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Mima Queen & her child
vs
John Hepburn
In the trial of this cause and after the following Jurors were sworn James Reed was returned by the Marshall summoned as a Talisman & was called to the book & thereupon the Deft. by his Counsel challenged to said Juror for cause & the following three persons of the pannel sworn in the cause (here insert their names) were thereupon sworn to try whether the said Juror Jas. Reed stood indifferent between the parties in this cause.
The said Juror Jas. Reed thereupon voluntarily stated to the Court & the Triers that he had not heard the evidence in the cause nor made up nor expressed any opinion on the subject & that he should be guided by the evidence offered in the cause.
Thereupon the Court asked the said Juror
James Reed whether he stood indifferent between the said
parties & whether his prejudices would prevent his so standing indifferent.
And thereupon the Defts. Counsel asked prayd that this question might be
part said James Reed, vizt: whether his
prejudices against slavery were such as to in a doubtful case would
induce him to find a verdict for the Petitioners answered that they would.
and that he had declared in conversation on the subject of this suit,
that if the evidence was doubtful he would find a verdict for the Petitioners.
Whereupon the Court directed the said Triers that they must find that the
said James Reed did not stand indifferent between the said
parties.
To which said proceedings & the opinion & direction of the said
Court (the)
the Petitioner by her Counsel excepts & prays the Court here to sign
& seal this her bill of exceptions which is accordingly done this day of
June 1810.
The Court then asked the said Reed whether if
the Evidence should be equal between the Petitioner & the Defendant, he
should incline to find a verdict for the Petitioner; to which he answered that he
should certainly in such an Event feel himself bound to find a verdict in favor of
the Petitioner. Whereupon the Court instructed the said
Triers that if they
believed such Confession & Evidence then they should find that the said
Reed did not stand in different between the said parties
and was not a competent Juror, to which
N. Fitzhugh (Seal)
B. Thurston (Seal)
Mima Queen & Child
vs
Hepburn
Exceptions
No. 4
James Reed