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Constitutional Conversations
Hon. Stephen J. Field PUBLIC DOMAIN
BY DAVID GRAY ADLER
Historically, the Justices of the U.S. Supreme Court have avoided drama off the bench. A bookish group, the Justices are removed from the madding crowd, the hurly-burly of politics and civil strife, and mark their time in the tranquility and elegance of their chambers, deciding cases and writing opinions. One exception to this institutional serenity—the Terry Affair—captivated the attention of the nation and the citizenry’s lurid interest in sex, scandal, and murder.
In the summer of 1889, Justice Stephen Field, an iconic 19th century conservative jurist, who sat on the court for 34 years, found himself at the center of the most wild, violent, and dramatic moment in the court’s history. Field, who had moved west from New York in 1849 as part of the California Gold Rush, was a colorful, stubborn, pistol- packing figure who had the habit of wading into controversies that alienated colleagues and earned enemies. While in California, he speculated in lands, threw himself into state politics, practiced law, and, in no time, became the mayor-judge of Marysville. In 1857, he was elected to the California Supreme Court and served for six years until he was named to the U.S. Supreme Court in 1863 by President Abraham Lincoln.
The Terry Affair emerged in the context of a judicial ruling and the anger that it inspired. Field, an anti-slavery Democrat, had sat on the California bench with Chief Justice David S. Terry, a slave owner from Texas who had served with the Texas Rangers. Terry, who also rushed to California in 1849, was a violent man who knew no boundaries, freely brandished a bowie knife, displayed a quick temper, and burnished his reputation as a brawler who beat up newspaper editors who offended him, stabbed litigants in the courtroom, and killed California’s anti-slavery U.S. Senator David C. Broderick in a duel. A partisan judge dismissed murder charges at his trial.
In 1884, Terry represented Sarah Althea Hill, a flamboyant, 27-year-old described as a “Missouri beauty,” who claimed that she was married to William Sharon, 60, a multi-millionaire widower and former senator from Nevada. She had sought to validate a “secret” marriage to U.S. Senator Sharon to secure a divorce and half of his $30 million estate. Sharon denied that they were married and asserted that he had paid Hill $500 per month, standard payment to all his mistresses. The salacious case captured national headlines. U.S. Senator Sharon fought until his death and left instructions for his heirs to continue the fight. He lost in state court but won in federal court.
While the legal wrangling took its twists and turns, Terry and Hill were married. In 1888, Justice Field, carrying out his duty to ride circuit, became involved in the case. Field delivered an opinion that invalidated Hill’s former marriage, adding from the bench his own editorial comments about her less than spectacular lifestyle, explosive temper, and violent ways. True to form, Hill exploded, accused Field of taking a bribe and threatened the justice, who ordered the marshal to remove her from the courtroom. The marshal grabbed Hill’s arm, which led Terry to knock the court’s security official to the floor and he pulled out his bowie knife. When order was restored, Terry and his wife were arrested for assault and for threatening Field. Hill was sentenced to one month in jail and Terry to six months.
On August 14, 1889, shortly before the Terrys were to be released, Justice Field was riding a train to preside at a hearing in Fresno, California. Field had been advised to defer the trip, but he declared he would not be deterred by a “ruffian” who “made threats to my body.” The U.S. Attorney General arranged for Field’s security by appointing David Neagle to be his bodyguard. As it happened, the Terrys were aboard the same train. While eating breakfast, Field, Neagle, and Mr. and Mrs. Terry saw one another. Field sat at a table between the Terrys and the door, but an encounter seemed inevitable. Mrs. Terry walked past Field and left the dining car. Within a few minutes, Mr. Terry walked to Field’s table and struck the Justice in the face, twice. Neagle, believing Terry was drawing a knife, shouted, “Stop, stop,” and shot Terry two times, killing him. Moments later, Mrs. Terry returned to the dining car and found her husband lying on the floor, dead. She had returned with a satchel, which contained a gun.
Who is who? In short, Terry represented Hill in a lawsuit, Hill married Terry, Field invalidated the marriage, the Terrys were arrested but on a train with Field, Neagle (acting as Field’s bodyguard) killed Terry. ALL IMAGES PUBLIC DOMAIN
Neagle and Field were charged with the murder of Terry. Justice Field was arrested but released after the Attorney General put pressure on local authorities. The case was a front-page story in newspapers across the country. No Supreme Court Justice had ever been arrested, none involved in scandal, none charged with murder, and none targeted for assassination. The U.S. Supreme Court dismissed Neagle’s murder charges after the case reached the High Bench on a Writ of Habeas Corpus, on grounds that he was carrying out his official duties as Field’s bodyguard. The Supreme Court’s tranquility has not been similarly disturbed since.
