Amendment V:
No person shall be held to answer for a capital, or otherwise infamous crime, unless on a presentment or indictment of a Grand Jury, except in cases arising in the land or naval forces, or in the Militia, when in actual service in time of war or public danger, nor shall any person be subject for the same offense to be twice put in jeopardy of life or limb, nor shall be compelled in any criminal case to be a witness against himself, nor to be deprived of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor shall private property be taken for public use without proper compensation.
ok, this one was set up because the english soldiers and governors and officials could do whatever the hell they wanted. They could just arrest and convict people of crimes that they didn't commit. There was no real trial. The "trial" was a travesty. It was quick and pointless because if the person who arrested you didn't like you that was it you were done. Usually they hanged people.
This amendment is a protection against that sort of foolishness. We wanted to make sure that we wouldn't end up doing the same shit as the english.
Hopefully this explanation makes sense (I'm not an expert on this sort of thing, you know)
