Rights of the Accused No person shall be held to answer for a capital, or otherwise infamous crime, unless on a presentment or indictment of a Grand Jury, except in cases arising in the land or naval forces, or in the Militia, when in actual service in time of War or public danger; nor shall any person be subject for the same offense to be twice put in jeopardy of life or limb; nor shall be compelled in any criminal case to be a witness against himself, nor be deprived of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor shall private property be taken for public use, without just compensation

Double Jeopardy The 5 th Amendment says that no person can be “twice put in jeopardy of life or limb.” This means that once a person has been tried for a crime, they cannot be tried again for that same crime. Exceptions to the double jeopardy rule are if a person violated both a federal and a state law in a single act. They can then be tried for both the federal crime in a federal court and the state crime in the state court.

Speedy and Public Trial The right to a speedy and public trial was extended to the states as part of the Due Process Clause in Klopfer v. North Carolina, 1967. The Speedy Trial Act of 1974 requires that the beginning of a person’s federal criminal trial must take place no more than 100 days after the arrest. The 6th Amendment says that the trial must be public however, a judge can limit who can watch a trial if the defendant’s rights are in jeopardy.

Trial by Jury Americans in criminal trials are guaranteed an impartial jury chosen from the district where the crime was committed. If a defendant waives the right to a jury trial, a bench trial is held where the judge alone hears the case. Most juries have to be unanimous to convict.