United States Court of Appeals For the Seventh Circuit ____________________ Nos. 20-2048, 20-2049, 20-2080, 20-2086, 20-2087, 20-2088, 20-2100, 20-2115, 20-2116, 20-2117, 20-2133, 20-2208, 20-2229 UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, Plaintiff-Appellee,

v. KENTREVION WATKINS, et al. Defendants-Appellants. ____________________

Appeals from the United States District Court for the Central District of Illinois. No. 1:18-cr-10036 — James E. Shadid, Judge. ____________________

ARGUED NOVEMBER 9, 2022 — DECIDED JULY 8, 2024 ____________________

Before ROVNER, JACKSON-AKIWUMI, and LEE, Circuit Judges. LEE, Circuit Judge. The Bomb Squad was a street gang that used violence against anyone who threatened its reputation, turf, or drug sales. Fourteen gang members were charged with violations of the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Or- ganizations Act (RICO), along with other crimes. One mem- ber, Jovan McCree, pleaded guilty. The remaining defendants 2 Nos. 20-2048, et al. went to trial and were convicted by a jury; they are Kenwan Crowe, Lloyd Dotson, Mytrez Flora, Keith Gregory, Eugene Haywood, Ezra Johnson, Andre Neal-Ford, Raevaughn Rog- ers, Lance Washington, Kentrevion Watkins, Torieuanno White, Sherman Williams, and Jahlin Wilson. These defendants now seek to vacate their convictions on numerous grounds. Their principal argument is that the dis- trict judge ran afoul of Batson v. Kentucky, 476 U.S. 79 (1986), when selecting the jury. For the reasons provided, we retain jurisdiction of the appeal and order a limited remand to per- mit the district court to make supplemental findings as to this issue. As for the remaining arguments defendants raise on ap- peal, we find no reversible error and affirm. I. Background A. Factual Background The Bomb Squad street gang terrorized the Peoria area from 2013 to 2018. Its members committed and attempted to commit numerous murders, trafficked in illegal drugs, and engaged in multiple robberies. Within the loose hierarchy of the Bomb Squad, its leaders had the authority to order lower- ranking members to rob, shoot, or murder rival gang mem- bers. A lower-ranking member’s ruthlessness earned greater respect and standing within the organization. Although Bomb Squad members often identified themselves within smaller subgroups, such as 2300, Magnolia, Harrison Homes, Family First, Marco Movement, or Geek Team Squad, they demonstrated their affiliation and allegiance to the larger or- ganization through hand signals, clothing, tattoos, slogans, and rap lyrics. What follows is a sample of the Bomb Squad’s criminal activities the government presented at trial. Nos. 20-2048, et al. 3

To protect their reputation and territory, Bomb Squad members often turned to gun violence. For example, after be- ing chased and disrespected by rival gang members in June 2013, Haywood obtained a gun from fellow Bomb Squad member Zarmere Barnes. Within hours, Haywood and an- other member, Johnson, rode bikes to where Haywood had been chased. Haywood then shot at the men who had chased him killing one of them, Eric Brown. On another occasion, just one month later, Bomb Squad leader Raheem Wilson warned his colleagues to be on the lookout for Antonio Scott, a rival gangster whom Wilson had robbed. A few days later, Hay- wood, along with fellow gang members, Dotson and Flora, shot at Scott’s car, fatally injuring a passenger, Tyrann Ches- ter. Bomb Squad members retaliated aggressively against even trivial slights. For instance, after White’s sisters were kicked out of a party in August 2015, White shot at rival gang member, Sam Powell, in an alley outside of the part