''Puerto Rico v. Sanchez Valle'', 579 U.S. ___ (2016), is a

criminal case Criminal law is the body of law that relates to crime. It prescribes conduct perceived as threatening, harmful, or otherwise endangering to the property, health, safety, and moral welfare of people inclusive of one's self. Most criminal law i ...

that came before the

Supreme Court of the United States The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) is the highest court in the federal judiciary of the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all U.S. federal court cases, and over state court cases that involve a point o ...

, which considered whether

Puerto Rico Puerto Rico (; abbreviated PR; tnq, Boriken, ''Borinquen''), officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico ( es, link=yes, Estado Libre Asociado de Puerto Rico, lit=Free Associated State of Puerto Rico), is a Caribbean island and Unincorporated ...

and the

federal government of the United States The federal government of the United States (U.S. federal government or U.S. government) is the national government of the United States, a federal republic located primarily in North America, composed of 50 states, a city within a fede ...

are separate sovereigns for purposes of the

Double Jeopardy Clause The Double Jeopardy Clause of the Fifth Amendment to the United States Constitution provides: ''" r shall any person be subject for the same offence to be twice put in jeopardy of life or limb..."'' The four essential protections included a ...

of the

United States Constitution The Constitution of the United States is the Supremacy Clause, supreme law of the United States, United States of America. It superseded the Articles of Confederation, the nation's first constitution, in 1789. Originally comprising seven ar ...

. In essence, the clause establishes that an individual cannot be tried for the same offense twice under the same sovereignty. The petitioner claimed that Puerto Rico has a different sovereignty because of its political status while others claimed that it does not, including the respondent, the

Supreme Court of Puerto Rico The Supreme Court of Puerto Rico ( es, Tribunal Supremo de Puerto Rico) is the highest court of Puerto Rico, having judicial authority to interpret and decide questions of Puerto Rican law. The Court is analogous to one of the state supreme cou ...

, and the

Solicitor General of the United States The solicitor general of the United States is the fourth-highest-ranking official in the United States Department of Justice. Elizabeth Prelogar has been serving in the role since October 28, 2021. The United States solicitor general represent ...

. In a 6–2 decision, the Court affirmed that the Double Jeopardy Clause bars Puerto Rico and the United States from successively prosecuting the same person for the same conduct under equivalent criminal laws. The decision was affirmed 6-2 in an opinion by Justice Kagan on June 9, 2016. Justice Ginsburg filed a concurring opinion in which Justice

Thomas Thomas may refer to: People * List of people with given name Thomas * Thomas (name) * Thomas (surname) * Saint Thomas (disambiguation) * Thomas Aquinas (1225–1274) Italian Dominican friar, philosopher, and Doctor of the Church * Thomas the Ap ...

joined. Justice Thomas filed an opinion, concurring in part and concurring in the judgment. Justice Breyer filed a dissenting opinion in which Justice

Sotomayor Sotomayor is a Galician language, Galician surname. Notable people with the surname include: * Sonia Sotomayor, U.S. Supreme Court justice In arts and entertainment * Carlos Sotomayor (1911–1988), Chilean painter * Chris Sotomayor, artist who wo ...

joined.

Political implications

The argument appears to diminish the constitutional stature that the Puerto Rican government thought that it had had since the

Puerto Rico Federal Relations Act of 1950 The Puerto Rico Federal Relations Act of 1950 () was an Act of Congress of the 81st United States Congress. The United States Senate passed it unanimously.Constitution of Puerto Rico The Constitution of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico ( es, Constitución del Estado Libre Asociado de Puerto Rico) is the controlling government document of Puerto Rico. It is composed of nine articles detailing the structure of the government a ...

in 1952.

References

External links

* {{Fifth Amendment crimpro, jeopardy, state=expanded 2016 in United States case law United States Supreme Court cases United States Supreme Court cases of the Roberts Court United States Double Jeopardy Clause case law Legal history of Puerto Rico

Political implications

See also

References

External links