Davis v. Fisk Electric Co.

I disagree with the Court’s conclusion that defense counsel’s peremptory strikes were racially motivated. Neutral reasons were given for them but were not properly preserved, in part because the rules changed during this appeal. The difference between not having neutral reasons and merely not preserving them is no technicality; charges of discrimination (like discrimination itself) can have far-reaching effects, including use in future trials.1

If we are to blame rather than just decide, we ought to be more even-handed. The plaintiffs strikes here were even more “remarkable” than the…