Partisan Courts and the American Dream of Justice

The fight for independence in the 1770s was in large part motivated by the struggle between colonists on one side and the King and Parliament on the other side, to control the justice system in the colonies. The very first case for impeachment in America was brought in 1774, against Peter Oliver, the Chief Justice of Massachusetts. John Adams prepared the Articles of Impeachment, which listed corruption, greed, and disloyalty, all indicative of “high crimes and misdemeanors,” as the bases for impeachment.

At issue was the question of allegiance: for whom did Oliver speak, the colonists or the Crown? Because Oliver no longer took his salary from the colonial government, paid for out of colony-raised taxes but instead was now paid directly by the King of England, under legislation passed by Parliament in 1773 (in a process during which there was no representation of colonial interests), the Americans of Massachusetts no longer trusted their Chief Justice, especially in matters involving Crown officials, British soldiers, and other representatives of the King and Parliament.

The House of Representatives approved the Articles of Impeachment but the Royal Governor of Massachusetts, Thomas Hutchinson, refused to recognize either the merits of the claims against Oliver or the legality of the process of impeachment. Taking the Royal party line, he declared that Chief Justice Oliver would not be removed, no matter how the Massachusetts House of Representatives had voted.