The evidence [at trial] showed that prospective Black jurors were prevented from serving on capital juries due to membership in the NAACP, connections to Black colleges or living in historically Black neighborhoods. The courts held that the exclusion of Black jurors for these reasons were race neutral. In other words, in North Carolina when facing the death penalty, it is okay to prevent Black people from participating in the process. It is time to address these wrongs.
Community leaders who have been calling for an end to the death penalty for years are now urging the court to uphold the RJA, rule in favor of Bacote, and send a strong message to right the wrongs of our state's racist practice when it comes to sentencing people to death.
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