Francis v. Henderson, Warden

Decided May 3, 1976. Potter Stewart delivered the opinion of the Court.

Docket 74-5808 · 425 U.S. 536 (1976) · Cited 650 times

Holding

The Court of Appeals correctly held that the Davis rule, which requires not only a showing of "cause" for the defendant's failure to challenge the compositi before trial, but also a showing of actual prejudice, applies with equal force when a federal court is asked in a habeas corpus proceeding to overturn a state-court conviction because of an allegedly unconstitutional grand jury indictment.

The Court’s statement of the holding, from the opinion’s syllabus. The syllabus is prepared by the Reporter of Decisions and is not part of the opinion of the Court — read the official opinion for authority.

How the Justices voted

Decided 6–1.

“Concurring” means agreeing with the outcome; any split shown is the Court’s judgment, not each Justice’s reasoning. Source: the Supreme Court Database (Spaeth et al.), Washington University.

Precedents cited

Supreme Court decisions this opinion relies on, ordered by how often it cites each. Cases in our collection link through; others are named.

• Fay v. Noia · 372 U.S. 391 (1963)
• Davis v. United States · 411 U.S. 233 (1973)
• Johnson v. Zerbst · 304 U.S. 458 (1938)
• Michel v. Louisiana · 350 U.S. 91 (1955)
• Younger v. Harris · 401 U.S. 37 (1971)
• Lefkowitz v. Newsome · 420 U.S. 283 (1975)
• Schneckloth v. Bustamonte · 412 U.S. 218 (1973)
• Henry v. Mississippi · 379 U.S. 443 (1965)
• Peters v. Kiff · 407 U.S. 493 (1972)
• Kaufman v. United States · 394 U.S. 217 (1969)
• Barker v. Wingo · 407 U.S. 514 (1972)
• Rizzo v. Goode · 423 U.S. 362 (1976)
• McMann v. Richardson · 397 U.S. 759 (1970)
• Tollett v. Henderson · 411 U.S. 258 (1973)
• United States v. Calandra · 414 U.S. 338 (1974)
• Strauder v. West Virginia · 100 U.S. 303 (1880)
• Price v. Johnston · 334 U.S. 266 (1948)
• Ex Parte Virginia · 100 U.S. 339 (1880)
• Alexander v. Louisiana · 405 U.S. 625 (1972)
• Hernandez v. Texas · 347 U.S. 475 (1954)
• Parker v. North Carolina · 397 U.S. 790 (1970)
• Hudgens v. National Labor Relations Board · 424 U.S. 507 (1976)
• Smith v. Texas · 311 U.S. 128 (1941)
• Whitus v. Georgia · 385 U.S. 545 (1967)
• Virginia v. Rives · 100 U.S. 313 (1880)
• Neal v. Delaware · 103 U.S. 370 (1881)
• Shotwell Manufacturing Co. v. United States · 371 U.S. 341 (1963)
• Eubanks v. Louisiana · 356 U.S. 584 (1958)
• Sims v. Georgia · 389 U.S. 404 (1967)
• Arnold v. North Carolina · 376 U.S. 773 (1964)

Cited by

Later Supreme Court opinions in our collection that cite this case.

• Wainwright v. Sykes · 433 U.S. 72 (1977)
• Murray v. Carrier · 477 U.S. 478 (1986)
• Coleman v. Thompson · 501 U.S. 722 (1991)
• United States v. Frady · 456 U.S. 152 (1982)
• Stone v. Powell · 428 U.S. 465 (1976)
• McQuiggin v. Perkins · 569 U.S. 383 (2013)
• Keeney v. Tamayo-Reyes · 504 U.S. 1 (1992)
• O'Sullivan v. Boerckel · 526 U.S. 838 (1999)
• Reed v. Ross · 468 U.S. 1 (1984)
• Withrow v. Williams · 507 U.S. 680 (1993)
• Beard v. Kindler · 558 U.S. 53 (2009)
• Lehman Ex Rel. Lehman v. Lycoming County Children's Services Agency · 458 U.S. 502 (1982)
• Amadeo v. Zant · 486 U.S. 214 (1988)
• Jackson v. Virginia · 443 U.S. 307 (1979)
• Smith v. Murray · 477 U.S. 527 (1986)
• Vasquez v. Hillery · 474 U.S. 254 (1986)
• Castaneda v. Partida · 430 U.S. 482 (1977)
• Munaf v. Geren · 553 U.S. 674 (2008)
• Ankenbrandt Ex Rel. L. R. v. Richards · 504 U.S. 689 (1992)
• Juidice v. Vail · 430 U.S. 327 (1977)
• Reed v. Farley · 512 U.S. 339 (1994)
• Dretke v. Haley · 541 U.S. 386 (2004)
• Duckworth v. Eagan · 492 U.S. 195 (1989)
• Rose v. Mitchell · 443 U.S. 545 (1979)
• Justices of Boston Municipal Court v. Lydon · 466 U.S. 294 (1984)

Official text

Read the official opinion (U.S. Reports, govinfo.gov)

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Source: Supreme Court of the United States, slip opinions (1976). Citation count from the Free Law Project’s CourtListener bulk data. Data last verified 2026-07-03. Informational only; verify against the primary source before relying. Not a consumer report (FCRA).