Grady v. Corbin

Grady v. Corbin, 495 U.S. 508 (1990), was a United States Supreme Court decision holding that: "the Double Jeopardy Clause bars a subsequent prosecution if, to establish an essential element of an offense charged in that prosecution, the government will prove conduct that constitutes an offense for which the defendant has already been prosecuted."[1]

Grady v. Corbin
Supreme Court of the United States
Argued March 21, 1990 Decided May 29, 1990
Full case name	William V. Grady, District Attorney of Dutchess County v. Thomas J. Corbin
Citations	495 U.S. 508 (more) 110 S. Ct. 2084; 109 L. Ed. 2d 548; 1990 U.S. LEXIS 2698
Case history
Prior	Certiorari to the Court of Appeals of New York
Holding
The Double Jeopardy Clause bars a subsequent prosecution if, to establish an essential element of an offense charged in that prosecution, the government will prove conduct that constitutes an offense for which the defendant has already been prosecuted.
Court membership
Chief Justice William Rehnquist Associate Justices William J. Brennan Jr. · Byron White Thurgood Marshall · Harry Blackmun John P. Stevens · Sandra Day O'Connor Antonin Scalia · Anthony Kennedy
Case opinions
Majority	Brennan, joined by White, Marshall, Blackmun, Stevens
Dissent	O'Connor
Dissent	Scalia, joined by Rehnquist, Kennedy
Laws applied
U.S. Const. amend. V
Overruled by
United States v. Dixon, 509 U.S. 688 (1993).

Background

In the fall of 1987, Thomas Corbin was driving under the influence as he drove his automobile across the center line of a New York highway and collided with two oncoming vehicles. Brenda Dirago, the driver of the second vehicle, died in this accident while her husband was seriously injured. Later that same day, Corbin was charged with DUI and pleaded guilty.

Opinion of the Court

In an opinion by Justice Brennan, the Supreme Court ruled that to subsequently try him for homicide would constitute double jeopardy.[2]

Aftermath

Grady was only valid law for three years. It was overturned by United States v. Dixon,[3] which rejected the same conduct test in favor of the longstanding same element test. The same element test had been the law since Blockburger v. United States.[4]

See also

• List of United States Supreme Court cases, volume 495
• List of United States Supreme Court cases
• Lists of United States Supreme Court cases by volume
• List of United States Supreme Court cases by the Rehnquist Court
• United States v. Felix (1993)

References

1. Grady v. Corbin, 495 U.S. 508 (1990).
2. Foderaro, Lisa W. (1990-06-02). "Double-Jeopardy Ruling Compounds Grief". New York Times.
3. United States v. Dixon, 509 U.S. 688 (1993).
4. Blockburger v. United States, 284 U.S. 299 (1932).

Further reading

• Barton, S. (1990). "Grady v. Corbin: An Unsuccessful Effort to Define Same Offense". Georgia Law Review. 25: 143. ISSN 0016-8300.
• Brudzinski, Walter J.; Farashahi, Afshin (1992). "Double Jeopardy in Successive Prosecutions: The Impact of Grady v. Corbin". Thomas Jefferson Law Review. 14: 181. ISSN 1090-5278.
• McGinnis, L. A. (1990). "Grady v. Corbin: Doubling the Scope of the Double Jeopardy Clause". Ohio Northern University Law Review. 17: 873. ISSN 0094-534X.
• Webre, C. J. (1990). "Grady v. Corbin: Successive Prosecutions Must Survive Heightened Double Jeopardy Protection". Loyola Law Review. 36: 1171. ISSN 0192-9720.

External links

• Text of Grady v. Corbin, 495 U.S. 508 (1990) is available from:  CourtListener  Findlaw  Google Scholar  Justia  Library of Congress  Oyez (oral argument audio)