U.S. laws of 1793 and 1850 (repealed in 1864) that provided for the seizure and return of runaway slaves.
The 1793 law authorized a judge alone to decide the status of an alleged fugitive slave. Northern opposition led to enactment of state personal-liberty laws that entitled slaves to a jury trial and as early as 1810 prompted individuals to aid the Underground Railroad . Increased pressure from the South brought passage of the second statute in 1850, as part of the Compromise of 1850 . It imposed penalties on federal marshals who refused to enforce the law and on individuals who helped slaves to escape; fugitives could not testify on their own behalf, nor were they permitted a jury trial. Its severity led to increased interest in the abolition movement. Additional personal-liberty laws enacted by northern states to thwart the act were cited by South Carolina as justification for its secession in 1860.