Opinion
No. 89-433.
February 23, 1990.
Petition for writ of Certiorari to the Court of Criminal Appeals (1 Div. 954). Appeal from the Circuit Court, Mobile County, No. CC-88-2330, Douglas I. Johnstone, J.
William H. Steele, Mobile, for petitioner.
Don Siegelman, Atty. Gen., for respondent.
WRIT DENIED.
HORNSBY, C.J., and MADDOX, JONES, SHORES, HOUSTON, STEAGALL and KENNEDY, JJ., concur.
ADAMS, J., concurs specially.
I concur specially in denying this petition for writ of certiorari, because the defense in a Batson-type case should at least attempt to make a record showing that the so-called race-neutral reasons given by the prosecution are a mere sham or a pretext to disguise true racial discrimination. In my opinion, the defense in the ordinary case should attempt to build a record along these lines. The defense here did not do so, and for that reason, I do not believe a Batson violation has been made out. In Ex parte Branch, 526 So.2d 609 (Ala. 1987), we set forth in detail what the defense could do to discredit the prosecution's so-called race-neutral reasons given for striking a venire member. We intended our discussion to be fairly exhaustive, and the defense in this case did not follow these suggestions.