Definition
A formal endorsement written by a grand jury on a bill of indictment when the jury determines that the evidence presented is insufficient to support a criminal charge. When a grand jury returns a bill marked "Not Found," the proposed indictment fails, and the accused cannot be prosecuted on that charge based on the evidence as presented. The endorsement operates as a refusal to indict — not an acquittal — and leaves open the possibility that the prosecution may present the matter again with additional evidence.
Common Language
Modern common usage (Wiktionary): "Not found" in ordinary English means simply that something searched for could not be located.
Historical common usage (Webster's 1913): Consistent with modern usage — a failure to locate something after searching.
The gap between common and legal meaning is significant. In everyday speech, "not found" is a neutral, often incidental result of a search. In grand jury procedure, "Not Found" is a formal legal verdict with procedural consequences — it is a deliberate collective judgment by a body of citizens that the government's evidence does not meet the threshold for prosecution. The phrase functions as a term of art, not a description of missing paperwork.
Common Confusion
NOT FOUND vs. NOT GUILTY: These are frequently conflated but operate at different stages and carry different legal weight. "Not Guilty" is a trial verdict rendered after the accused has been formally charged and tried. "Not Found" occurs before trial, at the grand jury stage, and prevents the charge from proceeding at all. A person who receives a "Not Found" endorsement has never been tried and cannot be said to have been acquitted.
NOT FOUND vs. IGNORAMUS vs. NO TRUE BILL: These three endorsements are functional equivalents — different formulations for the same grand jury outcome. Historical sources use all three, and researchers will encounter each in period documents. "Ignoramus" is the oldest form, rooted in Latin practice. "No True Bill" is the most common modern phrasing. "Not Found" appears as a variant in some American jurisdictions and in older practice. All three mean the same thing: the grand jury declines to indict.
Why It Matters in Research
Researchers working in historical criminal procedure records will encounter all three variant forms — Ignoramus, No True Bill, and Not Found — often within the same jurisdiction across different periods. The shift away from "Ignoramus" was largely complete in American practice by the mid-nineteenth century, but some courts and practitioners retained it well into that century. "Not Found" appears more frequently in American sources than in English practice, where "Ignoramus" dominated longer.
The critical research trap: because "Not Found" is a pre-indictment disposition, it may not appear in the same record series as trial outcomes. Grand jury records were often kept separately from court dockets, and in some jurisdictions they were sealed or destroyed. A researcher finding no indictment in a court file should not assume the case was never presented to a grand jury — a "Not Found" endorsement may exist in a separate grand jury minute book.
In modern practice, the term has been largely displaced by "No True Bill" in most American jurisdictions, making "Not Found" primarily a historical research term. When searching databases and digitized court records, researchers should query all three variant forms to ensure complete retrieval.
The immigration encyclopedia entry flagged in this record (asylum persecution standards) has no substantive connection to this grand jury term. Researchers who arrive here from an immigration context have likely followed a false cross-reference.
Historical Dictionary Support
The historical dictionaries are in close agreement on this term, which is one of the more compact and stable entries in the legal lexicon. Black's (both editions), Rapalje & Lawrence, and Bouvier all define "Not Found" as the grand jury endorsement indicating insufficient evidence to return a true bill, and all point to "Ignoramus" as the related or equivalent term.
Bouvier adds the most substantive gloss, specifying that the endorsement is made "when they have not sufficient evidence to find a true bill" — a useful clarification that the standard is evidentiary sufficiency at the grand jury stage, not a finding of innocence. The historical dictionaries do not address the procedural consequences of a "Not Found" endorsement (such as whether reprosecution is permitted), a gap that reflects their reference function rather than any deficiency in the term's historical understanding.
Rapalje & Lawrence's entry is notably spare, cross-referencing only "No true bill" — confirming the synonymous relationship while providing no independent analysis.
Jurisdictional Note
Grand jury practice varies by jurisdiction, and not all American states retain the grand jury indictment requirement for felony charges. In jurisdictions that have abolished or limited the grand jury, the "Not Found" endorsement has no modern procedural analog. Federal criminal practice retains the grand jury requirement under the Fifth Amendment, where the functional equivalent is a vote not to indict.