A recent report submitted to the Washington state Legislature has raised concerns over the lack of diversity among jury members in the state. The study found people of color and those of lower socioeconomic status to be generally underrepresented among those responding to jury summons, according to a press release by the state courts.
This investigation came about after a bill in 2021 required the Administrative Office of the Courts to provide all courts with an electronic demographic survey for jurors. This procedure aimed at collecting a range of demographic data, such as race, ethnicity, age, sex, employment status, educational attainment, and income. The fundamental question rooted in the survey was whether the selected jurors were representative of the county populations where they were chosen.
Frank Thomas, a senior court program analyst for the Washington State Minority and Justice Commission, noted that “Jurors of color, particularly Black and Native jurors, remain underrepresented in jury pools throughout the state, and continue to face greater barriers to jury service.”
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