Supreme Court rules in United States v. The Amistad

Background. The case originated from the 1839 rebellion on the Spanish schooner La Amistad. A federal district court in 1840 found that the transport of the kidnapped Africans across the Atlantic on the Portuguese ship Tecora violated U.S. laws against international slave trade. The Circuit Court of Appeals upheld this decision in April 1840, setting the stage for the Supreme Court review.

Legal Arguments. Former President John Quincy Adams joined the defense at the request of Lewis Tappan and Ellis Gray Loring. Adams appeared before the Supreme Court on February 24, 1841, and spoke for four hours. Separately, the district court proceedings established that the Africans had been captured in Mendiland, sold to a Portuguese trader in Lomboko in April 1839, and taken to Havana illegally on a Portuguese ship.

Decision and Aftermath. The Supreme Court affirmed the lower district court ruling on March 9, 1841, authorizing the release of the Mende. However, it overturned the order to return them to Africa at government expense. In 1842, thirty-five survivors returned to Sierra Leone, aided by private fundraising efforts, including those by Pennington, rather than government mandate.