WA Supreme Court overturns death sentence due to jury prejudice News
WA Supreme Court overturns death sentence due to jury prejudice

[JURIST] The Washington state Supreme Court has overturned a death sentence, ruling that the jury may have been prejudiced by the sight of ankle shackles on the defendant, Cecil E. Davis. Davis was convicted of murdering a 65-year-old neighbor, but the court ruled in an 8-1 decision that the jury may have had a negative view of the defendant due to the sight of his shackled ankles. The court remanded the case for a new sentencing hearing. The decision was the second death sentence the court has overturned this year and the seventh since 2000. Read the majority opinion, as well as a concurrence and a dissent. The Seattle Times has more.