Some criminal acts could be state, federal, or both. The double jeopardy clause in the Fifth Amendment precludes the same state or federal court from trying the defendant twice for the same crime.

. . . Nor shall any person be subject for the same offense to be twice put in jeopardy of life or limb. —Fifth Amendment, U.S. Constitution As every U.S. schoolboy learns, the Bill of Rights ...

All state constitutions drafted prior to the Bill of Rights contained a double jeopardy provision. The principle was so universal that when James Madison proposed on the floor of the First ...