Double jeopardy is a procedural defence that forbids a defendant from being tried again on the same (or similar) charges following a legitimate acquittal or conviction. In common law countries, a defendant may enter a peremptory plea of autrefois acquit or autrefois convict (autrefois means "previously" in French), meaning the defendant has been acquitted or convicted of the same offence.
If this issue is raised, evidence will be placed before the court, which will normally rule as a preliminary matter whether the plea is substantiated, and if it so finds, the projected trial will be prevented from proceeding. In some countries, the guarantee against being "twice put in jeopardy" is a constitutional right; these include Canada, Mexico and the United States. In other countries, the protection is afforded by statute law.
Read more about Double Jeopardy: Australia, Canada, European Convention On Human Rights, France, Germany, India, International Covenant On Civil and Political Rights, Japan, Netherlands, Pakistan, Serbia, South Africa, South Korea, United States
Famous quotes containing the word double:
“The worst feature of this double consciousness is, that the two lives, of the understanding and of the soul, which we lead, really show very little relation to each other; never meet and measure each other: one prevails now, all buzz and din; and the other prevails then, all infinitude and paradise; and, with the progress of life, the two discover no greater disposition to reconcile themselves.”
—Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803–1882)