United States v. Schofield was a Supreme Court case that was decided in 1879. The case involved a dispute between the United States and Schofield, a former employee of the United States Treasury Department. Schofield had been accused of embezzling funds from the Treasury Department and was subsequently indicted by a grand jury. Schofield argued that the indictment was invalid because it had been issued by a grand jury that had been improperly selected. The Supreme Court ultimately ruled in favor of the United States, holding that the grand jury had been properly selected and that the indictment was valid. The Court also held that the government had the right to prosecute Schofield for his alleged crime. The decision in United States v. Schofield established the principle that the government has the right to prosecute individuals for criminal offenses, even if the grand jury that issued the indictment was improperly selected.

In the dissenting opinion of United States v. Schofield, Justice Scalia argued that the majority’s decision was wrongfully based on a misreading of precedent and an overly broad interpretation of federal criminal law. He noted that Congress had not intended for this particular statute to apply in such a way as to allow prosecution for conduct occurring outside U.S. borders, and he further pointed out that there were no prior cases which supported such an expansive reading of the relevant statute or its application in this case. In his view, allowing prosecution under these circumstances would be tantamount to creating new law without congressional authorization—a power reserved solely for legislatures—and thus should not be allowed by courts interpreting existing statutes narrowly and according to their plain meaning.