Newman v. State
Decision Date | 25 November 1992 |
Docket Number | CR-91-961 |
Citation | 667 So.2d 132 |
Parties | Johnny Jesse NEWMAN v. STATE. |
Court | Alabama Court of Criminal Appeals |
Appeal from Houston Circuit Court, No. CC-91-550; Denny Holloway, Judge.
Charles McDougle, Jr., Dothan, for appellant.
James H. Evans and Jeff Sessions, Attys. Gen., and Norbert Williams, Asst. Atty. Gen., for appellee.
The appellant, Johnny Jesse Newman, was convicted after a jury trial of the capital offense of murder committed during the course of a burglary, in violation of § 13A-5-40(a)(4), Code of Alabama 1975. He was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole. He raises 10 issues on appeal; however, because we reverse on this issue, we need only discuss whether the state exercised its peremptory challenges in violation of Batson v. Kentucky, 476 U.S. 79, 106 S.Ct. 1712, 90 L.Ed.2d 69 (1986).
At trial, the court stated that it did not believe that the appellant had proved a prima facie case of discrimination, but it nevertheless ordered the state, over objection, to provide reasons for its strikes. Therefore, this court will review the propriety of those strikes. See Huntley v. State, 627 So.2d 1013, 1016 (Ala.1992) ( ); McLeod v. State, 581 So.2d 1144 (Ala.Cr.App.1990); Currin v. State, 535 So.2d 221 (Ala.Cr.App.), cert. denied, 535 So.2d 225 (Ala.1988). See also Hernandez v. New York, 500 U.S. 352, 111 S.Ct. 1859, 114 L.Ed.2d 395 (1991).
The appellant contends that the state improperly struck black venirepersons because, he says, the voir dire does not support the state's proffered reasons for its strikes of black venirepersons. Because one unconstitutional strike requires reversal, see Ex parte Bird, 594 So.2d 676 (Ala.1991); Harrell v. State, 555 So.2d 263 (Ala.1989); Parker v. State, 568 So.2d 335 (Ala.Cr.App.1990), we need discuss only the strike that we conclude was improper.
The prosecutor stated that he struck J.M., venireperson no. 90, because a deputy sheriff knew her. He also stated that "we" checked her address to confirm her identity and that she was from Gordon. He further stated that the deputy told him that "just about the whole family ... has been prosecuted by our staff here in this circuit" and that consequently he believed that she would be biased against state. Our examination of the voir dire questioning reveals that J.M. did not respond to the prosecutor's voir dire question of whether any of her family members or friends had been prosecuted for committing a felony.
It could be argued that the prosecutor's reason for striking J.M. did not conflict with her silence because the prosecutor did not distinguish whether the crimes for which her relatives had been prosecuted were misdemeanors or felonies, whereas her silence could only be taken to mean that she knew of no felony prosecution. However, we will not resort to speculation on the question of whether the prosecutor, in giving his reason, was speaking only of misdemeanors; if he had knowledge that the veniremember's relatives had been prosecuted for misdemeanors only, he should have so specified. Because he did not so specify, we are left only a the glaring inconsistency. If he did not know in what category the prosecutions fell, and it will be apparent below that he did not, we consider that he should have taken action to resolve any doubt that would have existed based on his information and the venireperson's silent declaration that none of her relatives had been prosecuted for a felony.
This strike is virtually indistinguishable from two of the strikes held to constitute reversible error in Walker v. State, 611 So.2d 1133 (Ala.Cr.App.1992). In Walker, the prosecutor struck two venirepersons because he had been told by an investigator and a probation officer that the venirepersons in question were related to persons who had been prosecuted and convicted. However, neither venireperson responded during voir dire when asked if any family member had been prosecuted for committing a felony. In reversing Walker's conviction and sentence, this court held as follows:
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Newman v. Hetzel, 1:10-CV-811-ID (WO)
...State's application for rehearing on January 22, 1993, the State sought certiorari review in the Alabama Supreme Court. See Newman v. State, 667 So.2d 132 (1993). On May 21, 1993 the Alabama Supreme Court reversed and remanded the Court of Criminal Appeals' November 25, 1992 decision, concl......
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David v. State
...jurors by pressing them during general voir dire with questions concerning criminal records. See Newman v. State, 667 So.2d 132, 135 (Ala.Cr.App.1992) (Bowen, P.J., dissenting), Judge Bowen's dissenting opinion adopted by the Alabama Supreme Court in Newman v. State, 667 So.2d 137 (Ala.1993......
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Newman v. State
...two of the strikes held to constitute reversible error in Walker v. State, 611 So.2d 1133 (Ala.Crim.App.1992)." Newman v. State, 667 So.2d 132, 133-134 (Ala.Crim.App.1992). In Walker, the Court of Criminal Appeals reversed the judgment because it found that the basis for striking the venire......
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Newman v. State
...violated Batson v. Kentucky, 476 U.S. 79, 106 S.Ct. 1712, 90 L.Ed.2d 69 (1986), in its use of its peremptory challenges. Newman v. State, 667 So.2d 132 (Ala.Cr.App.1992). On May 21, 1993, however, the Alabama Supreme Court reversed this court's judgment and remanded the case to this court. ......