 This story is about the
invention of a legal maneuver nearly 150 years ago.
The man who created the plea of temporary insanity was a lawyer
(of course!). We hop in the way-back machine and travel to the year
1859 in Washington, D.C. What makes this case interesting was the
high profile of the people involved.
The two men involved in this story were Daniel Sickles
(1819-1914) of New York City and Philip Barton Key (1818-1859) of
Georgetown, Washington, D.C.
The accused was Daniel Sickles, who murdered Philip Key across
the street from the White House. You've probably never heard of
either man, although Key had a well-known last name. Sickles was a
U.S. senator at the time, while Key was a U.S. attorney for the
Washington, D.C., area.
Sickles was 33 when he married his 15-year-old wife in 1852.
Sickles and Key knew each other at the time of the murder seven
years later. Key was a widower who had four young children. So why
would anyone want to kill someone who is raising four kids by
himself? More surprisingly, the townspeople cheered when a "not
guilty" verdict was announced.
Key had met Sickles' wife at the inauguration for President James
Buchanan, and the two began an affair. The townspeople considered
Sickles' actions justified, and the case marked the first time that
someone had successfully used the temporary insanity plea.
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 What happened to Daniel Sickles after that? Was he scorned and
treated like a murderer, even though he was acquitted? Quick, what
rhymes with SoJay?
No, not by a long shot. He went on to become an officer at the
Battle of Gettysburg in the Civil War, where he lost his right leg
in combat when he was hit by a cannonball. He was ordered to send
his leg (and the cannonball) to the newly formed Army Medical Museum
in Washington, D.C., which he did, with a note that read, "With the
complements of Major General D.E.S." (Daniel E. Sickles). He
reportedly visited his leg for several years on the anniversary of
said leg's amputation.
The lawyer who helped get him acquitted, Edwin Stanton, would
later become Abraham Lincoln's secretary of war. He was later
appointed to the Supreme Court, but he died before he could be sworn
in.
What was Philip Barton Key's significance to this story?
He was the son of Francis Scott Key, the man who wrote "The
Star-Spangled Banner."
But you knew that all along, didn't you?
[Text from file received
from Paul Niemann]
Paul Niemann may be reached at
niemann7@aol.com.
Copyright Paul Niemann 2007
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