Opinion ID: 2550813
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 11

Heading: Juror Anita Dorsey

Text: Defense counsel noted that Ms. Dorsey testified that she believes in the concept of a life for a life. She also states that after someone was found guilty of first degree murder she would vote for the death penalty and would only change her mind if he acted out of self defense. However, like Ms. Johnson, Ms. Dorsey also stated that she could listen to the evidence presented during the penalty phase, and if appropriate she could vote to impose a life sentence. The trial court ultimately denied defendant's cause challenge finding that there was not enough evidence of a deep rooted conviction about the death penalty and her comments reflected a lack of knowledge about the law. This Court noted in State v. Lee, 93-2810, p. 9 (La.5/23/94), 637 So.2d 102, 108, that a trial judge is accorded broad discretion in ruling on cause challenges because he or she has the benefit of seeing the facial expressions and hearing the vocal intonations of the members of the jury venire as they respond to questioning by the parties' attorneys. See also State v. Cross, 93-1189, pp. 6-7 (La.6/30/95), 658 So.2d 683, 686-87; Robertson, 92-2660, p. 3, 630 So.2d at 1281. In this case, we find that Ms. Dorsey's statements, when taken together, do not clearly indicate an unwavering support for the death penalty. Thus, given that a trial court has broad discretion in ruling on challenges for cause, and it was in the unique position to observe Ms. Dorsey during voir dire before making its decision, we find that defense counsel failed to prove the court abused its discretion in this case.