Judgment in Cases of impeachment shall not extend further than to removal from Office, and disqualification to hold and enjoy any Office of honor, Trust or Profit under the United States: but the Party convicted shall nevertheless be liable and subject to Indictment, Trial, Judgment and Punishment, according to Law.
Comment: This provision deals with the punishment that the Senate may impose in an impeachment trial. For the most part, the Framers followed the States' constitutional format vs. the British system, which included a broad range of punishments - including a death sentence.
In any event, a few questions have developed under this provision - the first of which is whether the Senate may impose sanctions separately. That is, is the "removal" and "disqualification" vote mutually exclusive from the "conviction" vote. The Senate believed that it was and defended its position on grounds that the punishment clause does not specify a requisite vote.
The next question deals with which proceeding comes first - impeachment or criminal proceedings. The short answer is that neither is required first. In Federalist No. 69, Hamilton interpreted the clause, as it applied to the President, as requiring impeachment first, then they would be "liable to prosecution and punishment in the course of law." However, in practice many judges have been prosecuted, and some even imprisoned, before impeachment proceedings took place. Regarding the President, the Supreme Court ruled that the President is not immune to "subpoenas" in a federal criminal trial or from "civil litigation" for his personal conduct. See. US v. Nixon and Clinton v. Jones.
Another question dealt with whether a lesser punishment could be handed down - like a Censure. There are strong arguments for and against; however, historically, the House and the Senate have passed many resolutions condemning Presidents and the like.
Primary Source. The Heritage Guide to the Constitution.
