People v. Pollard CA3

DISCUSSION

I Batson/Wheeler Defendant argues the trial court erred by overruling his Wheeler objection after the prosecutor used a peremptory challenge to excuse an African-American juror, Ms. S., in this case in which defendant is Black. (Batson, supra, 476 U.S. 79; Wheeler, supra, 22 Cal.3d 258.) He contends the trial court’s ruling relied on an erroneous characterization of the record, and the prosecutor’s purportedly legitimate reasons for excusing Ms. S. were not credible. We are not persuaded.

Undesignated statutory references are to the Penal Code.

3 A. Additional procedural background 1. Voir dire of Ms. S. During voir dire, Ms. S. stated that she is a widow and was previously employed as an accountant. She is also a mother, grandmother, and great-grandmother. Approximately four years earlier, Ms. S. served as a juror in a criminal trial in which the jury reached a verdict. When asked whether she was a leader or a follower, Ms. S. said that she has “control issues” when she is “put in a corner or something like that,” but that she would not pressure other jurors to change their minds. The prosecutor introduced the concept of circumstantial evidence to the…