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U.S. NEWS Thursday 6 december 2018
Supreme Court takes up closely watched double jeopardy case

By MARK SHERMAN ruling will affect future pros-
WASHINGTON (AP) — The ecutions.
Constitution says you can't But Trump's Justice Depart-
be tried twice for the same ment is urging the court not
offense. And yet Terance to depart from what it says
Gamble is sitting in prison is an unbroken line of cases
today because he was reaching back nearly 170
prosecuted separately by years in favor of allowing
Alabama and the federal prosecutions by state and
government for having a federal authorities. Thirty-
gun after an earlier robbery six states that include Re-
conviction. publican-led Texas and
The Supreme Court is con- Democratic-led New York
sidering Gamble's case on are on the administration's
Thursday, and the outcome side, as are advocates for
could have a spillover ef- Native American women
fect on the investigation who worry that a decision
into Russian meddling in for Gamble would make
the 2016 election. it harder to prosecute do-
At issue is whether to over- mestic and sexual violence
turn a court-created ex- crimes.
ception to the Constitu- Civil rights scholars at How- In this Oct. 5, 2018, file photo, the U. S. Supreme Court building stands quietly before dawn in
tion's double-jeopardy bar ard University adopt a sort Washington. The Constitution says you can’t be tried twice for the same offense.
that allows state and fed- of middle ground that urg- Associated Press
eral prosecutions for the es the court to at least pre-
same crime. The court's serve the federal govern- court to rein in successive that failed, he pleaded plates no exceptions to its
ruling could be relevant ment's ability to lead civil prosecutions for the same guilty in federal court blanket guarantee of pro-
if President Donald Trump rights prosecutions against crime. as well, with the idea of tection from double prose-
were to pardon someone people who have been Reinforcing the seemingly mounting the constitutional cution and punishment for
implicated in special coun- acquitted of state charges. odd alliances in play on this challenge that is now be- the same offense," Chaiten
sel Robert Mueller's probe Civil rights charges to fight issue is that the unlikely high fore the Supreme Court. wrote.
and a state wanted to pur- crimes of racial violence court duo of Justices Ruth Gamble is not scheduled The administration coun-
sue its own charges against have been a key tool for Bader Ginsburg and Clar- for release from prison un- tered that the American
that person. federal prosecutors, espe- ence Thomas first suggest- til 2020, nearly three years legal system has long
Supreme Court lawyer Tom cially when Southern juries ed in 2016 that the topic later than he would have viewed violations of state
Goldstein joked at a Wash- were unwilling to convict "bears fresh examination in been freed from conviction and federal law as sepa-
ington event before the defendants. The most re- an appropriate case." on state charges alone, rate offenses, even if they
term began in October cent example the scholars At least four justices — the his lawyer, Louis Chaiten, result from the same con-
that the high court case cited is the successful fed- minimum required to hear wrote in court papers. duct. The court should not
should be called New York eral prosecution of Los An- arguments — felt Gamble's The relevant portion of the "invite the serious practical
v. Manafort, a reference geles police officers who situation is that appropriate Constitution's Fifth Amend- consequences of categori-
to former Trump campaign had been acquitted of case. ment says that no person cally precluding politically
manager Paul Manafort. state charges in the beat- There is no dispute that shall "be subject for the accountable officials from
Trump has refused to rule ing of Rodney King. Gamble's arrest in 2015 for same offense to be twice ever determining that a
out an eventual pardon for On the other side, liberal possessing a 9 millimeter put in jeopardy of life or separate prosecution is
Manafort, who has been and conservative groups handgun led to state and limb." warranted — which would
convicted of federal finan- say that the huge growth federal charges. He plead- Chaiten said the language hamstring state, tribal and
cial fraud and conspiracy in federal criminal prosecu- ed guilty in state court and is clearly on Gamble's side. federal law enforcement,"
crimes. It's by no means tions in recent decades tried to have the federal "The text of the Double Deputy Solicitor General
certain that the high court makes it urgent for the charge dismissed. When Jeopardy Clause contem- Jeffrey Wall wrote.q

DHS: Coast Guard Academy retaliated against woman instructor

NEW LONDON, Conn. (AP) academy received a poor jects of her complaints and findings and outcomes in Academy's handling of
— Officials at the U.S. Coast annual evaluation "after those who handled them response to bullying and racial discrimination and
Guard Academy retaliat- making discrimination and were also redacted. harassment complaints. harassment. ... We fully ex-
ed against a faculty mem- harassment complaints The report concluded with The academy did not im- pect immediate, thorough
ber who had complained against her superiors." several recommendations, mediately respond to mul- and transparent steps to
of harassment and bullying The report also found that including supplemental tiple phone messages for change this atmosphere
based on her gender and the Coast Guard failed to training for Coast Guard comment left Wednesday. of racial hostility and hold
race, according to a re- adequately respond to supervisors and managers U.S. Sens. Richard Blumen- academy staff and officers
port from the Department the woman's complaints, on the agency's discrimi- thal and Chris Murphy, accountable for their ac-
of Homeland Security's Of- which were made in 2015 nation, harassment, and both Democrats from Con- tions."
fice of Inspector General and 2016, and subjected bullying policies. necticut, said in a joint The academy is already
released Tuesday. her to additional harass- It also ordered that the statement that the inspec- the subject of a congres-
The report says "a prepon- ment after she made her officer's evaluation be tor general's report is trou- sional investigation for ha-
derance of the evidence" initial complaints. amended and said com- bling. rassment, bullying and dis-
shows that the lieuten- The person's name was manders should be re- "The Inspector General's crimination against minor-
ant commander at the blacked out in the heavily quired to document in report is a damning indict- ity cadets.q
New London, Connecticut redacted report. The sub- writing the reasons for their ment of the Coast Guard