In 2020, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that non-unanimous jury verdicts, in which a jury could vote 11-1 or 10-2 to convict people, are unconstitutional. Despite that ruling, Oregon is still incarcerating several hundred people who were convicted in this way.
This practice is rooted in racism and antisemitism. These juries were first endorsed in Louisiana to “establish the supremacy of the white race.” Here in Oregon, the law was adopted as a backlash to a jury acquitting a Jewish man, Jacob Silverman, of one of the charges against him.
As Oregon Jews, we believe that we all have a responsibility to dismantle systemic racism and oppression, to ensure everyone has access to a fair trial, and to pursue justice. That's why we're rising to demand justice for everyone incarcerated by this unjust practice.
Email your legislators today: demand they support legislation that will give people convicted by non-unanimous juries the opportunity for retrial.
If you have any questions, or are interested in getting involved in the campaign, reach out to [email protected].
