United States v. Russell Means, United States of America v. Dennis Banks

GIBSON, Chief Judge.

Following a break in jury deliberations because of the illness of a juror, the court dismissed all remaining charges against the defendants, Russell Means and Dennis Banks, on the basis of alleged prosecutorial misconduct. Thus, a protracted 8x/2 month jury trial on charges arising from the American Indian Movement occupation of Wounded Knee, South Dakota, came to an aborted end.

The defendants view the dismissal as a verdict of acquittal, or at the minimum, contend that the dismissal is unappeala-ble in light of the Double Jeopardy Clause of the Fifth Amendment. The United…