Annette Ranald's Blog: Annette's History Reads - Posts Tagged "john-marshall"
Sensational Murder Trials-An American Tradition
Casey Anthony and Jodi Arias are just the latest in a long line of celebrity trials. Sensational murder cases, media hype, legal dream teams, and controversial verdicts are an American tradition that stretches back to the earliest days of the Republic.
In 1793, Nancy Randolph was the daughter of a wealthy Virginia planter and distant cousin to Thomas Jefferson. She fell in love with her handsome brother-in-law, Richard Randolph, and the two began a torrid affair. She became pregnant, and the newborn infant later was found dead near a woodpile on one of the Randolph family's many plantations. Nancy and Richard were arrested and put on trial. Nancy's family hired Patrick Henry and future Chief Justice John Marshall to defend her. The trial played out in the newspapers of the era, as well as in the courtroom. She and Richard were acquitted, partly because the testimony of the black slaves on the plantation was inadmissible at the time. Few people agreed with the verdict. Although Richard's wife forgave him and he got on with his life, Nancy was forced to leave Virginia and ultimately settled with relatives in New York. She later married Gouvernor Morris, a signer of the United States Constitution, and died a wealthy woman.
In December, 1799, the body of Elma Sands was found in a public well in what is now New York's SoHo District. The man suspected was her fiancé, Levi Weeks, a young carpenter. Levi was arrested for Elma's murder and appealed to his brother, Contractor Ezra Weeks, for assistance in hiring an attorney. One of Ezra's projects was The Grange, Alexander Hamilton's new country estate in what is now Harlem. Ezra went to Hamilton, and Hamilton engaged two other attorneys to help him with Levi's defense. They were Henry Brockholst Livingstone and Aaron Burr, soon to become Vice-President of the United States.
The Trial of Levi Weeks: Or the Manhattan Well MysteryUnwise Passions: A True Story of a Remarkable Woman---and the First Great Scandal of Eighteenth-Century AmericaThe trial took place on March 31 and April 1, 1800, in a packed courtroom, and was widely reported by the newspapers. In a dramatic display, Hamilton, who was cross-examining a key prosecution witness, used candles to show how different lighting can affect a person's perception of someone else's features. Levi was acquitted and New York City was in an uproar. Nobody agreed with the verdict. He left New York and later settled in Natchez, Mississippi, where he designed and built Auburn Plantation. Hamilton and Burr's legal reputations were built on this trial, but their political ambitions would lead them, in July 1804, to the bluffs overlooking the Hudson River in Weehawken, New Jersey, and America's most famous duel.
In 1793, Nancy Randolph was the daughter of a wealthy Virginia planter and distant cousin to Thomas Jefferson. She fell in love with her handsome brother-in-law, Richard Randolph, and the two began a torrid affair. She became pregnant, and the newborn infant later was found dead near a woodpile on one of the Randolph family's many plantations. Nancy and Richard were arrested and put on trial. Nancy's family hired Patrick Henry and future Chief Justice John Marshall to defend her. The trial played out in the newspapers of the era, as well as in the courtroom. She and Richard were acquitted, partly because the testimony of the black slaves on the plantation was inadmissible at the time. Few people agreed with the verdict. Although Richard's wife forgave him and he got on with his life, Nancy was forced to leave Virginia and ultimately settled with relatives in New York. She later married Gouvernor Morris, a signer of the United States Constitution, and died a wealthy woman.
In December, 1799, the body of Elma Sands was found in a public well in what is now New York's SoHo District. The man suspected was her fiancé, Levi Weeks, a young carpenter. Levi was arrested for Elma's murder and appealed to his brother, Contractor Ezra Weeks, for assistance in hiring an attorney. One of Ezra's projects was The Grange, Alexander Hamilton's new country estate in what is now Harlem. Ezra went to Hamilton, and Hamilton engaged two other attorneys to help him with Levi's defense. They were Henry Brockholst Livingstone and Aaron Burr, soon to become Vice-President of the United States.
The Trial of Levi Weeks: Or the Manhattan Well MysteryUnwise Passions: A True Story of a Remarkable Woman---and the First Great Scandal of Eighteenth-Century AmericaThe trial took place on March 31 and April 1, 1800, in a packed courtroom, and was widely reported by the newspapers. In a dramatic display, Hamilton, who was cross-examining a key prosecution witness, used candles to show how different lighting can affect a person's perception of someone else's features. Levi was acquitted and New York City was in an uproar. Nobody agreed with the verdict. He left New York and later settled in Natchez, Mississippi, where he designed and built Auburn Plantation. Hamilton and Burr's legal reputations were built on this trial, but their political ambitions would lead them, in July 1804, to the bluffs overlooking the Hudson River in Weehawken, New Jersey, and America's most famous duel.
Annette's History Reads
I enjoy reading and writing about history. I've loved history all my life and read a ton of books. Now, I'll share a few of them with you. I also want to take you along with me in this new and strange
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