Legal End to Miss. Negro Jury Exclusion is Sought

    10 Columbus Circle 
New York, N.Y. 10019 
JUdson 6-8397 

NAACP 

Legal Defense and Educational Fund 
PRESS RELEASE 

FOR RELEASE Presidaay = LEGAL END TO MISS. NEGRO 
Monday, Dr. Allan Knight Chalmers JURY EXCLUSION IS SOUGHT 

Director-Counsel 
March 1, 1965, 9 & Greenberg 

O
S
 

Sociate Counsel 
Constance Baker Motley 

GREENVILLE, Miss.--A suit, which seeks to crack Mississippi's legal 
method of excluding Negroes»from juries, was filed here today by the 
NAACP Legal Defense Fund. © 

The action, lodged in U.S. District Court, asks a three-judge 
federal court to rule that the present method of securing jurors in 
Mississippi courts is unconstitutional. e § 

It also asks for an interlocutory and permanent injunction 
against Humphreys County officials, from which the case emanates. 

x 
Under the present Mississippi law, one must be a qualified 

elector or resident freeholder for more than one year in order to 
serve on a jury. 

eee 
This practice, Legal Defense Fund attorneys say in their com- 

plaint, is unfair, arbitrary, and denies Negroes rights guaranteed 
under the 14th’ amendment. ; 

The attorneys base their case on two main points: 

*Mississippi Code Ann, §1762 "excludes the overwhelming majority 
of Negro residents and citizens of the county and the State of 
Mississippi from jury service" because few are voters or property 

owners. 

Thus, Mississippi juries are not selected from a cross-section 

of all the state's citizens. 

*Mississippi Code Ann. §1762 adopts voting requirements that 
are "vague, ambiguous, indefinite and confer an arbitrary discretion 
on the voting registrar." “| 

Vague Standards 

The Legal Defense Fund attorneys point out that Mississippi's 
constitution and enabling legislation provide that an elector be of 
“good moral character", 

Mississippi's constitution also states that applicants seeking 
to register to vote must be able to interpret certain sections of the 

Mississippi constitution. 

The attorneys argue that "there is no rational or reasonable 
basis for requiring, as a prerequisite to voting, that a prospective 
elector, otherwise qualified, be able to interpret certain of the 
sections of the Mississippi constitution, or meet vague character 
requirements. 

They add that Mississippi's constitution is "vague and indefinite’ 
with regard to providing "objective standards for administration by 

the voting registrars." 

They also add that Mississippi has an "entrenched and well- 
established and documented scheme, plan, pattern and practice of deny- 

ing and abridging the right to vote to persons of the Negro race on 

basis of race." 

_ Legal Defense Fund Director-Counsel Jack Greenberg headed a team 

of attorneys, in preparing the case, which included Jack H. Young, 

Carsie Hall, and R. Jess Brown, all of Jackson, Miss., and James M. 

Nabrit, III and Michael Meltsner of New York City. 

2308 
Jesse DeVore, Jr., Director of Public Inf ‘ion—Night Number 212 Riverside 9-8487 ~ So