The US Supreme Court has dealt a legal pushback and a big blow to racial bias in criminal cases, making it easier to unwind all convictions of defendants whose jurors show personal prejudices during their deliberations.
Justice Anthony Kennedy joined the court’s four liberal members in limiting the scope of Colorado’s “no impeachment rule,” which is designed to protect the finality of verdicts and the secrecy of deliberations.
in a case involving a man convicted of harassment and unlawful sexual conduct. One of the jurors repeatedly made bigoted statements about “Mexicans. Racial bias in the jury room can violate a defendant’s right to a fair trial, Supreme Court says http://wapo.st/2mtxVEn?tid=ss_tw
The dissenters worry about chilling candor in deliberations. Opinion analysis: Divided court rules for defendant in a juror-bias case. http://www.scotusblog.com/2017/03/opinion-analysis-divided-court-rules-…
U.S. SUPREME COURT RULING https://www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/16pdf/15-606_886b.pdf