9th Circuit: Batson Violation By Waiving Peremptories

The Ninth Circuit held yesterday that a prosecutor violated Batson by refusing to strike jurors with peremptory challenges.   Under the complicated jury selection process in place, the refusal to strike resulted in an identifiable juror being automatically stricken, in this case a Latino juror, the same race as the defendant.   Decision.  [Mark Godsey, hat tip to Robert Gifford]