LAD #14: Dred Scott Decision

The Dred Scott decision, also known as Scott vs. Sanford, was a court case where a runaway slave Dred Scott escaped from Missouri to Illinois in order to become free. Scott tried to purchase his slavery from his owner, who refused. He then sued them in court

In the Court case, Chief Justice Taney concluded that no African-Americans were United States Citizens, whether free or slave. Therefore, African-Americans could not sue in federal courts. Taney also ruled that the Missouri Compromise was illegal since it forbade right of property to would-be slave owners above the southern border of Missouri since slaves were considered property. Therefore, the Missouri Compromise was illegal because it forbade the right to property, which was promised in the Constitution. Taney ruled that the case be decided in a lower court.