Thread by @HalMarshall2309

This is awful.

“A judge ruled Wednesday that he'll seat one Black juror and 11 whites to decide the trial of the men who chased and killed Ahmaud Arbery, despite prosecutors' objections that several Black potential jurors were cut because of their race.”

https://twitter.com/megawatts55/status/1456088905481129988

“Superior Court Judge Timothy Walmsley acknowledged that ‘intentional discrimination’ by attorneys for the three white defendants charged in the death of the Black man appeared to have shaped jury selection. But he said Georgia law limited his authority to intervene.

“ … Minutes after the attorneys had finished narrowing a panel of 48 to a final jury of 12 on Wednesday, prosecutor Linda Dunikoski noted only a single Black juror made the panel.
She argued that defense lawyers had struck eight Black potential jurors because of their race.

“The U.S. Supreme Court has held that it is unconstitutional for attorneys during jury selection to strike potential jurors solely based on race or ethnicity.

“Laura Hogue, an attorney for Greg McMichael, insisted those jury panelists were cut for other reasons — namely for expressing strong opinions about the case when questioned individually by attorneys.

“ ‘I can give you a race-neutral reason for any one of these,’ Hogue said.

“She noted one such juror had written on her juror questionnaire that Arbery was shot ‘due to his color’ and had told attorneys she felt the defendants were guilty.

“Superior Court Judge Timothy Walmsley denied prosecutors' request to reinstate those eight Black potential jurors, though he said: ‘This court has found there appears to be intentional discrimination in the panel.’

“The judge said his ability to change the jury’s racial makeup was limited because defense attorneys were able to give nonracial reasons for their decisions to strike the potential Black jurors.

“ ‘They have been able to explain to the court why besides race those individuals were struck from the panel,’ Walmsley said.”

This is encouraging, however.

“Arbery's mother, Wanda Cooper-Jones, told reporters outside the courthouse she found it ‘devastating’ that only one Black juror will be seated.

“Still, she said of the final jury: ‘I’m very confident that they’ll make the right decision after seeing all the evidence.’

“Her attorney, S. Lee Merritt, said he still believes the trial will end in a conviction, though defense lawyers had ‘created a jury that was more favorable for their defendants, an almost entirely white jury.’ “

If the defendants are acquitted I’d expect a federal indictment. The area that federal courts draw from is much larger than the single county for this Georgia state court. That means a more diverse jury is more likely.