Legal History
Freedom Calls Frederick Douglass
Freedom calls for Frederick Douglass. Douglas began his quest for freedom on a train that pulled out of Baltimore, Maryland. He jumped on a rail car designated for blacks. His name, according to his papers, was Frederick Bailey. The papers belonged to a real sailor who had been freed. He boarded the train without a ticket. Maryland at that point was a slave state as was the neighboring state of Delaware.
Legal History-The Train Ride
Prior to his train ride for freedom, Douglass had learned how to read and write. He had taught himself. He had been viewed by his master as a valuable commodity. Also he was a dangerous commodity. He had been working at the Baltimore shipyards. While there he had learned the language and the manner of the sailors that surrounded him.
When the train conductor finally approached him, he announced that he had a paper with the American eagle on it and that eagle could carry him around the world. The conductor glanced at the papers and then moved on, believing that Douglas was probably a sailor.
The train took Bailey to Havre de Grace where he caught a ferry across the Susquehanna River and then a train to Wilmington, Delaware. Thereafter he took a steamboat to Philadelphia and then caught another train to New York City. All of this in September 1838.
From that beginning, Douglass went on to become an author, lecturer and advocate for the abolition of slavery. Call, or contact us for a free consult.
Boss Tweed Of New York
We have all heard of Tammany Hall. It is the so-called meeting place of the famously corrupt head of the New York City Democratic Party. His full name was William Magear “Boss” Tweed. Tweed served one term in the U.S. Congress. However he became much more powerful as the head of the Tammany Society. This group had almost unlimited control over political patronage throughout the state of New York.
Legal History-The Tammany Irish
Tweed’s source of power was principally the Irish immigrants who flooded into New York. Eventually Tweed was arrested. During his first jury trial, the jury failed to reach a verdict. It was believed that the jury had been rigged. However in a second trial that was better controlled by prosecutors, he was convicted of 204 counts. His 12-year prison sentence was eventually reduced to one year. He was thereafter sued by the state for $6 million and was confined to debtor’s prison. While he was in prison, he was allowed out in the afternoons for a walk in Central Park. Finally in December of 1875 Boss Tweed disappeared. He escaped to Cuba. From there he fled to Spain. However he was eventually returned to New York, where he agreed to testify against fellow conspirators. He died in 1878, still imprisoned in the Ludlow Street Jail.
Legal History-Attorney For The Damned
The famous trial lawyer, Clarence Darrow was the subject of more than one state inquiry because of the courage he displayed in representing unpopular defendants in criminal cases. In one case where union members were charged with murder related to a labor dispute, Darrow was charged with jury tampering. This was based upon the conduct of an investigator that he had hired. The prosecutors in that case installed a listening device in Darrow’s hotel room. That resulted in no info relating to the jury tampering. Indeed from the posture of the case, it appeared that Darrow had no motive to bribe jurors. Prior to the trial he had worked out a plea bargain to spare the workers from the death penalty. Instead they would receive lengthy prison terms. As a result, there never was a trial. As to both criminal charges against him, he was never found guilty.
Some Missteps By Darrow
In a book entitled Clarence Darrow: Attorney for the Damned, the author John Farrell puts a more human face on Darrow. He discusses some of his potential missteps.
Darrow was accused in two different instances of bribing jurors. Each of those cases went to trial. In the first of those cases Darrow gave his own closing argument. He did what he was known for doing in many other cases. He put the entire justice system on trial in the case. In that particular case he was found not guilty.
In the second trial involving similar allegations the jury came back with a hung verdict of 8-4 for conviction. Darrow was not retried. However he never did fully recover from the anguish of these trials.
As is so often the case, this very flawed man accomplished many good things.
Legal History-The Glove Did Fit
In one of the trials of the century involving O.J. Simpson, he was asked for some reason, to put on the supposed glove used by the murderer. The glove did not fit. The prosecutor thought the glove did fit.
His defense counsel, Johnnie Cochran, subsequently argued to the jury that since the glove did not fit they must acquit.
Darden’s Excuse
One of the prosecutors involved in the trial, Christopher Darden, who clearly was outmatched by the defense counsel in the case claimed that he believed that Johnnie Cochran tore the lining of the glove. This would prevent Simpson’s fingers from going all the way into the glove.
When challenged as to why he did not raise that at the time of the trial Darden had no good explanation. However he admitted he did not have any actual facts to back up his assertion.
Darden was criticized for even allowing this courtroom demonstration. He did not know ahead of time whether or not the glove would fit. Most trial lawyers know all too well that courtroom demonstrations are dangerous. If you do not know the outcome ahead of time probably best to pass.
Call, or contact us for a free consult.
Also for more info on Frederick Douglass see the Wikipedia pages. Also see the post on this site dealing with legal precedent issues.
