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Thanks for the useful and fascinating introduction to these legal concepts – I devoured it all in an afternoon!
Something I hadn’t noticed until now:
The double-jeopardy clause only concerns life or limb, yet in the same ammentment requires due process of law for deprivations of life, liberty, or property. This implies that you can be tried multiple times as long as there is no significant penalty (ie. life in prison or similar). This doesn’t inspire confidence.
Wait, does the Fifth Amendment make plea-bargaining unconstitutional?
>no person shall be held to answer for a capital, or otherwise infamous crime, unless on the presentment or indictment of a Grand Jury
No juries when you plea-bargain. You’re just found guilty.
Nobody forces you to take it, though. Just like you can choose to waive your rights by taking, you can waive them by accepting plea bargains.
A grand jury only indicts (with only a probable cause requirement, I believe). As I understand it, the grand jury proceedings would be all finished before any sort of plea bargaining even began.
That’s highly explicit. How exactly could people overlook it so long?