Daniel Sickles shoots Philip Barton Key in Lafayette Square

Background. Daniel Sickles served as a United States Representative from March 4, 1857, to March 3, 1861. The conflict arose when Sickles discovered that Philip Barton Key II, the United States Attorney for the District of Columbia, was having an affair with Sickles's wife, Teresa Bagioli Sickles. This personal scandal led to the fatal confrontation in Lafayette Square.

The Shooting. On February 27, 1859, Sickles shot and killed Philip Barton Key II in Lafayette Square, located directly north of the White House. The square was a prominent public park in Washington, D.C., historically associated with the residences of prominent residents. The event was a significant homicide involving a sitting congressman and a federal attorney.

Immediate Aftermath. Following the shooting, Sickles surrendered at the house of Attorney General Jeremiah Black, located a few blocks away on Franklin Square. He confessed to the murder at this location. The incident generated extensive coverage in national papers, which were often sympathetic to Sickles, making the trial a major topic of conversation in Washington.