A hung jury permits retrial without violating double jeopardy
Evidence
Early in the history of the Anglo-American jury, it was established that juries would include 12 members and reach their verdicts by unanimous vote. If the jurors could not agree on a verdict, the judge would rule that the jury was “hung” and dismiss it. If the jury was hung in a criminal trial, the accused, having been neither convicted nor acquitted, could be tried again for the same offense. Thus, after the jury hung in the first prosecution of Bill Cosby for sexual assault, he was tried again and in that second trial was convicted. Often; however, the prosecution declines»to reinstitute charges after having failed to win a conviction in the first trial. — G. Alan Tarr, Judicial Process and Judicial…, 1421
Categorization
- DEFINE: Clarifies the technical term ‘hung jury’ and its double jeopardy consequence.
- XREF: Connects to the constitutional protection against double jeopardy as a foundational criminal-procedure rule. — connects to: Hung juries leave the accused subject to retrial for the same offense. — G. Alan Tarr, Judicial Process and Judicial…, 872; A hung jury can serve a defendant as effectively as an outright win. — , Harr Jonathan - A Civil Action , 2376; Juries satisfy the form of a verdict without understanding its substance — , Harr Jonathan - A Civil Action , 2398 (+2 more)
Broader Connections
- A hung jury can serve a defendant as effectively as an outright win.
#responds-to(1.00) — , Harr Jonathan - A Civil Action, 2376 - Juries satisfy the form of a verdict without understanding its substance
#complicates(0.90) — , Harr Jonathan - A Civil Action, 2398 - Jury trial safeguards defendants against corrupt prosecutors and biased judges
#complicates(0.90) — G. Alan Tarr, Judicial Process and Judicial…, 1292 - Because juries create no precedent, they can bend the law without breaking it.
#complicates(0.90) — G. Alan Tarr, Judicial Process and Judicial…, 1448