Brigid Bergin (Gothamist) reports on a recently filed federal class-action suit challenging the constitutionality of a New York state law that bars felons from jury service. The suit argues that jury service is a critical democratic practice, and that New York’s lifetime ban “dilutes the voting strength of Black citizens on juries, an institution that is fundamental to democratic self-government and the administration of justice.” The law also “’perpetuates a vicious cycle’ where Black people are underrepresented on Manhattan juries and overrepresented among people with felony convictions.”

The named plaintiff is 44 year-old, public defender, Daudi Justin, who “at least a dozen times each month represent[s] clients faced with misdemeanor charges” in Manhattan Criminal Court. Yet, he is legally barred from serving on a jury. Justin was convicted of a felony when he was 31 years old, served nearly two-years in state prisons, and then went back to get his BA from Columbia University (starting at community college) and now holds a JD from CUNY.

The suit was filed by the New York Civil Liberties Union and Clarick, Gueron, and Reisbaum. As a historical matter, the argument that jury service should be understood as a political right is completely right. As I have written, at the founding and through the early 19th century, jury service was a central political practice, and jury nullification was understood as a critical check on unconstitutional laws.