News / FJP Releases

May 28, 2026 (Washington, D.C.) — Fair and Just Prosecution (FJP) applauded today’s United States Supreme Court decision in Pitchford v. Cain, a case involving allegations that prosecutors improperly excluded Black jurors from the death penalty trial of Terry Pitchford, a Black defendant. The Court concluded that Mr. Pitchford had been denied the opportunity to scrutinize the prosecutor’s actions and reaffirmed the importance of strict compliance with the constitutional process for evaluating claims of racial discrimination in jury selection.

In a 5–4 decision, the Court ruled that Mississippi courts failed to comply with Batson v. Kentucky, a landmark case prohibiting racial discrimination in jury selection. In Mr. Pitchford’s case, the trial judge prevented the defense from fully arguing that prosecutors’ removal of four of the five Black prospective jurors was racially motivated. Then, other Mississippi courts faulted defense counsel for failing to make that argument. The United States Supreme Court held that Mississippi courts failed to comply with Batson’s required process for resolving claims of discrimination in jury selection and remanded the case for further proceedings.

“Today’s decision sends a clear message: prosecutors and courts must faithfully adhere to the constitutional prohibition against racial discrimination in jury selection and follow the required steps to resolve claims of discrimination,” said Preston Shipp, Chief Legal Counsel at Fair and Just Prosecution. “Prosecutors have a legal and ethical obligation to uphold the Constitution and ensure justice is administered equally, which depends on juries that are selected fairly and free from racial bias. When they abandon that duty by removing Black jurors for discriminatory reasons, and courts fail to scrutinize that racial discrimination, it undermines fair trials, excludes citizens from civic participation, compromises verdicts, and erodes public confidence in the judicial system, making us all less safe. The Supreme Court rightly reaffirmed that constitutional protections against racial discrimination must be meaningfully enforced, not treated as empty promises.”

Earlier this year, FJP joined the Law Enforcement Action Partnership (LEAP), current and former prosecutors, law enforcement leaders, and former judges in filing an amicus brief urging the Court to strongly enforce Batson. The brief argued that courts cannot use procedural barriers to avoid reviewing potentially discriminatory jury strikes and must fully examine claims that Black jurors were excluded because of their race.

The Court’s ruling reinforces that trial courts must take claims of racial discrimination in jury selection seriously and give defendants a meaningful opportunity to challenge jury strikes that may be motivated by bias. Read the Court’s decision in Pitchford v. Cain here.