455 P.3d 647
Wash.2020Background
- Bienhoff and Pierce were tried for first-degree felony murder (predicate: robbery); the State did not seek the death penalty though the facts could have supported capital charges.
- During voir dire a juror (No. 56) voiced extreme reluctance about sitting on a case with life-or-death consequences; subsequent questioning by the prosecutor prompted multiple jurors to express concerns about the death penalty.
- Juror 6 (apparently the only African-American in the panel at that time) wavered: she at times said she could be fair, at other times said she could not decide without knowing whether the death penalty or life sentence was possible; the court denied the State’s for-cause strike of juror 6 but later the State used a peremptory strike against her.
- Defense counsel raised a Batson challenge to the peremptory strike; the trial court allowed the strike. Juror 76 was excused for cause. A jury convicted both defendants and sentences were imposed.
- The Court of Appeals reversed, finding prosecutorial misconduct in eliciting a death-penalty discussion during voir dire and that the trial court abused its discretion in not curtailing the questioning; the State petitioned to the Washington Supreme Court.
- The Washington Supreme Court overruled State v. Townsend, held that the State’s peremptory strike of juror 6 was presumptively invalid under GR 37 (an objective observer could view race as a factor), and affirmed the Court of Appeals’ result (vacatur and remand) on different grounds. The court also addressed the changed legal landscape after State v. Gregory.
Issues
| Issue | State's Argument | Defendants' Argument | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1) May voir dire in a noncapital case elicit, or may counsel/ court inform jurors about, whether the death penalty applies? | Townsend should remain or be overturned; if allowed, prosecutors can ask follow-ups to detect bias. | Towns end barred telling venire about sentencing consequences; eliciting death-penalty focus improperly skews jury selection. | Court overruled Townsend: trial courts may inform prospective jurors whether a case is a capital case (Townsend is incorrect and harmful, especially post-Gregory). |
| 2) Did the prosecutor commit misconduct by eliciting a discussion of the death penalty during voir dire that warranted reversal? | Any juror-initiated reference permitted response under then-binding precedents; no misconduct that required reversal. | The prosecutor’s questions drew jurors’ attention to sentencing and caused unfair influence, creating incurable prejudice. | The majority did not reverse based solely on misconduct; concurrence would have reversed on that ground. The Court resolved case on peremptory-strike/G R 37 grounds instead. |
| 3) Was the State’s peremptory strike of juror 6 racially motivated in violation of Batson/GR 37? | The strike was race-neutral: juror 6 repeatedly equivocated about ability to serve and had been the subject of a for-cause challenge. | The strike followed death-qualification style questioning and targeted the only African‑American juror; under GR 37 an objective observer could view race as a factor. | Under GR 37 (as clarified by Jefferson), an objective observer could view race as a factor; the peremptory strike was presumptively invalid and required reversal/remand. |
| 4) Do Jefferson and GR 37 apply to this 2015 trial? | GR 37/Jefferson are prospective and should not govern pre-2018 voir dire; Batson governs. | GR 37/Jefferson apply to preserved errors and provide the proper analytical framework; they should control review. | Court applied GR 37/Jefferson principles (error preserved) and found the peremptory strike invalid. |
Key Cases Cited
- State v. Townsend, 142 Wn.2d 838 (prohibiting informing jurors in noncapital cases about sentencing; previously precedent on death-penalty voir dire)
- State v. Gregory, 192 Wn.2d 1 (invalidating Washington’s death penalty; changed legal landscape)
- State v. Jefferson, 192 Wn.2d 225 (modifying Batson analysis and implementing GR 37 principles)
- Batson v. Kentucky, 476 U.S. 79 (establishing three‑step framework forbidding race-based peremptory strikes)
- State v. Hicks, 163 Wn.2d 477 (reinforcing Townsend-era limits on voir dire references to sentencing and the court’s proper response to juror-initiated capital-punishment inquiries)