the exclusion of minorities from juries.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Flowers was convicted after 5 previous trials over the slaying of 4 people in a furniture store.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Source: Associated Press, June 21, 2016</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /><br /><b><span style="font-size: large;">US Supreme Court orders Curtis Flowers Hearing</span></b><br /><br />The US Supreme Court orders Mississippi to re-examine Curtis Flowers death penalty conviction for evidence of racial prejudice in jury selection.<br /><br />Curtis Flowers has been on death row in the 1996 killing of Winona furniture store owner Bertha Tardy and 3 of her employees. The US Supreme Court threw out today the Mississippi high court's 2014 decision affirming Flowers conviction and death sentence and told the court to look again at Flowers' claim that African American jurors were excluded from his last trial in 2010 for racial reasons.<br /><br />The decision didn't throw out Flowers conviction and death sentence but ordered the State Supreme Court to re-examine whether African American jurors were purposely excluded from serving on Flowers trial which could win Flowers a new trial.<br /><br />Source: Delta News, June 21, 2016<br /><br /></div><div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: small;">- Report an error, an omission:<a href="mailto:deathpenaltynews@gmail.com" target="_blank"> deathpenaltynews@gmail.com</a></span> <span style="font-size: small;"> </span> <span style="font-size: small;"> - Follow us on <b><a href="https://www.facebook.com/WebDPN/" target="_blank">Facebook</a> </b>and <b><a href="https://twitter.com/WebDPN" target="_blank">Twitter</a></b></span></div></div>

African-American Alabama Georgia Jury Louisiana Mississippi Race SCOTUS USA U.S. Supreme Court Reverses Another Alabama Death Penalty Case

For the 4th time in 2 months, the United States Supreme Court today overturned an Alabama death penalty case in which EJI challenged the con...

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Roof must have jury in upcoming death penalty trial, judge rules

<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhY8VBBYjO4EUWkkH6wLej23TygkNJKm5qwAxWnWR1gzhste6VmB_1X4nUqAuYaQ3Q3yzyAgTdNMCHU4o4lb3MYTZwEOqi7mRxBj1U1yz4zKiolX1YC5SIyoWblQPMTmSC0uaOc9vUt7hQ/s1600/Dylann+Roof.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="White supremacist Dylann Roof" border="0" height="298" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhY8VBBYjO4EUWkkH6wLej23TygkNJKm5qwAxWnWR1gzhste6VmB_1X4nUqAuYaQ3Q3yzyAgTdNMCHU4o4lb3MYTZwEOqi7mRxBj1U1yz4zKiolX1YC5SIyoWblQPMTmSC0uaOc9vUt7hQ/s400/Dylann+Roof.jpg" title="White supremacist Dylann Roof" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">White supremacist Dylann Roof</td></tr></tbody></table><div style="text-align: justify;"><i>Judge Richard Gergel makes quick decision to deny Roof’s request for death penalty trial by a lone judge</i></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">COLUMBIA, SC--Accused Charleston church gunman Dylann Roof will not get a federal death penalty trial decided solely by a judge.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">U.S. Judge Richard Gergel ruled Monday that Roof, an avowed white supremacist charged with killing nine African-Americans a year ago at a downtown Charleston church, must have a jury trial.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Last week, Roof and his lawyers told Gergel that he wanted to waive his right to a jury trial. The trial is expected to begin in November.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Federal prosecutors must agree to that request but made it clear in a filing Monday they will not do so.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">“The Government advises the Court that it does not consent and, instead, respectfully requests that a jury determine the Defendant’s guilt and appropriate punishment.” assistant U.S. Attorney Jay Richardson wrote.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">That objection means Roof’s request won’t be granted, Gergel said.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">“Because the Government does not consent to the waiver of a jury at either proceeding, the trial will be conducted by jury, and, should Defendant be found guilty of one or more capital crimes, the sentencing hearing will be conducted before a jury,” the judge said in his decision.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Jury selection in the case is set to begin Nov. 7 with lawyers for both sides posing questions about impartiality to hundreds of potential jurors. Opening arguments will be after a jury of 12 people and six alternates is selected, likely later in November.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Roof, 22, of Columbia, an avowed white supremacist, is accused of federal hate crimes in last June’s slayings of nine African-Americans and the wounding of three others during a Bible study gathering at Charleston’s AME Emanuel Church.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Two high-profile federal death penalty in recent years have both involved juries.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">In 1997, a federal jury in Denver recommended a death sentence for Oklahoma City bomber Timothy McVeigh. He was executed in 2001.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">In 2015, a Massachusetts jury recommended a death sentence for Boston Marathon bomber Dzhokhar Tsarnaev. He is appealing his conviction and sentence.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Last year’s massacre of African-Americans in downtown Charleston has similarly captured the nation’s attention. Because of the notoriety of the case, Gergel has suggested that a jury pool of up to 1,500 jurors may be necessary.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Roof is also scheduled to be tried in state court. He also faces the death penalty in trial, set to begin in late January.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Source: <a href="http://www.heraldonline.com/news/local/crime/article83635357.html" target="_blank">The Herald, John Monk</a>, June 14, 2016</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: small;">- Report an error, an omission:<a href="mailto:deathpenaltynews@gmail.com" target="_blank"> deathpenaltynews@gmail.com</a></span> <span style="font-size: small;"> </span> <span style="font-size: small;"> - Follow us on <b><a href="https://www.facebook.com/Death-Penalty-News-206848499362906/" target="_blank">Facebook</a> </b>and <b><a href="https://twitter.com/WebDPN" target="_blank">Twitter</a></b></span></div></div>

Dylann Roof Federal DP Hate crime Jury Mass shooting Racism South Carolina USA White supremacist Roof must have jury in upcoming death penalty trial, judge rules

White supremacist Dylann Roof Judge Richard Gergel makes quick decision to deny Roof’s request for death penalty trial by a lone judge COLUM...

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