Burr is Found Not Guilty of Treaosn

After Burr's disgrace, he became involved in a scheme to cede western lands to Great Britain. Word of Burr's western activities reached President Jefferson, and he ordered treason charges be brought against Burr. Chief Justice Marshall, who also served as a circuit judge (something Supreme Court justices did for the first 100 year of the Republic's existence), became the presiding judge in the treason trial. Marshall, from the beginning of the trial, made it clear that treason could only be what Article III, Section 3 of the Constitution stated: Treason against the United States shall consist only in levying war against them, or in adhering to their economies, giving them aid and comfort. No person shall be convicted of treason unless on the testimony of two witnesses to the same overt act, or on confession in open court." In the course of the proceedings, the lawyers for Burr requested papers in the hands of President Jefferson. Marshall demanded that they be turned over, stating that, unless they endangered national security, they must be turned over. Burr was acquitted of the charges of treason.