The Dred Scott Decision-

A detailed Summary of The Dred Scott Decision-

There have been several cases in the history of the Supreme

Court that have had a powerful impact on both the highest court of the

land and the history of the United States. The Dred Scott decision can

definitely be included in this category of monumental cases that

changed the course of American history. Until this decision the

Supreme Court had a flawless reputation. Its prestige and credibility

were beyond reproach. This high regard for the Supreme Court made

people on both sides of the slavery issue turn to it in the hope that

what could not be resolved in the political world could be solved in

the legal world by the highest court of the land. But this was really

expecting too much of judicial power. The major error associated with

this case was the misguided belief that a flaming political

problem,slavery, could become manageable by calling it a legal problem

and handing it over to the courts to resolve.

In the Dred Scott case the decision was based on "expediency

not principle." The big problem was trying to use judicial power to

settle a major political problem. Although the Dred Scott decision may

have been the result of a trial , in reality it was a case of the

territories without judicial restraint. These two things helped the

to Dr. Emerson, an army surgeon. He and Scott traveled through

fact that Congress could prohibit slavery in the territories. After a

could not become citizens? The whole country realized that this was

In l86l-1862, two very important things happened: Abraham

Kutler, Stanley,I. The Dred Scott Decision, Law or Politics? Boston:

the North prevailed. This war marked the end of slavery, but was one

power to "make all needful Rules and Regulations respecting the

of Congress to prohibit slavery in the territories. The House did not

you want. The judges wanted to use the law to promote the view of the

even after his death. Other cases received similar verdicts and were

After Dr. Emerson died, Scott became the property of Mrs. Emerson.

Approximate Word count = 2291
Approximate Pages = 9 (250 words per page double spaced)

Category: Miscellaneous

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