Exclusion of Jewish Jurors Prompts Review of California Death Row Cases
The New York Times
Dozens of cases are under review after notes from jury selection in a 1990s murder case indicated that prosecutors worked to exclude Jews.
A jury was being chosen for a murder trial nearly three decades ago in California. The state was seeking a death sentence for Ernest Dykes, who had been charged with killing a 9-year-old boy during a robbery in Oakland.
Weighing who should be struck from the jury pool and who should be kept, a prosecutor made notes about a prospective juror:
“I liked him better than any other Jew but no way.”
Other notes about prospective jurors bore evidence of similar prejudice:
“Banker. Jew?” read one.
“Jew? Yes,” read another.
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