The US Supreme Court heard oral arguments Wednesday in Flowers v. Mississippi, in which the state was alleged to have improperly dismissed African American jurors.
The petitioner, Curtis Flowers, was convicted of a capital offense in 2010 and appealed his death penalty conviction on the grounds of racial discrimination. The Mississippi Supreme Court affirmed the sentence.
At oral argument, the Flowers’ attorney said, “The only plausible interpretation of all of the evidence viewed cumulatively is that [District Attorney] Doug Evans began jury selection … with an unconstitutional end in mind, to seat as few African American jurors as he could.”
