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Scott argued he was a free man because he lived where slavery was illegal. He wasn't a free man for two reasons. One, Scott has no right to sue a federal government court because African Americans were not citizens. Two, Taney, said; merely living in free territory did not make an enslaved person free.
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ReneDred Scott claimed he was no longer enslaved because he had been taken to live in free territories where slavery was prohibited. He argued that his time in those territories should have made him a free man under the principle of "once free, always free."
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Which enslaved man sued for his freedom?
Dred Scott is a renowned example of an enslaved man who sued for his freedom. In 1857, the US Supreme Court ruled in the Dred Scott v. Sandford case, denying Scott's bid for freedom on the grounds that enslaved individuals were not considered US citizens.
What did Dred Scott based his claim for freedom on?
Dred Scott based his claim for freedom on the fact that his master had taken him to free states and territories.
Why was the dred Scott case brought to Supreme Court?
The Dred Scott case was brought to the Supreme Court to resolve the legal status of Dred Scott, an enslaved man who claimed his freedom because he had lived in free territories with his owner. The case raised questions about slavery in the United States and whether enslaved individuals could be considered citizens with legal rights.
What did dred Scott base his claim on freedom on?
Dred Scot's master had taken him to a free territory.
Who was the slave that sued for his freedom in the supreme court?
Dred Scott was the slave who sued for his freedom in the Supreme Court in the landmark Dred Scott v. Sandford case in 1857. The Supreme Court decision ruled against granting him his freedom and also declared that African Americans, whether free or enslaved, were not U.S. citizens.
