Jacinta Gau
Associate Professor Of Criminal Justice, University Of Central Florida
Key Findings
- A majority (roughly two-thirds) of juries in both urban and rural counties were White.
- The White jurors were over-represented in juries in regards to the population in both urban and rural counties.
- The result of the over-representation of Whites and under-representation of minorities occurs in the venire selection process used for juror selection.
- Despite the population in both counties, Whites make up a larger portion of the venireperson population and are slightly (3%) more likely to join juries.
- Hispanic/Latino and Asian venirepersons are less likely to become jurors (2% and 1% respectively) while there is no difference between the likelihood Black venirepersons becoming jurors.
- Race impacted the probability a venireperson would be struck down in jury selection by either the prosecution or defense.
- Persons of color were most likely to be removed from for-cause venire selection due to hardship with Asians being most impacted (22.1%), Hispanic/Latinos (18.1%), Blacks (8.5%), and Whites (5.5%).
- More than 60% of juries consisted of a majority or all White jurors.
Description
In the article, “A Jury of Whose Peers? The Impact of Selection Procedures on Racial Composition and the Prevalence of Majority-White Juries,” Gau and her co-authors examine the juror selection procedures and the impact on the racial composition juries. Current research has shown that minorities are still underrepresented on juries in spite of being deemed superior in courts and more legitimate in the eyes of the public. Researchers conducted their study by using data from a circuit court in the United States and included felony cases where the defendants were represented by public defenders (which is representative of felony defendants in urban areas nationally) in both urban and rural counties. The results showed that a majority (roughly two-thirds) of juries in both urban and rural counties were White. The White jurors were over-represented in juries in regards to the population in both urban and rural counties. The results also showed the result of the over-representation of Whites and under-representation of minorities occurs in the venire selection process, where the pool of potential jurors are narrowed down for final juror selection. Despite the population in both counties, Whites make up a larger portion of the venireperson population and are slightly (3%) more likely to join juries. Hispanic/Latino and Asian venirepersons are less like to become jurors (2% and 1% respectively), and there is no difference between the likelihood Black venirepersons becoming jurors. The researchers also found that race impacted the probability a venireperson would be struck down in jury selection by either the prosecution or defense. Persons of color were most likely to be removed from for-cause venire selection due to hardship, with Asians being most impacted (22.1%), Hispanic/Latinos (18.1%), Blacks (8.5%), and Whites (5.5%). Finally, the researchers found that more than 60% of juries consisted of a majority or all White jurors. In conclusion, the authors note that more research needs to be done to locate the cause of under-representation of minorities and that policy based on research needs to be implemented.