United States. v. Briggs
U.S. Supreme Court · decided December 10, 2020 · Supreme Court Database (Spaeth)
- Decided
- December 10, 2020
- Term
- October Term 2020
- Vote
- 8–0
- Majority author
- Justice Alito
- Issue area
- Criminal Procedure
- Disposition
- Reversed and remanded
- Outcome
- Petitioning party won
- Ideological direction
- Conservative
Opinion excerpt
PRELIMINARY PRINT Volume 592 U. S. Part 1 Pages 69–79 OFFICIAL REPORTS OF THE SUPREME COURT December 10, 2020 Page Proof Pending Publication DERRICK LINDSEY deputy reporter of decisions NOTICE: This preliminary print is subject to formal revision before the bound volume is published. Users are requested to notify the Reporter of Decisions, Supreme Court of the United States, Washington, D.C. 20543, pio@supremecourt.gov, of any typographical or other formal errors. OCTOBER TERM, 2020 69 Syllabus UNITED STATES v. BRIGGS certiorari to the united states court of appeals for the armed forces No. 19–108. Argued October 13, 2020—Decided December 10, 2020* The Uniform Code of Military Justice (UCMJ) has long provided that a military offense, “punishable by death, may be tried and punished at any time without limitation.” 10 U. S. C. § 843(a). Other military offenses are subject to a 5-year statute of limitations. § 843(b). Re- spondents are three military service members, each convicted of rape. When they were charged, the UCMJ provided that rape could be “pun- ished by death.” § 920(a) (1994 ed.). Because this Court held that the Eighth Amendment forbids a death sentence for the rape of an adult woman, Coker v. Georgia, 433 U. S. 584, respondents argue that they could not, in fact, have been sentenced to death, and therefore the UCMJ's 5-year statute of limitations applies and bars…
Excerpt of a 22,383-character opinion. The full text and citation network load in the interactive viewer above.