Opinion ID: 2067933
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Challenge to the Jury Pool and Voir Dire

Text: [¶ 7] Holland is African-American. On February 24, 2006, he filed motions challenging the racial composition of the York County jury pool and requesting State funds to conduct a jury pool study. On March 1, 2006, the day of his arraignment, Holland filed a motion to change venue. After changes of court-appointed counsel and several continuances, the court ( Bradford, J. ): (1) granted Holland's motion for a change of venue; (2) transferred the case for trial to Androscoggin County; and (3) granted Holland $750 to conduct a jury pool study. [¶ 8] Holland subsequently filed a motion challenging the jury pool in Androscoggin County and a motion requesting State funds for a jury pool expert. Holland's counsel also filed a motion to withdraw. Holland's motion challenging the jury pool asserted that the jury selection process was not race-neutral, that it systemically resulted in underrepresentation of African Americans, and accordingly, violated his constitutional rights under the Sixth Amendment and the Equal Protection Clause. [¶ 9] The Superior Court ( Delahanty, J. ) held a hearing on the motions. The court denied counsel's motion to withdraw. The court also concluded that the challenge to the jury panel for Androscoggin County was premature. The court denied additional funds for an expert based on Holland's failure to show grounds, the expert methodology, and basis for the expert's charges. The court noted that it had previously approved $750 for a study, and that there was no sufficient showing that those funds had been used or were inadequate. [¶ 10] Jury selection was conducted on May 19, 2008. At Holland's request, the court gave the prospective jurors a written questionnaire containing eighteen questions intended to examine the potential jurors' feelings about and experiences concerning African-Americans and other minorities. The questions asked included whether the potential juror feels nervous, anxious, or intimidated alone in the presence of a black male; feels uncomfortable around black people; has lived with or has a close friendship with a black person; and, if the juror answered yes to any of the eighteen questions, whether the juror's feelings make it difficult for him or her to be fair and impartial. Of the eighty-one venire persons, seventeen responded affirmatively to one or more of the questions and also responded that their feelings would make it difficult for them to be fair and impartial jurors. The court excused each of those seventeen jurors. Forty-five additional jurors responded affirmatively to one or more of the additional questions, most stating they had lived with or had a close friendship with an African-American, but also stating that their ability to be fair and impartial would not be impaired. [¶ 11] Based on the written answers, the court excused for cause several additional prospective jurors. Holland objected to twelve other potential jurors who stated that: (1) they felt intimidated by and uncomfortable around African-Americans; (2) they or someone in their family had used a particular racial epithet; or (3) both; but (4) they thought they could be fair and impartial. After other voir dire was conducted, the court granted Holland's challenges for cause as to jurors based on their having admitted to using, or having family members who used, the racial epithet. This left four potential jurors in the venire pool who had stated that they felt uncomfortable or intimidated around African-Americans, but that they could be fair and impartial. The court did not ask, and Holland did not request, although invited to do so, further questions of the challenged jurors concerning their feelings about race. [¶ 12] Of the four remaining potential jurors whom Holland had challenged for cause, one was struck by the State's exercise of a peremptory challenge. Holland did not use his eight peremptory challenges to strike any of the remaining three challenged jurors. Two of the three challenged jurors were impaneled. [¶ 13] Holland then objected to the jury based on lack of racial diversity. Holland argued that, based on his observations, the assembled jury pool contained no racial minorities. The court and State both agreed with this observation. Holland made an offer of proof that the panel was assembled pursuant to the normal protocol that the clerk's office uses, and that it is typical to the racial outcome that they are expected and normally do see in this county, that nothing untoward or unusual was done in reference to this selection process, and this is consistent with the way things have been done for at least ... the last five years or longer.... The court clarified, By that you're talking about the so-called master plan that exists and the process of obtaining the names from the Secretary of State's office, to which Holland agreed. [3] [¶ 14] The court stated that the clerk had compiled some information at the court's request, i.e., that 151 people total were summonsed of which twenty-five were excused for medical reasons, nineteen were deferred for work or financial reasons, eleven failed to appear, and there were four whose mail was returned for improper address and the like. Of the remaining ninety-two potential jurors, two called in sick on the day of jury selection. The court believed eighty-one potential jurors actually appeared for Holland's jury selection. The court noted that it had no way of knowing the race of the potential jurors who did not appear for jury duty because the questionnaires sent to prospective jurors do not request racial information. The court also observed, based on the sitting justice's personal experience, that minorities have been in the jury pool and have sat on juries in Androscoggin County over the last twenty-five years, but that the court had no actual figures and would not guess. [¶ 15] Holland requested that the court take judicial notice of census data from Androscoggin County stating that the racial composition of the county for the year 2000, the most recent statistics then available, was 97% White, 0.7% Black, 0.3% Native American, 0.6% Asian, and .3% other, and that 1% of the population was described as Hispanic. The census data also shows that 1.2% of the county's 2000 population represented more than one race. Holland acknowledged that the racial data included all persons in the county in 2000 regardless of age, citizenship status, or eligibility for jury duty. [¶ 16] Holland concluded by arguing that the venire pool, and thus the jurors that ultimately participated in the voir dire, were not a fair and equal representative of the community in which Holland was to be tried, that the jury pool selected was based on an unfair selection process, and he was denied equal protection and due process. Holland requested that the court either change venue to a locale where the probability of a representative sample is higher, such as Portland; convene a separate panel for which the court would affirmatively seek out racial minorities to serve as jurors; or provide a different mechanism of selection that would increase the number of racial minorities in the jury pool. Finding no evidence to support Holland's assertion that minorities were systematically excluded from the jury pool, the court denied Holland's objection to the jury.