State vs. Mann

The State vs. Mann trial was about the mis treatment of a female slave named Lydia at the hands of the man named John Mann. The slave Lydia tried to resist John Mann and in response, he shot her in the back while she was running away. Because of the assault, he was charged and fined $10. John Mann has protested this fine. He claimed that fining him violates his rights as a slave owner. North Carolina thought it was appropriate.

The State concluded that John Mann was not even the slave owner, Josiah Small was. John Mann was only renting Lydia from him so he is just as responsible for her assault.

Although he did not kill, he was indenting too. The State set a precedent that in Williamsburg, Virginia, they hung two men who killed another slave owner's slave. Slave owners are allowed to whip, torture, and punish their slaves however they cannot murder them. He damaged someone else's piece of property. You can't borrow something from someone and return it ruined.

Mann concluded that slaves were considered to be a man's property. It was her fault for running away. She needed to follow the law. All he was doing was preventing Lydia from running away. We need slaves. They also brought up Property Law. Slaves are to be treated as property. Slaves act against the property law all the time. Lydia was running away so he had to do what he had to do. It was his right to punish his slave. John Mann is a Christian who believed that the bible supported his actions. Code 1741 Slave Code said that if they ran away, you could kill them.