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Today in History (1862) - The U.S. government forbids all Union army officers from returning fugitive slaves, thus effectively annulling the Fugitive Slave Law of 1850 and setting the stage for the Emancipation Proclamation. On the same day in 1865, the Confederate Congress voted to enlist 300,000 black troops, granting them freedom with the consent of their owners. Lee surrendered a few weeks later. |
Today in History (1966) - The U.S. Supreme Court rules in Miranda v. Arizona that the police must inform suspects of their rights before questioning them. "Miranda right" stands with "I take the Fifth" among the bits of constitutional knowledge Americans can be relied upon to have, thanks to generations of police procedural TV shows; the effect of programs like 24 and The Shield that highlight extra-ordinary, rule breaking behavior is not yet known.