Last term in Ramos v. Lousiana, No. 18-5924 (Apr. 20, 2020), the Supreme Court held the Sixth Amendment right to a jury trial requires a unanimous verdict to convict a defendant of a serious offense. Banning such verdicts going forward, the Supreme Court acknowledged the racist motivations of these "Jim Crow" juries.
Today, a divided Supreme Court held in Edwards v. Vannoy, No. 19-5807 (May 17, 2020) that the jury-unanimity rule announced in Ramos does not apply retroactively on federal collateral review, a ruling affecting well over 1,000 cases. Previous coverage available here.
Louisiana and Oregon were the most recent states to allow split verdicts. Non-unanimous convictions in Puerto Rico were at stake as well.
In this retroactivity case, Thedrick Edwards, a Black man, was convicted in 2007 by a non-unanimous Louisiana jury and sentenced to life in prison. The lone Black juror voted to acquit on all counts.
Today's 6-3 decision in Edwards v. Vannoy by Justice Brett Kavanaugh is a blow to people whose convictions were final when last term’s ruling came out and a win for state officials seeking to keep non-unanimous convictions intact. Justice Kagan filed a dissenting opinion, in which Justices Breyer and Sotomayor joined.