UPDATED: Upcoming Supreme Court Rulings - Ramos v. Louisiana
The United States Supreme Court has several cases before it this year that will have an impact on criminal cases across the country. We’d like to take the next few weeks to talk about a few of them.
Of particular importance to Louisiana residents, Ramos v. Louisiana, will be decided this term.
At the end of 2018, Louisiana voted to require unanimous jury verdicts in felony criminal cases. Evangelisto Ramos was charged with second-degree murder, tried, and found guilty by 10 out of the 12 jurors deciding his case. Because Louisiana only required 10 votes to convict, he was found guilty and sentenced to life imprisonment.
The question pending before the United States Supreme Court is whether the Fourteenth Amendment to the US Constitution requires that the Sixth Amendment’s guarantee of a unanimous jury apply to the states.
This decision could impact a lot of individuals currently serving sentences for felony convictions where less than 12 jurors voted to convict.
UPDATE: