Defending John Mann vs The State of North Carolina

John Mann had been wrongfully accused of his actions against a rented slave, Lydia. I was assigned to achieve justice for Mann on his wrongful punishment of $10.  In the year 1829 Mann was punishing Lydia (a rented slave) by whipping her after she was being disobedient to her master. She then decided that she was going to attempt to run away during this. Mann fired a shot at her hitting Lydia in the back. Lydia was badly injured after this, but she eventually recovered and did not die. My argument was solely based on the principle of criminal law and property law as it was in the early 1800s. Therefore, I used the harsh slave laws and black codes in North Carolina at the time in my favor. 

This was the part of my argument that I used a lot of my research on. “Lydia was rented by him which means that Lydia is his property during the time he paid for. This means that he can do so what he pleases with his property. Also, slave owners have a right to punish their slaves if they are not listening because it makes them pay attention more and become more obedient. If they were not allowed to punish them slaves would have too much freedom and would not be able to listen as well. The property law of North Carolina as stated by the Black Codes says that slaves are on the same level of property as livestock. So, are you guys going to sit here and tell me that a man can't shoot one of his chickens or cows? Obviously, it doesn’t sound right but what would you do if one of your cows didn’t want to be in his barn anymore, so he just starts running away? I would try to catch them and if I don’t think I’ll get them then I would injure them so that it doesn't escape. I don’t see how this is illegal, it may be wrong, but it is not illegal or worth punishing.” 

Black Codes served a major part in eliminating basic rights for African American Slaves at the time

This trial was fascinating because of the many different counterparts that were involved in making the final decision. For example, the judge in this trial was a man named Thomas Ruffin and he played a very interesting role besides the fact that he was the judge. As the chief of Justice for the North Carolina Supreme Court at the time, this case and his decision were a very big deal. Ruffin’s opinion said, “The power of the master must be absolute, to render the submission of the slave perfect.” Now, this was of huge importance at the time because it stated that slaves had no right over their enslavers, and that slave owners could shoot slaves in the back and get away with it. Another fascinating thing was that Ruffin felt for Lydia and the slaves while being a slaveholder. Though he knew he could not go against the state and feel for a slave because he would lose everything he worked for.

Judge Thomas Ruffin

Not only was this a major court case that defined the rights between slave and slaveowner, but it also made known that in the state of North Carolina, slave abuse was allowed. Not only that but it was also made known that even if you believed in basic human rights, it is what mattered what the people think and not the judge of a court case. It is still looked at today as one of the many horrible ideologies that existed in the history of the United States. A country that was built on slavery and the abuse of African Americans.