Batson v. Kentucky held that using peremptory challenges to exclude jurors on the basis of race violates which constitutional provision?

• A. The First Amendment.
• B. The Eighth Amendment.
• C. The Due Process Clause.
• D. Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment.

Answer: (D)

The main idea is that excluding jurors based on race violates the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment. Batson v. Kentucky holds that peremptory challenges cannot be used to strike jurors solely because of their race, because doing so treats jurors unequally and undermines equal protection under the law in governmental action. This reflects the principle that juror selection must not discriminate on the basis of race, and the Court later extended and reinforced this protection in related cases. The other options don’t fit because they address different constitutional concerns (First Amendment about speech, Eighth about punishment, and due process concerns) and Batson’s holding rests on equal protection rather than those provisions.