Dred Scott v. Sandford decision denies freedom to a slave brought into a free territory.

Supreme Court, by a 7 to 2 margin, refuses Scott’s request to be freed. It also rules that African-Americans cannot be considered U.S. citizens and declares the Missouri Compromise unconstitutional because it deprives individuals of “private property” (their slaves) without due process. In his dissent, Justice Benjamin Curtis of Boston declares “[African-Americans are] in every sense part of the people of the United States.” He subsequently resigns from the court.