Williams v. Cavazos, No. 07-56127 (9th Cir. 2011)
Annotate this CasePetitioner filed a petition for a writ of habeas corpus relief after she was found guilty of murder with special circumstances and sentenced to life imprisonment without the possibility of parole. At issue was whether the trial court violated petitioner's Sixth Amendment right to a fair trial by dismissing a juror who was known to be the lone holdout for acquittal. The court held that the removal of Juror No. 6 deprived petitioner of her right to a fair trial by jury where there was at least a reasonable possibility that Juror No. 6's discharged stemmed from his disagreement with his peers over their views of the merits of the case and where there was no good cause to justify the juror's discharge. Accordingly, the court reversed the judgment of the district court and remanded with instructions to grant the writ.
The court issued a subsequent related opinion or order on July 3, 2013.
The court issued a subsequent related opinion or order on May 27, 2016.
The court issued a subsequent related opinion or order on October 21, 2016.
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