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At the start of the trial of Gerald Stanley, the Saskatchewan farmer charged with second-degree murder in the shooting death of Boushie, a 22-year-old Cree man, Boushie’s family expressed frustration when defence lawyers exercised their right to use a peremptory challenge — the ability to dismiss a potential juror without explanation — on all individuals who appeared to be Indigenous.

“The deck is stacked against us,” Alvin Baptiste, Boushie’s uncle, told reporters at the time.

In an interview with the National Post this week, Chris Murphy, a lawyer for the Boushie family, cited a moment during the trial that illustrates why diversity in juries matters.

Photo by Michelle Berg/Saskatoon StarPhoenix

Eric Meechance, a friend of Boushie, was asked to identify a firearm in a crime scene photo. But the photo that was presented to him also showed Boushie’s dead body. Meechance became emotional and he would not look at the photo.

Doug Cuthand, a Cree columnist for the Saskatoon StarPhoenix, later wrote that it was “cultural taboo” to do so.

“If you don’t know Indigenous traditions and customs, you might think they’re being obstructionist or trying to evade looking at the picture,” Murphy said. “And so having an Indigenous person on the jury would help explain the traditions and cultures so the remainder of the jury can understand why they reacted that way.”

Senator Murray Sinclair, who chaired the Truth and Reconciliation Commission, echoed that sentiment this week, tweeting: “Without Indigenous people on the jury, how will they understand?”