Banning Split-Jury Verdicts Leaves Hundreds Behind Bars
Since the Supreme Court outlawed split-jury convictions in 2020, Oregon and Louisiana, the only two states that previously allowed such decisions, have yet to determine what to do with the hundreds still residing in prison for such conviction.
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Since the Supreme Court outlawed split-jury convictions in 2020, Oregon and Louisiana, the only two states that previously allowed such decisions, have yet to determine what to do with the hundreds still residing in prison for such convictions, reports the Washington Post. Louisiana’s Supreme Court recently ruled against vacating those convictions, and Oregon’s Supreme Court is similarly poised to rule on the issue, which could impact an estimated 250 to 300 other inmates in that state.
While deciding to vacate those convictions could create an opportunity for these inmates to seek new outcomes through the appeals process, crime victims and their supporters say such defendants should not always get another chance. Split verdicts have disproportionately affected racial minorities in Oregon, with Black people making up 18 percent of applicants for a new appeal since the Supreme Court’s decision, despite making up only 8.7 percent of Oregon’s prison population. Latino people are also overrepresented
