Prosecutorial vindictiveness

Prosecutorial vindictiveness occurs when a prosecutor retaliates against a defendant for exercising a constitutional or statutory right by increasing the number or severity of the charges being levied against him. The United States Supreme Court has held that, following its 1974 ruling in Blackledge v. Perry, as well as a previous ruling in North Carolina v. Pearce in 1969, establishing the concept of prosecutorial vindictiveness and declaring that it constitutes a violation of a defendant's right to due process.

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