Supreme Court Will Decide Whether Criminal Cases Must Have 12 Jurors, in Florida Case
The justices will weigh whether the Sixth Amendment requires 12 jurors, a ruling that could affect thousands of Florida convictions, state officials said.
- On Monday, The Supreme Court agreed to decide whether states can use juries of six people in criminal cases, hearing the appeal of Hamed Kian, who argues the smaller size violates his Sixth Amendment rights.
- Florida uses six-person juries for all criminal cases not involving the death penalty; Kian, a 45-year-old chiropractor, contends the Constitution requires a body of twelve people.
- In 1970, the court ruled by a 7-1 vote that the number twelve was not sacrosanct, with Justice Thurgood Marshall as the only dissenter in the Florida case.
- Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier argued that overturning the 1970 precedent would imperil convictions in Florida and five other states that have relied on the rule for more than 50 years.
- Recently, the court has placed renewed emphasis on the original understanding of the Constitution, and justices will hear arguments in the fall regarding whether the jury right allows for adaptation.
55 Articles
55 Articles
The Supreme Court Might Fix Something for Once
Monday’s batch of orders brought a rare bit of good news at the Supreme Court. The justices announced that they will hear Kian v. Florida next year, setting the stage for the court to strike down Florida’s Jim Crow–era law allowing six-member criminal juries.The Sixth Amendment requires, among many other things, that criminal trials be conducted before an “impartial jury.” In nearly every state, this jury consists of 12 members of the community …
Supreme Court will decide whether criminal cases must have 12 jurors in Florida case
WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court on Monday agreed to decide whether states can use juries made up of only six people in criminal cases, instead of the usual 12. The case puts a Florida chiropractor convicted of practicing with a…
Court agrees to hear three new cases, including on the constitutionality of six-person juries
Updated on June 15 at 4:15 p.m. The Supreme Court on Monday added three new cases, on issues ranging from hearings for noncitizens in immigration detention to the constitutionality of Florida’s six-person juries and the exceptions to the general rule on second petitions for federal post-conviction relief. The announcement came as part of a list of orders from the justices’ June 11 conference, which also included two dissents by Justice Samuel Al…
Associated Press News
Supreme Court will decide whether criminal cases must have 12 jurors, in Florida case
The Supreme Court has agreed to decide whether states can use juries made up of only six people in criminal cases, instead of the usual 12.
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