Free Statement - District Court of Colorado - Colorado

Case 1:00-cr-00531-WYD

Document 2016

Filed 11/14/2006

Page 1 of 4

IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE DISTRICT OF COLORADO Criminal Action No. 00-cr-00531-W YD-1 UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, Plaintiff, v. 1. W ILLIAM CONCEPCION SABLAN, Defendant.

GOVERNMENT'S BRIEF RE JUROR HARDSHIP SCREENING

The United States of America, by Troy A. Eid, United States Attorney for the District of Colorado, through Brenda Taylor and Philip A. Brimmer, Assistant United States Attorneys, comments as follows on the Court's initial screening of juror responses regarding hardship issues. The government does not oppose the parties being present when the Court performs its initial screening for hardship purposes of the questionnaires enclosed in the juror summonses. The government has not located any authority on the issue of whether it is proper for the parties to have access to questionnaire information regarding the jurors' race or ethnic background during this initial screening process. However, as stated at the hearing the week of November 6, 2006, the government opposes

Case 1:00-cr-00531-WYD

Document 2016

Filed 11/14/2006

Page 2 of 4

the release of such information. The government believes that such information will pose a danger of skewing the Court's hardship determination by making the process race-conscious. The government undertands that the screening of such questionnaire responses, which the Court performs routinely in every trial, does not typically involve keeping track of the jurors' racial or ethnic background. Allowing the defendant to interpose race-based challenges, predicated on a very small numbers of juror hardship claims, would turn a process that is normally color blind into one which is not. The result, the government fears, is to create a problem where one would not otherwise exist. W HEREFORE the United States requests that the Court deny W illiam Sablan's request to have access to the racial or ethnic background of jurors claiming hardship during the initial screening of the questionnaires enclosed in the juror summonses.

2

Case 1:00-cr-00531-WYD

Document 2016

Filed 11/14/2006

Page 3 of 4

Respectfully submitted this 14th day of November, 2006.

TROY A. EID United States Attorney

BY: s/ Brenda K. Taylor BRENDA K. TAYLOR Assistant U.S. Attorney U.S. Attorney's Office 1225 17 th Street, Suite 700 Denver, Colorado 80202 Telephone (303)454-0100 FAX: (303) 454-0406 E-mail address: [email protected] Attorney for Government

BY: s/ Philip A. Brimmer PHILIP A. BRIMMER Assistant U.S. Attorney U.S. Attorney's Office 1225 17 th Street, Suite 700 Denver, Colorado 80202 Telephone (303)454-0100 FAX: (303) 454-0403 E-mail address: [email protected] Attorney for Government

3

Case 1:00-cr-00531-WYD

Document 2016

Filed 11/14/2006

Page 4 of 4

CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE I hereby certify that on this _14_th day of November, 2006, I electronically filed the foregoing GOVERNMENT'S BRIEF RE JUROR HARDSHIP SCREENING with the Clerk of the Court using the CM/ECF system which will send notification of such filing to the following e-mail addresses:

Attorneys for William Sablan Patrick J. Burke [email protected]

Attorneys for Rudy Sablan Donald R. Knight [email protected] Forrest W . Lewis [email protected]

Nathan Dale Chambers [email protected] [email protected]

Susan Lynn Foreman [email protected]

s/ Dorothy Burwell DOROTHY BURW ELL Legal Assistant U.S. Attorney's Office 1225 17th Street, Suite 700 Denver, CO 80202 Phone (303) 454-0100 Fax (303) 454-04006 E-mail address [email protected]

4