On August 5, the North Carolina sen­ate passed a bill allow­ing pre-tri­al defen­dants and death-row inmates to chal­lenge the death penal­ty process through the use of sta­tis­ti­cal stud­ies. The Racial Justice Act allows a defen­dant fac­ing a cap­i­tal tri­al or an inmate sen­tenced to death to use evi­dence show­ing a pat­tern of racial dis­par­i­ty as a way of chal­leng­ing racial injus­tice in the death penal­ty. Prosecutors would then have the oppor­tu­ni­ty to rebut the claim that the sta­tis­ti­cal dis­par­i­ties indi­cate racial bias. If proven, a judge could over­turn the death sen­tence or pre­vent pros­e­cu­tors from seek­ing the death penal­ty. Sen. Floyd McKissick (D‑Durham) (pic­tured), the chief spon­sor of the bill in the Senate, said, “[The law] is crit­i­cal­ly need­ed to cor­rect any type of con­duct that might be imper­mis­si­ble when it comes to the impo­si­tion of the death penal­ty.” The House had passed the Racial Justice Act ear­li­er. Governor Beverly Purdue is expect­ed to sign the bill into law. 

(J. Romoser, ​“Racial Justice Act pass­es, now goes to Purdue,” Winston-Salem Journal, Aug. 6, 2009). See Recent Legislation and Race.

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