THE ANATOMY OF CHARGE STACKING: LEGAL LIMITS ON CUMULATIVE ALLEGATIONS IN CRIMINAL PROCEDURE
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.5281/Keywords:
Charge stacking, prosecutorial discretion, cumulative allegations, overcharging, plea bargaining, double jeopardy, ne bis in idem, criminal procedure, multiplicity defense.Abstract
This article systematically deconstructs the procedural phenomenon of "charge stacking"—the practice wherein prosecutors file multiple overlapping or cumulative charges arising from a single transaction or sequence of conduct. The study critically analyzes the strategic use of charge stacking in coercive plea bargaining, sentence inflation, and its distortive impacts on the presumption of innocence. Furthermore, the paper provides a comparative assessment of the substantive and procedural limits placed on cumulative allegations across different legal systems, focusing on constitutional protections against Double Jeopardy, the international principle of ne bis in idem, multiplicity defenses, and statutory absorption doctrines.
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