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President James Buchanan had been in office only two days when the Dred Scott v. Sandford, (1857) decision was handed down on March 6, 1857.

Franklin Pierce was in office while the case was before the Court; however, Buchanan had already been elected and was pressuring the Court to render a decision that would overturn the Kansas-Nebraska Act and put an end to the "slavery question."

Buchanan personally lobbied Justice Robert Cooper Grier, a fellow Pennsylvanian, to vote against Scott. Grier and a second Northerner, New York Justice Samuel Nelson, agreed to support Taney. Initially, five justices (a simple majority) planned to rule in Scott's favor; however, the final vote was 7-2 for Sanford. Justice Benjamin Curtis resigned from the Court in disgust when they upheld slavery as constitutional.

Case Citation:

Scott v. Sandford, 60 US 393 (1857)

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13y ago
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13y ago

President James Buchanan had been in office only two days when the Dred Scott v. Sandford, (1857) decision was handed down on March 6, 1857.

Franklin Pierce was in office while the case was before the Court; however, Buchanan had already been elected and was pressuring the Court to render a decision that would overturn the Kansas-Nebraska Act and put an end to the "slavery question."

Buchanan personally lobbied Justice Robert Cooper Grier, a fellow Pennsylvanian, to vote against Scott. Grier and a second Northerner, New York Justice Samuel Nelson, agreed to support Taney. Initially, five justices (a simple majority) planned to rule in Scott's favor; however, the final vote was 7-2 for Sanford. Justice Benjamin Curtis resigned from the Court in disgust when they upheld slavery as constitutional.

Case Citation:

Scott v. Sandford, 60 US 393 (1857)

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12y ago

The Chief Justice, Roger Taney.

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Q: Who was President when the US Supreme Court handed down the Dred Scott decision?
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