Supreme Court of the United States · Official docket →
Joseph Chapo, et al. v. Jefferson County Plan Commission
Paid petition · Court of Appeals of Indiana, No. 20A-CT-1197 · judgment January 22, 2021
Before the decision, well below the 4.1% base rate, with no standout signals pointing toward a grant.
Question presented
The question presented for review, with its subsidiary questions is: Whether the de facto officer doctrine can be applied to individuals claiming to hold a vacant office of a political subdivision made vacant by the General Assembly statute declaring the office vacant, if an appointed officer does not take the mandatory oath to uphold the United States Constitution, where an injunction is sought by the vacant offices to prohibit the use and operation of a shooting range in violation of the 2nd Amendment right to bear arms? Subsidiary question 1 – Whether the Supreme Court has jurisdiction to review the decisions of Indiana State courts that apply the de facto officer doctrine, where the individuals claiming to hold vacant offices violate a protected constitutional right?; Subsidiary question 2 – Whether the failure to take an oath to uphold the Constitution of the United States is a constitutional structural error, where the individuals claiming to hold vacant offices initiate a court action to prohibit the 2nd Amendment right of persons to use and operate a shooting range?; and Subsidiary question 3 – Whether the de facto officer doctrine can be applied to individuals claiming to hold vacant offices, where the offices are vacant per Indiana law? (i)
Counsel of record
For petitioner
Charles E. McFarland
For respondent
Robert Patrick Magrath
Alcorn Sage Schwartz & Magrath
Case
Conference history
Distributed for 1 conference
Proceedings
- Nov 01 2021Petition DENIED.
- Oct 13 2021DISTRIBUTED for Conference of 10/29/2021.
- Oct 06 2021Reply of petitioners Joseph Chapo, Sherry Chapo, Deputy Big Shot LLC filed.
- Sep 24 2021Brief of respondent Jefferson County Plan Commission in opposition filed.
- Aug 25 2021Petition for a writ of certiorari filed. (Response due September 27, 2021)