P was a slave owned in MO by John Emerson. P was taken to IL, a free state.
After Emerson died, his estate was administered by D.
P sued D in federal court, based on diversity of citizenship, and claimed his residence in IL made him a free person.
Procedural History
SCOTUS held for D, no jurisdiction, also MO Compromise unconstitutional.
Issues
Can a Negro become a citizen of the United States?
Was the MO Compromise a constitutional use of Congress's power?
Holding/Rule
A Negro may not become a citizen of the United States though he might be given rights in a particular state.
There is no constitutional provision that gave Congress the power to pass the MO Compromise; thus, it is void as unconstitutional.
Reasoning
It is not the province of the Court to decide upon justice or injustice; the duty of the court is to interpret the instrument before it according to the true intent and meaning when it was adopted.
The rights of citizenship which a state may confer upon a person are different than the rights of a person as a citizen of the United States. Negros may have state citizenship, but they do not have U.S. citizenship.
The intent of the framers of the Constitution was not to include slaves as citizens.
The slave race is unlike the Indian race.
Indian gov'ts were viewed as foreign gov'ts and Indians were always viewed as foreigners.
They may become naturalized as any other foreigner.
The Declaration of Independence does say that all men are created equal; however, it is clear that the slave race were not intended to be included by the framers.
The unhappy black race were separated from the white by indelible marks, and laws long before established, and were never thought of or spoken of except as property.
Thus, P was not a citizen of MO within the meaning of the Con and is not entitled to sue in its courts. The Circuit Court had no jurisdiction.
The MO Compromise is unconstitutional.
The right of property in a slave is distinctly and expressly affirmed in the Con.
No part of the Con gives Congress the right to abolish slavery anywhere.
Congress only has the power to enforce slavery and slave owner rights.
