§ 231.5.Assumption of bias

Section 231.5 is a short but consequential rule: a party may not use a peremptory challenge to remove a prospective juror on the assumption that the juror is biased merely because the juror has a characteristic listed or defined in Government Code § 11135 (categories like race, sex, national origin, and other protected traits), or on a similar assumption-based ground.

The section targets a specific kind of reasoning, striking a juror because of a stereotype tied to group membership rather than anything about the individual juror. It predates and works alongside § 231.7’s more detailed procedural framework for raising and resolving objections to a peremptory challenge, and § 231.7 itself treats a party’s history of § 231.5 violations as a relevant circumstance in evaluating later objections.