The headquarters of the Southern Poverty Law Center in Montgomery, Alabama on February 8, 2023. SPLC on Wednesday asked a federal court to expand a jury pool ahead of a scheduled criminal trial in October. (Brian Lyman/Alabama Reflector)
Attorneys for the Southern Poverty Law Center Wednesday filed a motion asking a federal court to take steps during jury selection to protect a trial of the organization from bias.
The motion requests that the court consider expanding the pool of jury candidates and sending out additional questions to potential jurors and interviewing them about their answers prior to jury selection.
“There are a number of measures that courts in this and other districts have taken in high-profile cases to identify and address potential bias and to safeguard the Sixth Amendment right to an impartial jury,” the motion said. “Some of these steps can also save time by identifying jurors who should be excluded before voir dire and narrowing questions that need to be asked of the entire venire.”
The U.S. Department of Justice has charged the civil rights organization with 14 counts of fraud, alleging that a now-discontinued paid informant program meant to disrupt the operations of racist and extremist groups amounted to material support for those groups and served as a fraud on SPLC donors. The DOJ filed a superseding indictment Aug. 12 that included charges against Heidi Beirich, a former employee of the organization.
The SPLC has pleaded not guilty to the charges and says material gathered from the program was shared with law enforcement. The civil rights nonprofit has also accused the Trump administration of prosecuting it for its opposition to much of Trump’s agenda.
Attorneys for the SPLC said Wednesday that additional measures are necessary because of the allegations in the indictment and because of the prominent status of the organization.
“The charging document makes extensive allegations about the work and history of the SPLC, charges about which jurors will likely have strong opinions; there will be testimony from sensitive witnesses, possibly including former confidential informants; and the trial is proceeding in the very district that the SPLC calls home, where prospective jurors are more likely to know the organization or have pre-formed opinions about the organization or its work,” the motion states.
SPLC attorneys also want to add questions in the questionnaire about how familiar potential jurors are with the organization.
One is, “What is your general understanding of the work that the SPLC does?” A second is, “Have you had any dealings with the SPLC?”
The trial is scheduled to begin Oct. 5.
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Author: Ralph Chapoco