Stacy Pratt McDermott is the assistant director and associate editor of the Papers of Abraham Lincoln in Springfield, Illinois, and the coeditor of The Papers of Abraham Lincoln: Legal Documents and Cases and The Law Practice of Abraham Lincoln.
Listed in: Legal and Constitutional History · American Studies · History · American History · Law
The Jury in Lincoln’s America
By Stacy Pratt McDermott
In the antebellum Midwest, Americans looked to the law, and specifically to the jury, to navigate the uncertain terrain of a rapidly changing society. During this formative era of American law, the jury served as the most visible connector between law and society. Through an analysis of the composition of grand and trial juries and an examination of their courtroom experiences, Stacy Pratt McDermott demonstrates how central the law was for people who lived in Abraham Lincoln’s America.
