Chavous Ex Rel. Chavous v. Brown

Cureton, Judge:

The issue in this case is whether the constitutional guarantee of equal protection of the laws prohibits the exercise of peremptory challenges on racial grounds by private litigants in the trial of a civil case; if it does, did the respondents present non-racial based reasons for their peremptory jury challenges. We reverse and remand for a new trial.

The case arises from an automobile accident. The appellants are black and the respondents are white. Both are represented by private counsel. The petit jury list for the common pleas term consisted of seventy-five potential jurors.…