State v. Wright’s Empirical Analysis

Citation profile

2 state decisions

Most-quoted passages

The sentences later courts lift from this opinion, ranked by how many decisions quote each — the parts of the opinion doing the work. These counts are smaller than the citation total above because most of the 2 citing decisions cite the case generally; a passage count includes only decisions quoting that exact language verbatim.

1. “The State’s explanation for the strike only has to be facially race-neutral. Unless a discriminatory intent is inherent in the explanation, the court will deem the explanation race-neutral, even if it is not persuasive or even plausible. If the prosecutor states a race-neutral reason for the strike, the burden shifts back to the defendant to show that the State’s explanation was merely pretextual and that the strikes were, in fact, racially motivated. If the defendant fails to challenge the State’s explanation of the peremptory strike as a pretext, and simply relies on general or conclusory allegations about the State’s reasoning, no effective Batson challenge has been made, and nothing is preserved for appeal.”

   1 later decision quote this exact passage
   e.g. State v. Williams

2. “First, the defendant must raise a Batson challenge with regard to one or more specific venirepersons struck by the state and identify the cognizable racial group to which the venireperson or persons belong. The trial court will then require the state to come forward with reasonably specific and clear race-neutral explanations for the strike. Assuming the prosecutor is able to articulate an acceptable.reason for the strike, the defendant will then need to show that the state’s proffered reasons for the strikes were merely pretextual and that the strikes were racially motivated.”

   1 later decision quote this exact passage
   e.g. State v. Williams