What is the impact of underrepresentation of women and blacks on the selection of a capital sentencing jury?

I recognize that some underrepresentation of women and blacks on capital sentencing juries is unavoidable, since the views of women and blacks regarding the death penalty make them more prone to being excluded for cause than men and whites, respectively. (See Hovey v. Superior Court, supra, 28 Cal.3d at pp. 55-56 [women], 57 [blacks], 168 Cal.Rptr. 128, 616 P.2d 1301.) However, the fact that a certain degree of underrepresentation is inevitable[690 P.2d 693] makes it all the more imperative that the proportion of women and blacks not be diluted [37 Cal.3d 339] further. This would seem to be a particularly compelling concern in capital cases, where the issue is literally life or death. And it should be an even greater imperative where one of the underrepresented groups is also the group that has traditionally been singled out in disproportionate numbers to receive death sentences.