Gray v. Mississippi (481 U.S. 648)
U.S. Supreme Court · decided May 18, 1987 · Supreme Court Database (Spaeth)
- Citation
- 481 U.S. 648 · 107 S. Ct. 2045
- Decided
- May 18, 1987
- Term
- October Term 1986
- Vote
- 5–4
- Majority author
- Justice Blackmun
- Issue area
- Criminal Procedure
- Disposition
- Reversed and remanded
- Outcome
- Petitioning party won
- Ideological direction
- Liberal
Opinion excerpt
Justice Blackmun announced the judgment of the Court and delivered the opinion of the Court with respect to Parts I, II, III-A, III-B-1, and IV, and an opinion with respect to Part III-B-2, in which Justice Brennan, Justice Marshall, and Justice Stevens join. More than 10 years ago, in Davis v. Georgia, 429 U. S. 122 (1976) (per curiam), this Court on certiorari summarily reversed a judgment of a state court and ruled that when a trial court misapplies Witherspoon v. Illinois, 391 U. S. 510 (1968), and excludes from a capital jury a prospective juror who in fact is qualified to serve, a death sentence imposed by the jury cannot stand. This case presents the question whether the Court now should abandon that ruling and, instead, subject an impermissible exclusion to harmless-error review. I In June 1982, petitioner David Randolph Gray was indicted in Harrison County, Miss., on a capital charge for the stabbing death of Ronald Wojcik while engaged in the commission of the felony of kidnaping. The trial judge began the jury selection process by assembling the entire venire in the courtroom. He then formed an initial panel for voir dire by calling 12 persons to the jury box. Tr. 193-194. After preliminary questioning by the court regarding prior knowledge of the case and of the parties involved, the prosecutor commenced his examination of the panel. After a member was removed for…
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