Double Jeopardy

Double Jeopardy (1999)

7 mistakes since 26 Mar '17, 00:00

(10 votes)

Factual error: Ashley Judd is convicted of murdering her husband for the insurance money and that would make it a first degree murder charge (first degree meaning she planned the murder). Because of that there is no way she would have been eligible for parole after just 6 or 7 years.

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Suggested correction: It's never stated that she was charged with 1st degree murder, nor that she killed her husband for the insurance money. It was only brought up in trial as motive. Nick's accident was ruled "wrongful death" and the fact she did get paroled further show she was never convicted of 1st degree murder.

And what about the phone call from prison the Libby makes to Angie, and Angie says she "was just about to call her" or she tried calling her like how the heck can you call someone in prison!?

Plot hole: For a convicted murderer who violated her parole and assaulted her parole officer while escaping custody, Ashley Judd moves around the country and even boards airplanes with little to no problems.

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Suggested correction: She was simply careful. There's constant manhunts for much more serious felons and parolees on the lam who seem capable of moving around without getting caught.

How did she keep the gun if she flew across the country?

She likely put the gun in her bag and then checked it with other passengers' luggage at the airport. As long as she wasn't carrying the gun on her, it would go through.

raywest

Revealing mistake: The movie is set in the USA, however, when the US Coast Guard boat ends the search for the husband's body and returns to the dock, Ashley sits on a gray bin with the words "City of Langley" on the side. Those shots were filmed in Langley, British Columbia, Canada.

Other mistake: When Nick is confronted with the evidence against him at the end, Tommy Lee Jones says they found a shovel and dirt in Nick's car trunk. But Nick didn't bury her, he locked her in a concrete tomb.

Revealing mistake: When Nick Parsons /Jonathan Devereaux knocks Libby out, if you look carefully before he puts her in the casket you can see he's holding a dummy/doll from the wide angle. (01:23:53)

littlelynnee1418

Revealing mistake: When Libby goes to the house to kill her husband with the gun she checks the bullets. You can see the firing pin is drilled out, rendering the gun inoperable.

robsuttonjr

Character mistake: The Fifth Amendment Double Jeopardy Clause does not apply. Libby could be convicted of 1st Degree murder when she gets out and pursues Nick. It doesn't really matter to the plot, however, because it was what Libby believed to be true and motivated her. Further, she ends up shooting Nick in self-defense. So it's all good.

Question: Given she leaves the state while on parole, possessing a firearm, holding her ex at gunpoint, how does Libby avoid prosecution for these offenses?

Rob245

Answer: Because there were exceptional and extenuating circumstances and, technically, Libby was never guilty of the crime she was convicted of and had to resort to extreme measures to prove her innocence. She may have had a gun, but it could never be proved that she held Nick at gunpoint, only that she shot him in self defense. Also, it's a movie, which often are unrealistic regarding details like that.

raywest

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