Hart v. State

Rodney Hart v. State, No. 1015, Sept. Term 2022. Opinion by Arthur, J. CRIMINAL LAW – PEREMPTORY CHALLENGES Under Batson v. Kentucky,

476 U.S. 79

(1986), and its progeny, exercising peremptory challenges against a prospective juror on the basis of race, gender, or ethnicity violates the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment. When a party makes a Batson challenge, a court typically employs a three-step analysis. The party challenging the strike must first make a prima facie showing that the opposing party’s peremptory challenge was exercised on a constitutionally prohibited basis.…