Summary
In People v. Bennett (186 A.D.2d 812), the Appellate Division concluded that the "defendant has established a prima facie case of purposeful discrimination in the jury selection by the prosecutor, who exercised her peremptory challenges in the first three rounds of the voir dire to exclude 7 out of 11 African Americans from the jury, or nearly 64% of the prospective African American jurors.
Summary of this case from People v. BrownOpinion
October 26, 1992
Appeal from the Supreme Court, Kings County (Egitto, J.).
Ordered that the case is remitted to the Supreme Court, Kings County, to hear and report on the prosecutor's exercise of peremptory challenges, and the appeal is held in abeyance in the interim; the Supreme Court is to file its report with all convenient speed.
The defendant has established a prima facie case of purposeful discrimination in the jury selection by the prosecutor, who exercised her peremptory challenges in the first three rounds of the voir dire to exclude 7 out of 11 blacks from the jury, or nearly 64% of the prospective black jurors. The prosecutor challenged only 36% of the nonblacks during those rounds (see, People v Bolling, 79 N.Y.2d 317; People v Jenkins, 75 N.Y.2d 550; People v Reed, 178 A.D.2d 666; People v Epps, 163 A.D.2d 325). The Supreme Court rejected the defendant's claim and did not require the prosecutor to place on the record the reasons for the exclusion of the challenged jurors. The matter is, therefore, remitted for an evidentiary hearing, where the prosecutor is to give the reasons for her challenges (see, Batson v Kentucky, 476 U.S. 79; People v Jenkins, supra; People v Reed, supra).
We do not reach any other issues. Mangano, P.J., Thompson, Rosenblatt and Copertino, JJ., concur.