Opinion ID: 865371
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 4

Heading: whether the trial court erred by striking

Text: JURORS BASED UPON THEIR VIEWS OF THE DEATH PENALTY. ¶39. King asserts that the trial court violated his Sixth and Fourteenth Amendment right to a trial by an impartial jury when it excused for cause potential jurors who expressed moral convictions against the death penalty. Specifically, King argues that the trial court erroneously excused Shellie Stewart and Barbara Tucker. King relies on United States Supreme Court decision Wainwright v. Witt to support his position. 469 U.S. 412, 416 (1985) (holding that a trial court that excuses for cause prospective jurors “who express conscientious objections to capital punishment” violated a criminal defendant’s right to a trial by an impartial jury). Id. King also relies on Fuselier v. State, 468 So. 2d 45, 55 (Miss. 1985), which states “[a]bsent a clear showing that the prospective juror would be unable to follow the court’s instructions and obey the juror’s oath, that juror’s feelings regarding the death penalty do not constitute grounds for a challenge and the granting of such a challenge is reversible error.” ¶40. Shellie Stewart stated on her questionnaire that she “mildly disagreed” with the death penalty, but then marked “no” to the question, “[i]n spite of your feelings. . . could you ever 31 personally vote to impose the Death Penalty?” The prosecutor then questioned Stewart about weighing the aggravating and mitigating circumstances in light of a finding that King had a low I.Q. First, Stewart said that she “would weigh the circumstances” despite finding that “one circumstance [was] that he was of low I.Q.” However, when the prosecutor asked, “Are you telling me then that your weighing is always going to come out in favor of life because that one circumstance weighs so heavily in your mind,” Stewart responded, “[w]ith that weighing so heavily, possibly, yes.” The trial judge excused Stewart for cause. ¶41. Barbara Tucker contradicted her initial response of “mildly disagreeing” with voting in favor of the death penalty. On her questionnaire, Tucker responded that she could vote to impose the death penalty. However, during voir dire by the court Tucker responded, “I believe I automatically will vote against it, sir” when asked whether she would “follow and apply the law and consider all of the options provided by the jury instructions” or if she would automatically “vote against the death penalty regardless of the facts and the law.” During individual voir dire, the prosecutor asked Tucker if he was correct in saying that “[he] understood [her] response to be that [she] would never vote to impose the death penalty,” to which she responded, “I said I didn’t believe that I could.” The prosecutor continued and asked, “[c]an you, Ms. Tucker, can you ever really vote to give somebody the death penalty?” Tucker responded, “[i]t would be hard, very hard. To tell you that I can’t, I can’t just honestly sit here and tell you that. I can tell you that I know it would be very hard.” However, in response to the defense’s questioning about her questionnaire where she marked that she “ mildly disagreed” with the death penalty, Tucker said, “Yeah, I circled 32 that. Yeah. It’s more mildly than strongly.” After reviewing cases on strikes for cause dealing with views toward the death penalty, the trial judge excused Tucker for cause. ¶42. The test to determine when a prospective juror’s views on the death penalty justify his removal is whether the trial court finds that the “juror’s views would prevent or substantially impair the performance of his duties as a juror in accordance with his instructions and his oath” thus leaving the trial court “with the definite impression that a prospective juror would be unable to faithfully and impartially apply the law.” Wainwright v. Witt, 469 U.S. 412, 424-26, 105 S. Ct. 844, 852-53, 83 L. Ed. 2d 841, 851-52 (1985). If the judge is concerned with the response given, he must further determine whether the potential juror could follow the law as instructed even if the juror expressed a general disapproval of the death penalty. Id. “[T]his is why deference must be paid to the trial judge who sees and hears the juror.” Id. at 426. ¶43. The trial judge has wide discretion in determining whether to excuse any prospective juror, including one challenged for cause. Mississippi Winn-Dixie Supermarkets v. Hughes, 247 Miss. 575, 156 So. 2d 734, 738 (1963). However, it is reversible error if one juror is erroneously excused from the jury on the basis of his view on the death penalty. Gray v. Mississippi, 481 U.S. 648, 107 S. Ct. 2045, 95 L. Ed. 2d 622 (1987). ¶44. In Dufour v. State, 453 So. 2d 337, 341-44 (Miss. 1984), potential jurors were excluded who gave contradictory responses, wavered on their position and generally appeared confused regarding the death penalty issue. This Court found no reversible error in the trial court’s excluding the potential jurors for cause. Id. at 345. This Court also has upheld decisions to exclude jurors based on their inability to provide a consistent answer 33 regarding their views on the death penalty. Spicer v. State, 921 So. 2d 292, 322 (Miss. 2006). ¶45. The record clearly establishes that the trial court excluded Tucker because she repeatedly switched positions as to whether she supported or opposed the death penalty, and gave wavering responses when asked whether she could vote for the death penalty. This Court has previously stated that “[i]t goes without saying that a potential juror who cannot give a straight answer would be very unlikely to follow the law.” King v. State, 784 So. 2d 884, 888 (Miss. 2001). Therefore, the trial court did not abuse its discretion in excusing this juror. Likewise, we cannot say that the trial court abused its discretion in excusing Stewart for cause. On her jury questionnaire, Stewart responded that she could not vote for the death penalty. Further, the judge had ample opportunity to observe this juror’s responses and demeanor during voir dire, which he found sufficient to determine that her feelings toward the death penalty would substantially impair her duties to perform as a juror. For these reasons, we find that the trial court did not abuse its discretion in striking both jurors. Therefore, we find this issue to be without merit.