Double Jeopardy Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Double Jeopardy - Essay Example All states embrace the concept of double jeopardy in their own constitutions and statutes. Benton v. Maryland, 395 U.S. 784 (1969) saw the Supreme Court mandate that all federal and state prosecutions must take into consideration the federal double jeopardy clause. As a result, all citizens in spite of the different constitutions followed by the state they reside receive the same amount of protection against the federal double jeopardy clause (Thomas, 1998). In order to internalize the concept of double jeopardy, courts must first identify the legal proceedings that necessitate double jeopardy protection. As per The Fifth Amendment, cases that threatened the life or limb of an offender otherwise referred to as capital crimes or corporal punishments qualified for double jeopardy protection. The US Supreme Court modified this to include juvenile delinquency, felonies and misdemeanors. Double jeopardy protection only applies to criminal legal proceedings, which are punitive in nature an d serve to bring retribution and deterrence from criminal behavior. Conversely, it does not apply to civil proceedings, which are remedial in nature directed towards compensating those afflicted by the offender. However, an offender can face both civil and criminal legal suits for the same offence without disregarding the double jeopardy claus