Also known as: true bills · no bill
Written by attorneys · grounded in primary & secondary sources — see below
A grand jury's formal endorsement of a proposed indictment when it finds probable cause that the accused committed the charged offense. The endorsement authorizes the prosecutor to proceed to trial on the charges set out in the indictment.
Tanya Tang faced federal fraud charges after a complaint was filed in magistrate court. The grand jury heard evidence and returned an indictment bearing the foreperson's signature. Because fewer than twelve jurors had concurred and no return occurred in open court, the document never became a true bill and the case could not proceed.
Tyrone Tran was indicted after a grand jury heard testimony about a conspiracy. The foreperson signed the indictment and noted a true bill. The clerk recorded that the grand jury returned the document in open court, satisfying the formal step that converts the finding into a valid charging instrument.
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Tamara Tan sued a prosecutor for adding her name to a grand jury true bill after the jurors had refused to indict. The court held that the prosecutor's decision to initiate charges based on the returned true bill fell within absolute immunity, shielding the official from tort liability.
Tristan Thompson's newspaper published details of a sealed true bill before trial. The government sought an injunction, but the court refused because the existence of the true bill alone did not justify prior restraint on publication of lawfully obtained information.
Tori Taylor challenged a state indictment that lacked grand-jury review. The court explained that the Fifth Amendment requirement of a true bill applies only to federal prosecutions and does not constrain state charging procedures under the Bill of Rights as originally understood.
The grand jury endorses the proposed indictment after finding probable cause. That endorsement converts the document into a formal charging instrument that authorizes the prosecutor to proceed to trial.
A true bill approves the charges and allows prosecution to continue. A no bill rejects the charges for lack of probable cause and ends that particular grand-jury proceeding, though the prosecutor may resubmit evidence to another grand jury.
Federal practice requires the grand jury or its foreperson to return the indictment to a magistrate judge in open court or by authorized video. Without that public return, even a signed document does not become a valid true bill.
At least twelve qualified grand jurors must concur in finding probable cause. Fewer than twelve concurrences means no true bill exists regardless of any later signature or filing.
…use language applicable only to congress: others are expressed in general terms. The third clause, for example, declares that “no bill of attainder or ex post facto law shall be passed.” No language can be more general; yet the demonstration is complete that it applies solely to the government of the United States. In…