In March of 1895 Dred Scott and his owner, John Sanford moved to Illinois which was a free state at the time. Due to the fact that Dred Scott was a slave in a free state he believed that he should have been able to declare emancipation from his owner. Dred brought his case to court to try to gain the freedom he believed he deserved. It was also argued on the side of Dred Scott that the North West Ordinance proved that he should be a freed slave. On the side of Sanford, it was argued that yes, he may have been a slave in a free state but the fact of the matter was that he was still a slave and was purchased therefore he is property. In the end Chief Justice Roger B. Taney decided in favor of John Sanford on the basis that no pure blooded African person, or their descendants, would ever be citizens of the United States and there for could not successfully grant him freedom.
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