The Supreme Court threw out the conviction and death penalty for a Mississippi man because of racial bias in jury selection. File Photo by Bonnie Cash/UPI | License Photo
May 28 (UPI) -- The U.S. Supreme Court agreed with a lower court's ruling that a Mississippi man's conviction and death penalty must be overturned because of racial bias in jury selection.
In a 5-4 vote, the court found that Terry Pitchford, who is Black, didn't get a chance to challenge the dismissal of four Black potential jurors.
Pitchford was an alleged accomplice to Eric Bullins, who shot and killed store owner Reuben Britt during a robbery in 2004. Bullins wasn't eligible for the death penalty because he was only 16 at the time. He pleaded guilty and was sentenced to 20 years. Pitchford was armed with a gun full of pellets meant to kill rats. He said he didn't shoot Britt but instead shot into the floor.
Justice Brett Kavanaugh wrote the majority opinion in Pitchford vs. Cain, and was joined in the majority by Chief Justice John Roberts and the liberal justices. Justices Clarence Thomas, Neil Gorsuch and Amy Coney Barrett dissented.
