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Of Pigeonholes And Prospective Jurors, Bill Piatt

Faculty Articles

Serving on a jury is one of the most integral components of participation in our democratic society. Everyday the judicial system places their confidence in the juror’s ability to abandon their emotions and predilections in order to reach an impartial decision. Given the frequency in which the courts entrust such a responsibility to monolingual English speakers, why have they not afforded the same deference to their bilingual counterparts?

The Supreme Court’s holding in Hernandez v. New York, essentially created precedent that would prevent bilingual speakers from being selected to perform jury service; the rationale being that bilingual jurors would not …

Enhanced Punishment Under The Texas Hate Crimes Act: Politics, Panacea, Or Pathway To Hell., David Todd Smith

St. Mary's Law Journal

Nearly without exception, modern legislatures have responded to the reprehensible nature and detrimental social effects of hate crime by enacting laws specifically designed to punish the offender’s discriminatory animus. The term “hate crime” describes criminal conduct which is motivated by the offender’s bias or prejudice against another cognizable group. Although the reprehensible nature of a hate crime is often apparent from the facts of any given case, the repercussions of these offenses exceed the ignoble character of any one specific act. Texas has now joined the ranks of these jurisdictions by adopting legal provisions which authorize heightened penalties upon a …