Jonathan Davis v. United States

The Sixth Amendment guarantees the right to an impartial jury. Over 115 years ago, this Court recognized that “[b]ias or prejudice is such an elusive condition of the mind that it is most difficult, if not impossible, to always recognize its existence, and it might exist in the mind of one . . . who was quite positive that he had no bias[.]” Crawford v. United States, 212 U.S. 183, 196 (1909). Today, jurors who are disqualified despite their own protestations of impartiality are said to be impliedly biased or biased as a matter of law. This Court’s decision in Smith v. Phillips, 455 U.S. 209 (1982) created widespread confusion about the modern viability of the implied bias doctrine and its relationship to the Sixth Amendment. This case presents the following questions: I. Does the Constitution require selected jurors to be free from implied bias? II. What standards should apply when assessing an implied bias claim? III. Did the Eighth Circuit err in concluding that a juror was not impliedly biased when he had been the victim of a crime nearly identical to the crime alleged at trial?