Karmelo Anthony: Judge Joe Brown on Batson Challenge & Texas Jury Selection

[00:00:00]not so sure about the three teachers >> Mhm.

[00:00:04]>> who were stricken just happen to be black because of the negative impact of them being teachers.

[00:00:12]But several of the other blacks who were challenged peremptorily would have been subject to challenge for cause. A peremptory challenge is you don't have to state any reason unless you are held to account and you have to show it was not for racial reasons.

[00:00:36]Um a challenge for cause means that the judge is supposed to say I agree they should have been challenged and we can't hold that against you so you still have more peremptory challenges. And they said essentially they couldn't be fair to state. So in that case uh the state was entitled having them challenged for cause and in my experience and in the number of homicide trials I've been involved in it looked like they had good cause to exclude the jurors who were challenged and I don't think it'll survive Batson. It was not an all white jury.

[00:01:18]It was just there were no blacks on it but there were other ethnicities represented. The other issue that the learned counsel for defense puts up is essentially what they call a chan train excuse me a change of venue.

[00:01:35]Meaning that in the particular jurisdiction of this state's uh domain uh the defendant was not likely to get a fair trial. But the problem is is the national press made such a big deal of it that there was likely nowhere in America that was going to be not subject to the same impact.