Can Courtroom Racial Prejudice Be Proved?

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The U.S. Supreme Court decided Monday 7-1 to side with Timothy Tyrone Foster over his claim that black jurors were improperly struck from the jury that sentenced him to death. The case has been sent back to lower courts in Georgia for further proceedings.

Writing for the majority, Chief Justice John Roberts noted markings of the letter “B” next to the names of black jurors in prosecutors’ notes. “The focus on race in the prosecution’s file plainly demonstrates a concerted effort to keep black prospective jurors off the jury,” the jurist wrote. He added, “Two peremptory strikes on the basis of race are two more than the Constitution allows.”

The sole dissent came from Justice Clarence Thomas — the court’s only African-American member — who wrote that his colleagues should have deferred to lower courts, which found that prosecutors gave credible “race-neutral reasons” for striking the black jurors.

“This discrimination became apparent only because we obtained the prosecution’s notes which revealed their intent to discriminate,” Stephen Bright, Foster’s attorney, said in a statement. “Usually that does not happen. The practice of discriminating in striking juries continues in courtrooms across the country.”

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