Dred Scott V. Sandford Case Study

Words: 516

Pages: 3

Open Document

Govt 2305 Section Name: Connor Kelln

Dred Scott v. Sandford (1857)
Summary of Facts: Dred Scott v. Sandford was a landmark United States Supreme Court case on US labor law and constitutional law. Dred Scott, an enslaved man who had been taken by his owners to free states and territories, attempted to sue for his freedom. In the decision written by Chief Justice Roger B. Taney, the court denied Scott's request. It held that black people, whose ancestors were imported and sold as slaves, whether enslaved or free, could not be American citizens and therefore couldn’t sue in federal court. Also, after the states became united, the federal government had no power to regulate slavery in the territories acquired since.
Constitutional Question(s) raised by the case:
1. If Scott was a citizen according …show more content…
1. Persons of African descent cannot be, nor were ever intended to be, citizens under the U.S. Constitution, so Scott is without standing to file a suit.
2. The Property Clause is only applicable to land owned at the time of ratification (1787). Thus, Congress cannot ban slavery in the territories, making the Missouri Compromise unconstitutional.
3. The Due Process Clause of the Fifth Amendment prohibits the federal government from freeing slaves brought into federal territories.
Majority Opinion: The US Supreme Court held that Scott was not a citizen and had no standing to sue. Chief Justice Roger B. Taney held that Scott's case did not need to be heard according to Article III, Section 2, Clause 1 of the Constitution. Because he was a descendant of African slaves, Scott was not a citizen. Taney also said that the Missouri Compromise of 1820 wasn’t within the powers of Congress, making it unconstitutional. Finally, territories or states where slavery had been abolished were not entitled to free slaves, because it would infringe upon slaveholder's "property" rights.
Other

Dred Scott V. Sandford Case Study

Dred Scott v. Sandford (1857) It was decided by the Supreme Court, in the case of Dred Scott v. Sandford, that Americans of African descent were not considered American citizens and could not sue in federal court. In 1833, Dr. John Emerson purchased a slave named Dred Scott and moved him to the Wisconsin Territory and then to St. Louis in 1840. Emerson died 3 years later leaving Scott and his family to his wife, Eliza Sandford. For years, Scott found work for himself while his owner was away…

Words 302 - Pages 2

Supreme Court Cases Essay

Court, also known as the land’s “high court”, is the highest Federal court in the United States. It was created in Article III of the Constitution to promise the American people equivalent justice under law. Its purpose is to make a final judgment in cases having to do with laws of Congress and the highest document of all, the Constitution. The Constitution institutes the power, to the Supreme Court, to check the actions of the President and Congress. This basically means that the Supreme Court can tell…

Words 3224 - Pages 13

Roger Brooke Taney: A Brief Biography

college in Carlisle, Pennsylvania in which he graduated with honors in 1795. Being the second out of seven children, Taney knew he was not going to inherit the family plantation and decided to study law instead and consequently admitted to the bar in 1799. Taney later married Anne key whose brother, Francis Scott Key, would later write ‘The Star-Spangled Banner’. Taney and his wife would later have seven children whom there isn’t much about. After starting his career as an attorney, who at the time…

Words 772 - Pages 4

Cruikshank Sullied The 14th Amendment

constitution was created. It was created through the case of Marbury vs Madison in 1803. The supreme court was appointed to this case because President John Adams had just lost his reelection to Thomas Jefferson so right before new President Jefferson assumed office Mr. Adams…

Words 1774 - Pages 8

Study Guide: Bicameral Legislature

Study Guide PSCI 203 Midterm 1 Bicameral Legislature A governmental body with two houses or chambers, such as the US Congress or British Parliament Checks and Balances Limits imposed on all branches of a government by vesting in each branch the right to amend or void those acts of another that fall within its purview. Separation of Powers The principle or system of vesting in separate branches the executive,legislative, and judicial powers of a government. Advantages/disadvantages of federalism…

Words 2231 - Pages 9

Department of English Spring 2014 Course Descriptions Essays

event that birthed the modern American state—and ends with the recent conflicts in Afghanistan and Iraq. In particular, we will attend to the ethics of representation, asking who is assigned the roles of hero, villain, and victim in the works we study, and why the writers and film directors have made the choices they do. The arguments made by these books and films are part of evolving conversation about the nature of organized violence, and our task will be to account for these shifts in perspective…

Words 9501 - Pages 39