News

Reversal and dismissal in State v. Denton for speedy trial violation

September 7, 2022 – On August 31, 2022, Division III of the Court of Appeals rejected the trial court’s treatment of the speedy trial rules as “merely aspirational,” holding the State’s routine, anticipated backlogs in its crime lab that resulted in a 204-day delay between Mr. Denton’s arraignment and the State obtaining the DNA evidence violated Mr. Denton’s right to speedy trial and required reversal and dismissal of his convictions.

Congratulations to Mr. Denton and WAP Attorney Kate Benward on this outcome!

Read the published opinion here.

The ongoing fight against racial discrimination in jury selection

January 19, 2022 – As all-white juries continue to dominate, what is being done around the nation to combat the lack of diversity?

An excellent article from the Washington Post sheds light on the persisting issues surrounding racial discrimination in juries across the nation. It explores the reasons why our juries remain so predominantly white, and discusses the ongoing efforts being made to eliminate racial bias in jury selection. Lila Silverstein, a WAP attorney, is at the forefront of these efforts.

An excerpt from the article:

In 1986, the Supreme Court ruled in the case of Batson v. Kentucky that the opposing attorney can object to a peremptory strike but has to show that the dismissal was an act of intentional racial discrimination. Advocates for increasing jury diversity say that bar has proven to be nearly impossible to clear. But in 2018, thanks to Byng and Silverstein’s advocacy, Washington became the first state to adopt rules aimed at eliminating not just intentional, but also implicit, bias in jury selection. […]

 

“Anecdotally, we are seeing that lawyers are being much more careful about exercising peremptory challenges to exclude jurors and that judges are sustaining objections to peremptory challenges much more frequently than they did before,” Silverstein said. “On the appellate level, there have been several cases over the last few years where the courts are reversing convictions where lawyers exercised inappropriate peremptory challenges,” she added, noting that in State v. Jefferson, the Washington Supreme Court reversed a murder conviction.

 

This has been a major shift in Washington, said Silverstein, who added that there had never been a reversal for racial discrimination in jury selection in the state before the new rule, despite the issue being raised more than 40 times since the federal Supreme Court decision in Batson v. Kentucky.

 

To learn more, please read: “Many juries in America remain mostly White, prompting states to take action to eliminate racial discrimination in their selection” by Emmanuel Felton (washingtonpost.com)

On Ahmaud Arbery, Charlottesville, and Racism in Jury Selection

December 21, 2021 – WAP attorney Lila Silverstein, known for her efforts on Batson reform, was recently interviewed for an article on systemic racial issues within jury selection.

The article, published by Truthout, provides timely and compelling insight into the ongoing racism within the jury selection process in light of recent events such as the murder of Ahmaud Arbery as well as the Charlottesville ‘Unite the Right’ civil trial.

An excerpt from the article:

Accusations of bias against police often figure heavily in excluding non-white jurors. Because of systemic racism throughout the U.S. criminal legal system, Black people and other people of color tend to have more unpleasant experiences with police. Because of these experiences, whichever side intends to call police to the stand tends to claim the juror of color in question cannot be impartial.

 

“It’s almost as if the system says, ‘Well, we get to discriminate against you again because you’ve been discriminated against in all these other areas of the system,’” says Lila Silverstein, a lawyer with the Washington Appellate Project, an organization that helps people who cannot afford legal representation.

 

To learn more, please read: “The Jury Selection Process Is Rigged in Favor of White Supremacy” by Laura Jedeed (truthout.org).

COVID-19: Statewide restrictions lifted as of June 30; new office policies for reopening

Under Governor Inslee’s Washington Ready plan, COVID-19 restrictions have been lifted statewide as of June 30. The Washington Appellate Project will now be transitioning to normal office hours – 9:00 AM to 5:00PM, Monday to Friday. In compliance with Inslee’s reopening guidelines, our office requires that face masks be worn unless the visitor is fully vaccinated or has a condition that prevents them from wearing a mask. Masks will remain available for all guests if needed.

The safety of our employees, clients and community while continuing to meet our obligations to our clients remains a top priority for our office.

The importance of racial diversity in juries

Photo by Clay Banks on Unsplash

April 29, 2021 – A deeper look into jury racial composition shows the necessity of racial diversity in creating a fairer justice system.

Last week, we spoke about and shared an article on jury diversity and what is being done about it in Washington State.

This new, timely article from VOA examines the jury from State v. Derek Chauvin trial in particular and further emphasizes why the racial composition of a jury matters so much. The article references another important study conducted by psychology professor Sam Sommers from Tufts University, wherein he examined stereotyping, prejudice and cognitive bias in mock juries. This research revealed that diverse juries deliberated longer, were more thorough on their consideration of evidence and facts, and were less likely to presume that a defendant was guilty.

Other studies, according to Sommers, showed that all-white juries tend to be more punitive towards Black defendants than diverse juries and white jurors were more careful when working with diverse jurors. It seems to make sense that the sharing of perspectives between a diverse group of people would lead to a more thoughtful jury.

A diverse jury such as the one involved in the Chauvin trial is a step forward, but it is sadly still not the norm. As Washington Appellate Project attorney Lila Silverstein states in the article: “I was surprised to learn that this [Chauvin] jury was diverse, because usually that’s not the case in any state in this country. No state has really gotten it right. Juries are supposed to reflect their communities, and our founders thought this was a critical element of democracy, because the government should not get to decide who should be locked up in prison, or even who should prevail in a civil dispute. Ordinary citizens exercise that right.”

Our justice system still has a long way to go, but the tides are turning. With the research and hard work of individuals and groups across the nation, such as the Equal Justice Initiative as well as our very own creation of the Jury Diversity Task Force here in Washington state, a bright future for criminal justice reform seems to be just on the horizon.

For more information on this topic, please read this article: “Why a Jury’s Racial Composition Matters” by Dora Mekouar.