Opinion ID: 195758
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 4

Heading: the peremptory challenge

Text: 24 Appellant's most striking argument concerns the prosecution's challenge of the juror, Goodrum. We begin by tackling that matter. 25 A. The Framework for Inquiry. 26 The Supreme Court has recognized that in civil and criminal trials potential jurors, as well as litigants, have an equal protection right to jury selection procedures that are free from group stereotypes rooted in, and reflective of, historical prejudice. See J.E.B. v. Alabama, --- U.S. ----, ----, 114 S.Ct. 1419, 1421, 128 L.Ed.2d 89 (1994) (finding gender, like race, to be an unconstitutional proxy for juror competence and impartiality); Powers v. Ohio, 499 U.S. 400, 402, 111 S.Ct. 1364, 1366, 113 L.Ed.2d 411 (1990) (stating that racial discrimination in the selection of jurors offends the dignity of persons and the integrity of courts). 27 In evaluating an equal protection challenge to a prosecutor's use of a peremptory strike, a three-part framework should be employed. See Batson, 476 U.S. at 96-98, 106 S.Ct. at 1722-24; United States v. Perez, 35 F.3d 632, 635 (1st Cir.1994). First, the defendant must make a prima facie showing of discrimination in the prosecutor's launching of the strike. See Batson, 476 U.S. at 96-97, 106 S.Ct. at 1722-23. If the defendant fulfills this requirement by establishing, say, a prima facie case of a racially driven impetus, 2 then the prosecutor must proffer a race-neutral explanation for having challenged the juror. See id. at 97, 106 S.Ct. at 1723; see also United States v. Lewis, 40 F.3d 1325, 1341-42 (1st Cir.1994). The prosecutor's burden is merely a burden of production, not a burden of persuasion. If the prosecutor complies, then, at the third and final stage, the district court must decide whether the defendant has carried the ultimate burden of proving that the strike constituted purposeful discrimination on the basis of race. See Hernandez v. New York, 500 U.S. 352, 358-59, 111 S.Ct. 1859, 1865-66, 114 L.Ed.2d 395 (1991) (discussing Batson ); Perez, 35 F.3d at 635. 28 In making a Batson challenge, the defendant retains the burden of proof throughout. As part and parcel of this burden, he must carry the devoir of persuasion regarding the existence of a prima facie case of race-based discrimination in the jury selection process. See Batson, 476 U.S. at 96-97, 106 S.Ct. at 1722-23. The combination of factors needed to establish a prima facie case are limned in Chakouian v. Moran, 975 F.2d 931, 933 (1st Cir.1992). Initially, the defendant must demonstrate that the prosecution's challenge was directed at a member of a cognizable racial group. 3 See Batson, 476 U.S. at 96, 106 S.Ct. at 1722; Chakouian, 975 F.2d at 933. Next, the defendant must show that the challenge was peremptory rather than for cause, thus bringing into play the Supreme Court's admonition that peremptory challenges constitute a jury selection practice that permits 'those to discriminate who are of a mind to discriminate.'  Batson, 476 U.S. at 96, 106 S.Ct. at 1723 (quoting Avery v. Georgia, 345 U.S. 559, 562, 73 S.Ct. 891, 892, 97 L.Ed. 1244 (1953)). Finally, the defendant must show circumstances sufficient, when combined with the two antecedent facts, to raise an inference that the prosecutor struck the venireperson on account of race. See id. While the prima facie case requirement is not onerous, neither can it be taken for granted. 29 B. Standard of Review. 30 This court has yet to articulate the appropriate standard against which to test a trial court's ruling that a defendant has--or has not--made out a prima facie case in connection with a Batson challenge. We do so today. 31 A careful reading of Batson convinces us that, although this determination can be characterized as a mixed question of law and fact, it is fact-sensitive, and, therefore, should be reviewed under the familiar clear-error standard. See generally In re Howard, 996 F.2d 1320, 1328 (1st Cir.1993) (The standard of review applicable to mixed questions usually depends upon where they fall along a degree-of-deference continuum: the more fact-dominated the question, the more likely it is that the trier's resolution of it will be accepted unless shown to be clearly erroneous.). Our holding is consistent with the Supreme Court's expression of confidence that trial judges, experienced in conducting and supervising voir dire, will likely be able to identify prima facie cases of discrimination. See Batson, 476 U.S. at 97, 106 S.Ct. at 1723. Our holding is also consistent with the decisions of the five other courts of appeals that thus far have confronted the same standard-of-review problem and resolved it in like manner. See United States v. Vasquez-Lopez, 22 F.3d 900, 901 (9th Cir.), cert. denied, --- U.S. ----, 115 S.Ct. 239, 130 L.Ed.2d 162 (1994); United States v. Branch, 989 F.2d 752, 755 (5th Cir.), cert. denied, --- U.S. ----, 113 S.Ct. 3060, 125 L.Ed.2d 742 (1993); United States v. Casper, 956 F.2d 416, 418 (3d Cir.1992); United States v. Moore, 895 F.2d 484, 485 (8th Cir.1990); United States v. Grandison, 885 F.2d 143, 146 (4th Cir.1989), cert. denied, 495 U.S. 934, 110 S.Ct. 2178, 109 L.Ed.2d 507 (1990). 