PRIA Logo™
CaliforniaSB 6452025-2026 Regular SessionSenate

Juries: peremptory challenges.

Sponsored By: Thomas Umberg (Democratic)

Signed by Governor

Your PRIA Score

Score Hidden

Personalized for You

How does this bill affect your finances?

Sign up for a PRIA Policy Scan to see your personalized alignment score for this bill and every other piece of legislation we track. We analyze your financial profile against policy provisions to show you exactly what matters to your wallet.

Free to start

Bill Overview

Analyzed Economic Effects

3 provisions identified: 2 benefits, 0 costs, 1 mixed.

Remedies and appeals for biased strikes

If the court finds a strike improper, it must fix it. The court can restart jury selection, declare a mistrial and select a new jury (if after impaneling and requested by the defendant), seat the juror, grant extra peremptory strikes to the objecting party, or order another suitable remedy. On appeal, denials of objections are reviewed anew, and courts use only reasons stated in the record. If the trial court wrongly denied an objection, the error is presumptively harmful. The judgment is reversed and the case is sent back for a new trial.

Stronger rules against biased jury strikes

The law bans peremptory strikes based on race, ethnicity, gender, gender identity, sexual orientation, national origin, or religion, including perceived membership. Any party or the judge can object, and the discussion happens outside the jury panel. Objections are made before the jury is seated unless new facts arise later. The lawyer who used the strike must explain their reasons. Judges look at the full situation and only the reasons given, and sustain an objection when a reasonable person would see a protected trait as a factor. The law defines key terms and lists factors to weigh, like how jurors were questioned and whether similar jurors were treated differently. Many common excuses are presumed invalid, such as distrust of police, neighborhood, language, public benefits, dress, or certain jobs. To overcome that, the party must show by clear and convincing evidence the reason is unrelated to bias and truly affects fairness; demeanor claims stay invalid unless the court confirms the behavior and counsel explains why it matters. These rules apply to jury selections that begin on or after January 1, 2022.

Civil rights and commitment cases covered

This section does not apply to most civil cases. It does apply to civil-rights claims (like the Unruh Act, Bane Act, Section 1983, Title VI, the Voting Rights Act, the Fair Housing Act, and FEHA), civil commitment proceedings (including sexually violent predator cases), and civil damages from hate crimes. In those covered civil cases, the party bringing the claim must notify the court and other parties after the final status conference, or at least 15 calendar days before trial if there is no final status conference.

Sponsors & Cosponsors

Sponsor

  • Thomas Umberg

    Democratic • Senate

Cosponsors

There are no cosponsors for this bill.

Roll Call Votes

All Roll Calls

Yes: 194 • No: 0

Senate vote • 9/12/2025

Item 96 — Senate SFLOOR

Yes: 37 • No: 0

House vote • 9/11/2025

Item 86 — Assembly AFLOOR

Yes: 80 • No: 0

legislature vote • 8/29/2025

Vote in CX25

Yes: 15 • No: 0

legislature vote • 7/8/2025

Vote in CX13

Yes: 12 • No: 0

Senate vote • 6/4/2025

Item 74 — Senate SFLOOR

Yes: 39 • No: 0

legislature vote • 4/8/2025

Vote in CS53

Yes: 11 • No: 0

Actions Timeline

  1. Chaptered by Secretary of State. Chapter 656, Statutes of 2025.

    10/11/2025Senate

  2. Approved by the Governor.

    10/11/2025legislature

  3. Enrolled and presented to the Governor at 2 p.m.

    9/23/2025legislature

  4. Assembly amendments concurred in. (Ayes 37. Noes 0. Page 2987.) Ordered to engrossing and enrolling.

    9/12/2025Senate

  5. In Senate. Concurrence in Assembly amendments pending.

    9/12/2025Senate

  6. Read third time. Passed. (Ayes 80. Noes 0. Page 3275.) Ordered to the Senate.

    9/11/2025House

  7. Ordered to third reading.

    9/4/2025House

  8. Read third time and amended.

    9/4/2025House

  9. Read second time. Ordered to third reading.

    9/2/2025House

  10. From committee: Do pass. (Ayes 15. Noes 0.) (August 29).

    8/29/2025House

  11. August 20 set for first hearing. Placed on APPR. suspense file.

    8/20/2025House

  12. From committee: Do pass and re-refer to Com. on APPR. (Ayes 12. Noes 0.) (July 8). Re-referred to Com. on APPR.

    7/9/2025House

  13. From committee with author's amendments. Read second time and amended. Re-referred to Com. on JUD.

    7/3/2025House

  14. Referred to Com. on JUD.

    6/16/2025House

  15. In Assembly. Read first time. Held at Desk.

    6/5/2025House

  16. Read third time. Passed. (Ayes 39. Noes 0. Page 1494.) Ordered to the Assembly.

    6/4/2025Senate

  17. Read second time. Ordered to third reading.

    6/2/2025Senate

  18. Ordered to second reading.

    5/29/2025Senate

  19. Read third time and amended.

    5/29/2025Senate

  20. Read second time. Ordered to third reading.

    5/20/2025Senate

  21. From committee: Be ordered to second reading pursuant to Senate Rule 28.8.

    5/19/2025Senate

  22. Set for hearing May 19.

    5/9/2025Senate

  23. May 12 hearing postponed by committee.

    5/8/2025Senate

  24. Set for hearing May 12.

    5/2/2025Senate

  25. April 21 hearing postponed by committee.

    4/16/2025Senate

Bill Text

  • Chaptered

    10/11/2025

    HTML

  • Enrolled

    9/18/2025

    HTML

  • Amended Assembly

    9/4/2025

    HTML

  • Amended Assembly

    7/3/2025

    HTML

  • Amended Senate

    5/29/2025

    HTML

  • Introduced

    2/20/2025

    HTML

Related Bills

Back to State Legislation