[Congressional Record Volume 171, Number 106 (Friday, June 20, 2025)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E595]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




INTRODUCTION OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA LOCAL JUROR NON-DISCRIMINATION 
                              ACT OF 2025

                                 ______
                                 

                       HON. ELEANOR HOLMES NORTON

                      of the district of columbia

                    in the house of representatives

                         Friday, June 20, 2025

  Ms. NORTON. Mr. Speaker, today I introduce the District of Columbia 
Local Juror Non-Discrimination Act of 2025. This bill would clarify 
that D.C. residents may not be excluded or disqualified from jury 
service in the local D.C. trial court, the D.C. Superior Court, based 
on sexual orientation or gender identity. Specifically, this bill would 
clarify that the term ``sex,'' which is a protected class under the 
non-discrimination law that applies to jurors in the D.C. Superior 
Court, includes sexual orientation and gender identity. The term 
``sex'' would also include a sex stereotype; pregnancy, childbirth or 
related medical condition; and sex characteristics, including intersex 
traits. In the 117th Congress, the House Committee on Oversight and 
Reform passed a version of this bill.
  D.C. has one of the strongest non-discrimination laws in the country, 
including protecting individuals based on sexual orientation and gender 
identity. However, under the D.C. Home Rule Act, the D.C. Council does 
not have the authority to amend title 11 of the D.C. Code, which 
contains the non-discrimination provisions that apply to jurors in the 
D.C. Superior Court. Therefore, until D.C. is given authority to amend 
title 11 of the D.C. Code, which one of my bills would do, an act of 
Congress is required to clarify that LGBTQ+ jurors in the D.C. Superior 
Court are protected from discrimination.
  As the Supreme Court said in Edmonson v. Leesville Concrete Company, 
``discrimination within the courtroom raises serious questions as to 
the fairness of the proceedings conducted there. . . . [B]ias mars the 
integrity of the judicial system and prevents the idea of democratic 
government from becoming a reality.'' Similarly, the Court, in Batson 
v. Kentucky, which was a juror discrimination case based on race, said, 
``The harm from discriminatory jury selection extends beyond that 
inflicted on the defendant and the excluded juror to touch the entire 
community. Selection procedures that purposefully exclude black persons 
from juries undermine public confidence in the fairness of our system 
of justice.''
  I urge my colleagues to support this bill.

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