Barrett v. United States · ¶31

This case asks whether subsection (j) also increased the number of convictions—rather than simply the maximum sentence—that can result from a fatal violation of § 924(c) (1)(A)(i). Barrett says it did not, and for support he turns to the Fifth Amendment's Double Jeopardy Clause. But while his argument arrives in constitutional garb, it “cannot be separated entirely from a resolution of the question of statutory construction.” Whalen v. United States, 445 U. S. 684, 688 (1980). That is because “the question whether punishments . . . are unconstitutionally multiple cannot be resolved without determining what punishments the Legislative Branch has authorized.” Ibid. It is that question of congressional authorization that we answer today.

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