| CARVIEW |
double jeopardy
The Double Jeopardy Clause of the Fifth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution protects against being prosecuted twice for the same crime. Through the incorporation doctrine, double jeopardy applies to both the federal and state governments, following Benton v. Maryland, 395 U.S. 784 (1969). Double jeopardy generally covers criminal punishment, not all sanctions.
In certain cases, civil penalties may qualify if they are punitive. In United States v. One Assortment of 89 Firearms, 465 U.S. 354 (1984), the Supreme Court held that the prohibition on double jeopardy extends to civil sanctions which are applied in a manner that is punitive in nature. In United States v. Halper, 490 U.S. 435 (1989), a civil sanction made under the False Claims Act qualifies as punishment if the sanction is overwhelmingly disproportionate in compensating the government for its loss, and if the disproportionate award can be explained only as a deterrent or as having a retributive purpose. In One Lot Emerald Cut Stones v. United States, 409 U.S. 232 (1972), the Supreme Court held, "Congress may impose both a criminal and a civil sanction in respect to the same act or omission for the Double Jeopardy Clause prohibits merely punishing twice, or attempting a second time to punish criminally, for the same offense."
However, in United States v. Ursery, 518 US 267 (1996), the Supreme Court held that civil asset forfeitures did not constitute a "punishment" for purposes of the Double Jeopardy Clause because civil asset forfeiture is a remedial civil sanction, and not a punitive criminal sanction. See e.g., Currier v. Virginia, 138 S. Ct. 2144, 201 L. Ed. 2d 650 (2018)
The protection also applies when someone is tried as a juvenile and then again as an adult for the same offense. In Breed v. Jones, 421 U.S. 519 (1975), the Supreme Court decided that double jeopardy applies to an individual who is tried as a juvenile and is then later tried as an adult; this is because juvenile courts have the option to try a minor as an adult. If that court tries the individual as a juvenile, then another trial court may not try that individual as an adult for the same crime.
For more on double jeopardy, see this Cornell Law Review article and this Yale School Legal Scholarship Repository article.
[Last reviewed in July of 2025 by the Wex Definitions Team]
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