18 U.S.C. § 243 — Exclusion of jurors on account of race or color

submitted 78 years ago by ch. 645 to r/title-18-CRIMES-AND-CRIMINAL-PROCEDURE · 81 words · no verdicts yet

in plain englishAI-generated · not legal advice

No qualified citizen can be barred from serving as a grand or petit juror in a U.S. or state court because of their race, color, or former enslavement. Any official responsible for selecting or summoning jurors who excludes or fails to summon someone for that reason can be fined up to $5,000.

This section bans racial discrimination in jury service and punishes officials who discriminate. Who is protected: any citizen who meets all the other legal requirements for jury service cannot be disqualified from serving as a grand or petit juror in any U.S. court or any state court because of their race, color, or previous condition of servitude (having once been enslaved). Who is punished: an officer or other official responsible for selecting or summoning jurors who excludes someone, or fails to summon them, for one of those reasons. Penalty: a fine of up to $5,000.

the actual law source: uscode.house.gov ↗public domain

No citizen possessing all other qualifications which are or may be prescribed by law shall be disqualified for service as grand or petit juror in any court of the United States, or of any State on account of race, color, or previous condition of servitude; and whoever, being an officer or other person charged with any duty in the selection or summoning of jurors, excludes or fails to summon any citizen for such cause, shall be fined not more than $5,000.

Source credit: (June 25, 1948, ch. 645, 62 Stat. 696.)

history & why it existsrecord from the source credit

1948Enacted · Act of June 25, 1948, ch. 645 · 62 Stat. 696

A history note hasn’t been published yet. The record shows enactment by ch. 645 on 1948-06-25.

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