Dred Scott, who was born a slave in Missouri, traveled with his master to the free territory of Illinois. As a result, Scott later sued his master for freedom, which the lower courts usually granted.

The plaintiff [Dred Scott]... was, with his wife and children ... and consequently his suit against Sandford was not a suit between citizens of different States, and the court had no authority ...

The group then cites six cases including Dred Scott v Sandford. The 1857 ruling came a few years before the 1861 outbreak of the US Civil War over the issue of slavery, stating that enslaved ...

In 1857, the Dred Scott v. Sandford decision had held that no black of African descent (free or slave) could be a citizen of the United States. The Fourteenth Amendment was thus necessary to ...

By The Associated Press Today is Thursday, March 6, the 65th day of 2025. There are 300 days left in the year. Today in history: On March 6, 1857, the U.S. Supreme Court, in the Dred Scott v. Sandford ...