Hank Investigates: Justice Not Served

They decide if you win the money - from building disputes, defective medical products, stock market fraud or consumer class actions. They can also send you to prison. But who is actually sitting in the jury box? We obtained exclusive court records that prove the outcome of your case, your guilt, or innocence may not be decided by the jury you expect.

When John Carnes took his seat in the jury box at Worcester Federal Court.

John Carnes, Juror
"It was very serious and very sobering."

He looked at his fellow jurors, and noticed something missing.

John Carnes, Juror
"There should have been some Spanish on there. There should have been some black on there."

That same day as Defense Attorney David Ashworth took his seat, he noticed the same thing.

David Ashworth, Attorney
"The whole room was full in the federal court."

Hank
"And?"

David Ashworth, Attorney
"There was not one person of color in that room, and yes I was astonished, absolutely astonished."

But here's what's even more astonishing - all white juries could happen any day.

Using the court's own records we analyzed the race of every person summonsed for jury duty in Massachusetts federal court in 2003.

The result is dozens of all white juries and jury pools far from representing the racial makeup of the state. No matter what race you are, a cross section of society is critical to a fair verdict.

Jeffrey Abramson, Jury Expert
"We can say we want justice to be colorblind. But you're not living in Massachusetts, you're not living in the United States, you're living on Mars if you think race does not matter on juries."

Federal Court, Boston - thousands of jurors arrived for duty last year, all called from the eastern third of Massachusetts.

We checked the racial makeup of that area from the U.S. census--and compared that to the number of Asians and African Americans actually in the jury pool.

The chilling bottom line was minorities were missing. Those races were underrepresented by 40%.

Hank
"When the numbers look like this, can your clients get a fair trial?"

Catherine Byrne, Assistant Federal Public Defender
"No. No."

Attorney Cathy Byrne is a federal public defender.

Catherine Byrne, Assistant Federal Public Defender
"The reality is that minorities are being tried by white people. That's the reality."

Springfield Federal Court - the system doesn't work in that part of the state either. Again, we found missing minorities. The races were under-represented by 36%.

Those actually seated on a jury:

Asians: one. African Americans: one.

Walter Prince, Former Assistant U.S. Attorney
"Well, that’s distressing."

Former Assistant U.S. Attorney Walter Prince says:

Walter Prince, Former Assistant U.S. Attorney
"Our society is multiracial and our juries should reflect the society that we live in."

Hank
"And if they don’t?"

Walter Prince, Former Assistant U.S. Attorney
"Well, it’s a sad commentary about our system."

And at Federal Court in Worcester there were more minorities missing from the jury pool - underrepresented by 50%.

In some months, entire jury pools were white.

David Ashworth says the all-white jury wasn't a fluke. He says it was inevitable.

David Ashworth, Attorney
"It's a problem."

What does that mean to defendants?

David Ashworth, Attorney
"Defendants are most likely not getting a fair shake at their jury trials."

What's more: minorities seated on a jury during the entire year:

Asians: Zero. African Americans: Zero.

Hank
"Is that how it’s supposed to work?"

Walter Prince, Former Assistant U.S. Attorney
"No, it’s not. We all know that."

Why do Massachusetts juries look so different from the Massachusetts population?

As we've reported, our statewide survey proves it's the source of the jurors’ names--the town census lists.

We discovered that they are incomplete and huge chunks of the population, often minorities, will never be sent a jury summons.

Hank
"Have you ever been called for jury duty?"

New Bedford Resident
"No."

Somerville Resident
"No."

Chelsea Resident
"No."

And these lists of names and addresses are so inaccurate. Thousands of summonses are returned as undeliverable. What’s more, local census officials complain they don't have the money to make the lists any better.

Hank
"How good a picture of New Bedford do you think is going to the jury commissioner?"

Maria Tomasia, New Bedford Election Commission
"At this point, it’s not a very good one."

From city halls to the halls of justice – you are guaranteed an impartial jury. But those judging the juries now say it’s the system that’s guilty.

Catherine Byrne, Assistant Federal Public Defender
"It’s not working properly, the idea is that you get a jury of your peers, that’s in the constitution, that’s always been the goal, and it isn’t happening."

As a result of our investigation, legal insiders, including prosecutors, defense attorneys and judges now tell us--because of these statewide racial inequities--the jury system clearly needs a drastic overhaul.