SCOTUS: All Serious Criminal Convictions Require Unanimous Jury Vote

The Supreme Court has overturned a 1972 ruling, extending the Sixth Amendment's requirement for unanimous jury verdicts in federal criminal trials to state trials. This decision affects Louisiana and Oregon, the only states allowing non-unanimous convictions. The ruling was influenced by the case of Evangelisto Ramos, convicted by a 10-2 jury vote in Louisiana. The court highlighted the racial implications of non-unanimous verdicts, noting their historical use to suppress minority jurors' influence. Justice Neil Gorsuch emphasized the Sixth Amendment's call for impartial jury trials, underscoring the necessity of unanimous verdicts.

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