Did You Know?
A man named George Wilson was convicted in 1830 for robbing the U.S. mail and endangering the life of a postal carrier. Facing the sentence of death, a number of petitioners appealed on his behalf to President Andrew Jackson for a pardon, and it was soon granted (though only on the crime carrying the death penalty – Wilson could still be imprisoned under the terms of the pardon). Wilson, however, refused to bring up the pardon before the court, essentially choosing to die instead. This question – whether a pardon’s advantage can be denied by the recipient – was heard by the Supreme Court, who decided that “a pardon is a deed, to the validity of which delivery is essential, and delivery is not complete without acceptance. It may then be rejected by the person to whom it is tendered; and if it be rejected, we have discovered no power in a court to force it on him.” Therefore, Wilson’s earlier conviction stood.
*Note: Due to a lack of historical records, it is unclear whether or not Wilson was actually executed.