Double Jeopardy refers to a legal right defined in the Fifth Amendment of the United States Constitution that prohibits trying a defendant twice for the same offense. This amendment is part of the Bill of Rights in the U.S. Constitution. The double jeopardy clause protects a defendant from three specific violations of rights.

First, under double jeopardy, a defendant can not be prosecuted a second time for the same offense after an acquittal. The second right that double jeopardy protects is the right a defendant has to not be prosecuted a second time for the same offense after a conviction. Lasly, the same offense can not warrant multiple punishments, or sentences. The 5th Amendment also states that a defendant can not be made to testify in his own criminal proceedings.

While double jeopardy protects a defendant against being tried twice for the same crime, it does allow for some criminal offenses to be prosecuted separately by federal and state sovereignties because federal and state judiciaries are considered separate entities. This right is subjective because federal and state officials can not work together as proponents of one another’s cases. Similarly, in the event a mistrial is declared, the double jeopardy clause does not protect the defendant from prosecution in a new trial.

As with any law, the interpretation is subjective and may not apply in all cases. Criminal lawyers, both defensive and prosecuting, are intimately familiar with the rights defined in the 5th Amendment. Certain legal situations may allow for retrial of a previously tried crime without violating double jeopardy.

In addition to the legal right defined in the US Constitution, Double Jeopardy was a 1999 feature length film starring Tommy Lee Jones and Ashley Judd that explored the very concept of the double jeopardy clause. Judd’s character was a woman whose husband framed her for his murder. Once she served her sentence, she went looking for him. This was because a friend pointed out if she really murdered him, she could not be tried for the crime a second time.