United States v. Reggie Neon Brown

I.

Reggie Brown participated in a prison riot while serving a 15-year sentence for armed robbery. Brown was charged in a prison disciplinary proceeding with assault on a corrections officer, riot, attempted murder, and destruction of government property. Brown was found to have committed the assault, but the remaining allegations were dismissed. Prison authorities disallowed forty-one days of good time credit Brown could have earned on the anniversary of his imprisonment and ordered Brown transferred to a higher security institution. Brown was subsequently indicted for assaulting a federal officer and destruction of government property based on the same conduct for which he had been disciplined by prison authorities. Brown moved to dismiss the indictment on double jeopardy grounds. The district court denied the motion, and Brown appeals.

II.

We have held that the bar against double jeopardy does not preclude criminal prosecution for conduct for which prison authorities have already imposed administrative discipline. See United States v. Apker, 419 F.2d 388, 388 (9th Cir.1969) (holding that segregated confinement after escape attempt did not preclude criminal prosecution for…