Abstract

Comment: Jury Selection
The use of the peremptory challenge for discriminatory purposes has long compromised the fairness of the jury selection process. Batson v. Kentucky takes strides toward eliminating this problem.

Batson held that a defendant who claims that a prosecutor has discriminatorily used his peremptory challenges must meet three basic requirements. First, the defendant must show that he is a member of a cognizable racial group. Second, he must show that the prosecutor has used his peremptory challenges to remove members of the defendant's race from the venire. Third, the defendant must show that the surrounding facts and circumstances raise an inference that the prosecutor used his peremptory challenges to exclude people from the jury on account of their race. The prosecutor may then rebut this inference by offering a racially neutral reason for the manner in which he used peremptory challenges.

This Comment discusses the Batson decision and its historical background. It also evaluates Batson's effect on prosecutors' use of the peremptory challenge. Finally, the Comment focuses on Justice Marshall's concurrence in Batson. While praising the Batson decision as a significant step towards ending jury discrimination, Justice Marshall accurately recognizes that Batson is not a complete solution to the problem.

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