What is stratified jury selection?
Stratified jury selection is a weighted sampling technique based on location within the jurisdiction or on the racial or ethnic characteristics of the prospective jurors. Stratified selection is also known as “structured” or “clustered” sampling.The advantages of stratification are that it improves the likelihood that the pool from which the jury is selected will fairly represent the demographics of the court’s jurisdiction. It can be used to compensate for source lists that do not produce a fair cross-section of the community, or for disproportionate response and qualification rates. Moreover, conducting the research necessary to implement stratified selection helps the court identify major causes of underrepresentation. Finally, stratification may protect jury-selection systems from legal challenges based on intentional discrimination or Sixth Amendment claims.However, stratification presents its own issues. The process may be subject to equal-protection or due-process challenges. It
