via Wikimedia
Doug Evans is a Mississippi-based district attorney who’s been cast under a spotlight for all the wrong reasons. Now, he’s going to court, and this time, he’s the one in the hot seat.
The NAACP is suing him for how he’s treated Black jurors, and his actions have caused many to ask, “How has this man kept his job for over TWO DECADES?” Well...
CNN reports that the class-action lawsuit - brought forth by four Black residents, the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, and the MacArthur Justice Center - states:
“[Evans] and his assistants have employed a policy, custom, or use of discriminatorily striking black jurors with peremptory challenges.” And the numbers back this up.
Using his prosecutorial power to exclude Black jurors, Evans has blocked 71% of them from participating since being in office! He even made headlines for trying a death row case against a Black man named Curtis Flowers SIX times.
His persistence in nailing Flowers led to the Supreme Court intervening - he had gone unchecked too long!
The lawsuit against Evans also raises the issue of his involvement with the Council of Conservative Citizens… which is recognized as a white supremacist group. Disgusting.
Doug won reelection after running unopposed, showing why district attorney’s races are SO important. Who does and who doesn’t hold this position makes all the difference in this criminal justice system.