Friday, November 18, 2005
O.J. Simpson Isn't Finished Whining
AP News reports that O.J. Simpson is whining to the press that he and Robert Blake suffered from double jeopardy.
For those of you who don't know, double jeopardy is being tried for the same crime twice. It violates the U.S. Constitution. The Constitution guarantees that if you're acquitted of a crime, you'll never be bothered with the criminal charges again. This forces prosecutors to establish a strong case against you, since they won't get a second chance.
What "The Juice" fails to realize is that criminal and civil trials are not the same thing. In a criminal trial, the offense has to prove that something was done "beyond a reasonable doubt." In a civil trial, the offense only has to show that something was done by a "preponderance of evidence." How hard is that to understand? Spending a lifetime in prison is deemed much worse than losing a chunk of cash, therefore more proof of wrongdoing is required - issues like due process are taken much more sriously in criminal court. That's why lots of people get acquitted in criminal court but end up paying civil damages. How hard is that to understand?
Calling a follow-up civil suit "double jeopardy" is moronic because for one, it's simply not double jeopardy by definition. Also, O.J.'s reasoning fails to consider cases where a person has been found guilty.
For those of you who don't know, double jeopardy is being tried for the same crime twice. It violates the U.S. Constitution. The Constitution guarantees that if you're acquitted of a crime, you'll never be bothered with the criminal charges again. This forces prosecutors to establish a strong case against you, since they won't get a second chance.
What "The Juice" fails to realize is that criminal and civil trials are not the same thing. In a criminal trial, the offense has to prove that something was done "beyond a reasonable doubt." In a civil trial, the offense only has to show that something was done by a "preponderance of evidence." How hard is that to understand? Spending a lifetime in prison is deemed much worse than losing a chunk of cash, therefore more proof of wrongdoing is required - issues like due process are taken much more sriously in criminal court. That's why lots of people get acquitted in criminal court but end up paying civil damages. How hard is that to understand?
Calling a follow-up civil suit "double jeopardy" is moronic because for one, it's simply not double jeopardy by definition. Also, O.J.'s reasoning fails to consider cases where a person has been found guilty.
