Nieto v. State
365 S.W.3d 673
| Tex. Crim. App. | 2012Background
- Nieto challenged the trial court's denial of his Batson motion after the State struck all black venire members.
- First Court of Appeals held the State's proffered race-neutral reasons were pretextual; reversed and remanded.
- State petitioned for discretionary review to affirm; Court granted review on Batson issues.
- Appellant was convicted of murder in 1995; habeas corpus proceedings led to a new appeal.
- Three-step Batson framework governs the inquiry: prima facie showing, race-neutral reasons, and finding of purposeful discrimination.
- Mauldin, a black venireperson, was struck; reasons included shared last name with a drug family and demeanor.
Issues
| Issue | Plaintiff's Argument | Defendant's Argument | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| Are shared surnames with a criminal family race-neutral reasons? | Nieto argues surname relation is baseless pretext. | Nieto defends credibility of reasons given, including potential family link and demeanor. | Race-neutral reasons sustained; not clearly pretextual. |
| Is a venireperson's demeanor a race-neutral basis for strikes? | Nieto contends demeanor was not adequately established. | Deemphasizes necessity of perfect questioning; demeanor can be a valid factor. | Demeanor deemed race-neutral, sustaining strike. |
| Did the court of appeals improperly reweigh the trial court's credibility? | Nieto urges appellate reanalysis of credibility to find pretext. | Trial court’s credibility findings should be preserved absent clear error. | Court defers to trial court; no clear error found. |
Key Cases Cited
- Batson v. Kentucky, 476 U.S. 79 (U.S. 1986) (prohibits peremptory strikes based on race)
- Purkett v. Elem, 514 U.S. 765 (U.S. 1995) (credibility of nonracial explanations; deference to trial court)
- Miller-El v. Dretke, 545 U.S. 231 (U.S. 2005) (disparate treatment and pretext indicators in Batson analysis)
- Snyder v. Louisiana, 552 U.S. 472 (U.S. 2008) (clear error standard for third Batson step)
- Grant v. State, 325 S.W.3d 655 (Tex. Crim. App. 2010) (factors beyond questioning in Batson evaluation)
- Whitsey v. State, 796 S.W.2d 707 (Tex. Crim. App. 1990) (multiple factors for evaluating race-neutral explanations)
- Sterling v. State, 830 S.W.2d 114 (Tex. Crim. App. 1992) (deference to trial judge on race-neutral explanations)
- Yarborough v. State, 947 S.W.2d 892 (Tex. Crim. App. 1997) (demeanor as a permissible strike factor with deference)
- Powers v. Ohio, 499 U.S. 400 (U.S. 1991) (race may be relevant factor; eliminates same-race requirement)