Cooper et al v. Meritor, Inc. et al

Filing 868

ORDER granting in part and denying in part 778 Motion to protect jury selection. Signed by District Judge Debra M. Brown on 3/28/19. (tab)

Download PDF
IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE NORTHERN DISTRICT OF MISSISSIPPI GREENVILLE DIVISION BRENDA J. COOPER, et al. PLAINTIFFS V. NO. 4:16-CV-52-DMB-JMV MERITOR, INC., et al. DEFENDANTS ORDER On August 15, 2018, the defendants in this environmental litigation, citing the high-profile nature of this case, filed a motion asking the Court to “(1) empanel a larger-than-normal venire, (2) exclude Grenada County from the venire, (3) use a pre-venire jury questionnaire, and (4) provide each party with additional peremptory strikes.” Doc. #778 at 2. Additionally, the motion seeks a district-wide venire “[i]f the Court does not believe that these tools will be successful in empaneling an impartial jury.” Id. The plaintiffs did not respond to the motion or to the memoranda the defendants filed in support.1 As an initial matter, the Court notes that pre-venire exclusion of Grenada County residents is inappropriate. See 28 U.S.C. § 1863(b)(3) (district jury plan must “ensure that each county … within the district … is substantially proportionally represented”). Accordingly, to the extent the motion seeks such relief, it will be denied. However, given the publicity associated with this litigation, the Court concludes that the remaining safeguards sought by the defendants are appropriate and necessary for ensuring an impartial jury. Accordingly: 1 The defendants filed an initial memorandum and later sought, and received, leave to file a supplemental memorandum. See Doc. #854. The order granting leave to supplement provided the plaintiffs an opportunity to respond. Id. 1. The defendants’ motion to protect jury selection [778] is GRANTED in Part and DENIED in Part. 2. The Court will draw a district-wide venire of at least three times the normal size. 3. The Court will utilize a pre-venire jury questionnaire.2 4. The parties will be entitled to additional peremptory strikes, with the precise number to be determined at a later date.3 SO ORDERED, this 28th day of March, 2019. /s/Debra M. Brown UNITED STATES DISTRICT JUDGE 2 The parties must submit a joint proposed jury questionnaire no later than five (5) weeks before trial. 3 The defendants did not seek a specific number of peremptory strikes in their motion. 2

Disclaimer: Justia Dockets & Filings provides public litigation records from the federal appellate and district courts. These filings and docket sheets should not be considered findings of fact or liability, nor do they necessarily reflect the view of Justia.


Why Is My Information Online?