A federal appeals court ruled Alabama prosecutors violated the constitutional rights of a man sentenced to death in 1990, saying Blacks were rejected from the jury during his trial.
The Monday ruling from a three judge panel on the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals means Michael Sockwell, 62, is eligible for a retrial. He was convicted of killing former Montgomery County Sheriff Isaiah Harris in 1988 when he was 26-years old.
The panel issued a 2-1 opinion stating Alabama prosecutors violated Sockwell’s 14th Amendment rights by “repeatedly and purposefully” rejecting potential Black jurors who were believed to be more sympathetic to him on the basis of their shared race.
The only time that a black man is considered a peer of the white man in Alabama is when the white man is to decide judgement on the black man.
Great, get the necromancer then. Oh… you don’t have one? Maybe you should’ve thought about that before putting people on death row
Hot take but maybe you should read before replying. He’s not been executed yet.
Sentenced but not yet executed.
