A group of current and former elected prosecutors, a former federal judge, and a network of leaders committed to promoting a justice system grounded in fairness, equity, compassion, and fiscal responsibility have filed an amicus brief urging the U.S. Supreme Court to grant review in Pitchford v. Mississippi, a case that raises critical concerns about racial discrimination in jury selection.
The brief submitted by Fair and Just Prosecution argues that Batson v. Kentucky, the case outlawing racial discrimination in jury selection, must be vigorously enforced in order to fulfill its constitutional mandate.
When it’s not, the defendant, the jurors who are illegally denied their right to serve on a jury because of their race, and the justice system all suffer. This is especially true in a capital case, like Pitchford’s.
The amici urge the Court to grant Pritchard’s cert petition and reverse the Fifth Circuit’s decision denying the defendant a new trial.
“Prosecutors are entrusted with seeking justice, not just convictions, and that duty demands rooting out bias in our courtrooms. When people of color are excluded from juries because of their race, it doesn’t just harm the defendant, it erodes public trust in our legal system,” said Aramis Ayala, who was Florida’s first African-American state attorney and is executive director of Fair and Just Prosecution. “This brief calls on the Court to take seriously its role in guarding against racial discrimination and to ensure our justice system lives up to its constitutional promise of fairness and equality.”
Citing Supreme Court precedent and empirical research, the brief underscores the real-world consequences of underrepresentation on juries: shorter deliberations, fewer perspectives considered, and more frequent wrongful convictions.
It also points to the deeply troubling record of the lead prosecutor in Pitchford’s case, Doug Evans—whose office was previously found by the Supreme Court to have engaged in racially discriminatory jury strikes in Flowers v. Mississippi.
The brief emphasizes the myriad harms of racial discrimination in jury selection and the racially-discriminatory history of the use of peremptory strikes, as well as different successful reforms implemented in various states and jurisdictions.
The amici urge the Court to grant certiorari, reverse the Fifth Circuit’s opinion, and make clear that Batson challenges must be rigorously investigated—especially in cases involving capital punishment and prosecutors with a documented history of discrimination.