State v. Shirey
Annotate this Case
The Supreme Judicial Court affirmed the interlocutory order of the superior court denying Defendant's motion to dismiss on double jeopardy grounds a superseding indictment against him, holding that neither the United States Double Jeopardy Clause nor its counterpart in the Maine Constitution barred the State from retrying Defendant on the superseding indictment.
On appeal, Defendant argued that the superior court erred in denying his motion to dismiss because the dismissal of the original indictment against him after the jury was empaneled and sworn barred the State from charging him twice with the same offense. The Supreme Judicial Court clarified the implications of a defective indictment for purposes of the Double Jeopardy Clauses of the state and federal Constitutions and affirmed, holding (1) jeopardy attached in Defendant's trial; but (2) the trial court's dismissal of the indictment was not the equivalent of an acquittal and did not bar retrial.
Some case metadata and case summaries were written with the help of AI, which can produce inaccuracies. You should read the full case before relying on it for legal research purposes.
This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.