Batson v. Kentucky

Batson v. Kentucky, 476 U.S. 79 (1986), is a landmark decision of the United States Supreme Court.

James Batson, a Black man, was convicted of burglary and receipt of stolen goods. During jury selection, the prosecutor used peremptory challenges to strike all four Black jurors. Batson argued that the prosecutor’s use of peremptory challenges to exclude Black jurors violated the Equal Protection Clause.

Significance

Justice Powell’s 7-2 opinion established the framework for challenging race-based peremptory challenges (the ‘Batson challenge’). The defendant must first make a prima facie showing that the prosecutor exercised peremptory challenges based on race; the burden then shifts to the prosecutor to provide a race-neutral explanation. The Batson framework was later extended to gender discrimination (J.E.B. v. Alabama, 1994) and to defense counsel (Georgia v. McCollum, 1992).

Category

US Federal Case Law