32 C. Analysis. 33 We detect no clear error in the district court's rejection of appellant's proffered prima facie case. Although the striking of the only juror of a particular race can be sufficient to ground a permissive inference of discrimination in certain circumstances, see, e.g., United States v. Roan Eagle, 867 F.2d 436, 441 (8th Cir.), cert. denied, 490 U.S. 1028, 109 S.Ct. 1764, 104 L.Ed.2d 199 (1989), such a strike does not raise a necessary inference of discrimination, see Vasquez-Lopez, 22 F.3d at 902. Phrased another way, the mere fact that the prosecutor challenges the only juror of a particular race, without more, does not automatically give rise to an inescapable inference of discriminatory intent. A defendant who advances a Batson argument ordinarily should come forward with facts, not just numbers alone. Moore, 895 F.2d at 485; accord United States v. Dawn, 897 F.2d 1444, 1448 (8th Cir.), cert. denied, 498 U.S. 960, 111 S.Ct. 389, 112 L.Ed.2d 400 (1990). 34 Here, the defendant provided nothing in the way of either direct or circumstantial proof to buttress the naked statistic on which he relies. This failure is all the more glaring because the circumstances attendant to the Goodrum strike point away from an inference of discrimination. This case involves a single strike, not multiple strikes. The government's other peremptories were exercised in an unexceptionable manner. Appellant essayed no proffer showing that either the particular prosecutor or the prosecutor's office regularly engaged in a pattern of suspicious strikes. The prosecutor's questions and statements during voir dire do not suggest racial discrimination, but, instead, seem to reflect a concern with the prospective juror's ability to reach a fair and impartial verdict. This is of considerable importance, as the Court has directed trial judges in such circumstances to examine the prosecutor's questions and statements during voir dire for signs of purposeful discrimination. Batson, 476 U.S. at 97, 106 S.Ct. at 1723. 35 The capstone, of course, is that the colloquy between the prospective juror and the two lawyers reflects a legitimate, nondiscriminatory reason why conscientious counsel might desire to exclude the juror from further service. After all, Goodrum admitted that it would be a struggle to achieve impartiality, and that he had a problem with cases involving adults and drugs. The prosecutor, understandably concerned that the talesman ha[d] a big heart for people in trouble, had no obligation either to ignore these comments or to accept at face value Goodrum's prediction that, in the end, he could put aside his problem and do it right. 36 Voir dire represents not only the introduction of potential jurors to the factual and legal issues to be aired at trial, see Powers, 499 U.S. at 412, 111 S.Ct. at 1371, but also the lawyers' introduction to the venire. Its core purpose is to provide a firm foundation for ferreting out bias. A healthy byproduct is that a careful voir dire eliminates any need to rely on stereotypes. See J.E.B., --- U.S. at ----, 114 S.Ct. at 1429; United States v. Whitt, 718 F.2d 1494, 1497 (10th Cir.1983). Withal, the line between discriminatory and nondiscriminatory strikes is not always easily drawn. As courts labor to plot it, trial lawyers are entitled, at a bare minimum, to a bit of breathing room. In the end, jury selection is not an exact science. Its watchwords are judgment, flexibility, and discretion. Although attorneys cannot be permitted to exercise peremptory challenges based on race or gender, they are not prohibited altogether from striking venirepersons of a particular race or gender. 37 We will not paint the lily. Evaluative judgments concerning juror suitability are often made partially in response to nuance, demeanor, body language, and a host of kindred considerations. Thus, the trial judge, who sees and hears both the prospective juror and the opposing attorneys in action, is in the best position to pass judgment on counsel's motives. Recognizing that we ought to cede considerable deference to a district judge who observes the voir dire at first hand, see Batson, 476 U.S. at 97, 106 S.Ct. at 1723, we refuse to second-guess Judge Lagueux's implicit finding that the prosecutor struck Goodrum because of doubts about Goodrum's big heart and impending struggle, rather than for some evil purpose. It follows that the court did not err in finding that appellant failed to establish a prima facie case of race-based discrimination in the prosecution's use of its peremptory challenges. 4