Stone v. Superior Court

Opinion

MOSK, J.

That no criminal defendant should be twice forced to bear the risk of conviction for a single offense is a basic precept of our system of criminal justice. From this deceptively simple premise is derived much of the complex, rapidly expanding body of law implementing the constitutional prohibition against double jeopardy.

*507The murder case at bar presents four issues: (1) whether we should give effect to the informally expressed, albeit unequivocal, intent of the jury to unanimously acquit this defendant of the charge of murder; (2) whether the double jeopardy prohibition against…