Is it common to have both a criminal case and a civil case for the same incident?

Question

Sometimes for the same incident there will be two seperated court cases.

A famous example is the Simpson's case. He won the criminal case but lost a civil case after a few months. Both regards to the same incident - his wife and one other person was found killed.

How common this happens in reality? Please give me links to some recent cases.

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I don't know if I should ask a different question, but I assume I need not as this is related and I don't even have to change the title - it is the other side of the same question.

In a theoratical senario, as the investigation of the criminal case are stricter and need more resources, it might end up the civil case is an easy go and processed first. Then the criminal case investigation may finish even after the civil case being closed.

Is the above only happen in theory or in pratice as well? Are there any examples of this kind of thing?

Answer 1

The criminal case will only punish the perpetrator, it will not give any compensation to the victims. So if you are the victim of a crime, and the perpetrator is capable of paying compensation, you would go for a civil case to get compensation. There's also the fact that in a civil case, there is less evidence required, so the perpetrator may win the criminal case (not found "guilty beyond reasonable doubt"), but lose the civil case.

In many cases, the perpetrator is not wealthy enough to make a civil case worthwhile. If some lowlife stabs you in the street, you might very well win a civil case, but would end up getting nothing because the person has no money. So taking them to court would only cost you money.