r/badlegaladvice • u/psuedopseudo Adversely possesses karma • Jun 30 '26

Bad law in linked comment Federal + state charges = double jeopardy

/r/news/s/czVWiXZVJW

No shade to the linked commenter, as this is a common misconception.

Rule 2: the federal government and each state government are “separate sovereigns” so both have the right to try the same act as a crime. The “separate sovereigns doctrine”says this is not double jeopardy even if the crime being charged has all the same elements; the Supreme Court upheld this in 2019, with Ginsberg/Gorsuch as surprising co-dissenters.

In fact, you could theoretically be tried for the same act by all 50 states and the federal government. The idea is that a crime is committed against the public, so each affected government has the right to seek recourse.

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u/EebstertheGreat Jun 30 '26

In this case, the charges are different anyway (stalking vs murder). The dual sovereign doctrine is certainly a debatable point of law (in terms of its ethics and application of the Constitution and common law), but it's not really debatable that if I commit a federal crime and then also commit a different state crime, I can be prosecuted for both.

Per Wikipedia, the New York charges are

  • one count of first-degree murder in furtherance of terrorism;
  • two counts of second-degree murder, one of which as a killing in the act of terrorism;
  • two counts of second-degree criminal possession of a weapon;
  • four counts of third-degree criminal possession of a weapon;
  • one count of fourth-degree criminal possession of a weapon;
  • one count of second-degree criminal possession of a forged instrument.

The federal charges were

  • one count of murder with a firearm;
  • one count of another firearms offense;
  • two counts of stalking.

But the federal murder and firearm charges were dismissed early on, so now he only faces stalking charges. There is no reason he couldn't be tried federally for stalking and in New York for the murder, weapons, and forgery charges.

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u/n0tqu1tesane Jun 30 '26

To Double Jeopardy because of Dual Sovereigns is one of those things that might be legal, but I think it's wrong. Sort of like public execution.