State Senate passes Noreen Evans' bill on juror challenges

Legislation billed as an effort to make jury service less onerous in California was passed Tuesday by the state Senate.

SB 794, authored by Sen. Noreen Evans, D-Santa Rosa, would reduce the number of times attorneys in misdemeanor trials could kick potential jurors off the panel without having to state a reason.

Advocates say limiting such "peremptory challenges" would reduce the number of people summoned for jury duty, shorten trials and save money.

Critics fear the limitations could make trials less fair by limiting opportunities for attorneys to boot people who might be biased toward one side or the other.

The bill proposes to limit the number of peremptory challenges in misdemeanor cases to five each for the prosecution and the defense. Currently, it's 10 per side. The changes would put California in line with other western states.

The bill advanced Tuesday on a 21-11 vote. It now heads to the Assembly.