No. 25A1053

Christopher L. Carroll & Whiskey Dix Big Truck Repair, LLC v. United States

Lower Court: Eighth Circuit
Docketed: 2026-03-24
Status: Application
Type: A
Tags: fifth-amendment grand-jury-clause indictment original-public-meaning probable-cause standard-of-proof
Latest Conference: N/A
Question Presented (from Petition)

Whether the Fifth Amendment's Grand Jury Clause — given the founding-era understanding as shown by the history of the grand jury, the instructions of sitting Justices to the first federal grand juries, and contemporaneous legal authorities — requires a standard of proof higher than probable cause for a federal grand jury to return an indictment.

Whether the Eighth Circuit erred in holding that the Fifth Amendment permits a grand jury to indict on a finding of probable cause — contravening the original public understanding of the Grand Jury Clause — by treating as binding the dicta of later decisions of this Court rather than applying this Court's directive to construe constitutional guarantees in accordance with their founding-era meaning.

Question Presented (AI Summary)

Whether the Fifth Amendment's Grand Jury Clause requires a standard of proof higher than probable cause for a federal grand jury to return an indictment, based on the founding-era understanding of the grand jury and original public meaning of the constitutional text.

Docket Entries

2026-03-24
Application (25A1053) granted by Justice Kavanaugh extending the time to file until July 11, 2026.
2026-03-20
Application (25A1053) to extend the time to file a petition for a writ of certiorari from May 12, 2026 to July 11, 2026, submitted to Justice Kavanaugh.

Attorneys

Christopher Carroll, et al.
James Forrest BennettDowd Bennett LLP, Petitioner
United States
D. John SauerSolicitor General, Respondent