Plessy V. Ferguson Case Brief

Court, 1857)

1. Facts:
-Dred Scott was a slave taken by his new owner, Dr. Emerson to Illinois,
Michigan, and Wisconsin. -This all happened during the time the Missouri Compromise was considered lawful. -When Scott was permitted to marry Harriet Robinson, later the two went to live with Dr. Emerson and his wife.
-After being a slave under Dr. Emerson’s widowed wife, in 1846, Scott sought to purchase his freedom along with his family but was denied, therefore taking the issue to court and suing Irene Emerson Sandford (and later John Sandford).
2. Procedural history:
-When Scott first took this case to the St. Louis County Circuit Court, it was decided that he was a free man however Sandford issued an appeal to the Supreme Court of the state.
-The Missouri Supreme Court returned the case to the Circuit

Ferguson (U.S. Supreme Court, 1896)

1. Facts:
-The plaintiff, Plessy, was a mixed race Louisiana resident with mostly Caucasian descent and “one-eighth African blood” (p. 1).
-Plessy considered himself to be rightfully allowed the same rights as those who were White and purchased a first class ticket for a train, therefore sitting with White passengers.
-When it was learned that Plessy was of mixed race, he was thrown off the train and immediately arrested and put in jail.
-He was convicted of violating a law that justified the separation of races on trains.
2. Procedural history:
-In the district court, Plessy was charged for violating the law but countered that this decision was unconstitutional.
-The district court then filled a demurrer stating that unless “enjoined by a writ of prohibition” (p. 1), Plessy would still have to plead guilty for his actions.
-The district court also responded that a writ of prohibition was not to be issued in its court and gave it to the state’s Supreme Court.
-At the Louisiana Supreme Court, the verdict remained that the law prohibiting Plessy from sitting in the “whites only” car was