Dred Scott Case, the /ˌdred ˈskɒt ˌkeɪs $ -ˈskɑːt-/ BrE AmE ( also the ˌDred ˈScott Deˌcision )
an important decision made by the US Supreme Court in 1857 against a man called Dred Scott. Scott was a ↑ slave who wanted a court to decide that he should be a free man because his owner had taken him to live in states where ↑ slavery was illegal. The Chief Justice of the Supreme Court decided, however, that because Scott was black he could never become a citizen of the US and so he did not have the right to begin a legal case. The Chief Justice also stated that Congress must not prevent any state from having ↑ slavery .