Louisiana takes aim at Jim Crow-era jury law
Source: Associated Press
Anthony Izaguirre, Associated Press
Updated 11:23 pm, Saturday, April 14, 2018
BATON ROUGE, La. (AP) — Louisiana is one of only two states in the country allowing a non-unanimous jury to convict a defendant of a felony, and a Louisiana lawmaker says it is time for the practice to end.
Sen. J.P. Morrell says the unusual rule is a remnant of the Jim Crow era, stemming from a constitutional convention in 1898 and longstanding efforts to maintain white supremacy after the Civil War. And he wants a change.
"This is something that is wholly unnecessary that was born of this fusion of racism and disenfranchisement," he said. "It's a self-defeating, illogical position to have two jurors say 'we don't think he did it,' then prosecutors to say we met our reasonable doubt standard."
The New Orleans Democrat has proposed a constitutional amendment to require all 12 jurors in felony cases to agree on a verdict. The measure is gaining steam in the state Capitol.
Read more: https://www.chron.com/news/crime/article/Louisiana-takes-aim-at-Jim-Crow-era-jury-law-12834125.php
= new reply since forum marked as read
and I had to hunt around to find that. 
Glad they are looking into this as it needs to change and it needs to happen in Oregon as well.
