Jean Baptiste Vasnier presents to the police jury that he is the "natural," i.e. illegitimate, father of a thirteen-year-old mulatto boy named Jean Louis Benjamin Vasnier, whom he purchased with the sole intent of emancipating him. He explains that, ignorant of the laws but desirous to ensure freedom for his son, he had him baptized "as free" and the boy has been "so considered" by everybody, ever since. Having now been "advised" that his son's freedom is "not valid," he is anxious to make him "really free" and ensure that he is not treated as a slave after his death. Jean Baptiste Vasnier vouches that Jean Louis Benjamin has been "educated as to know the respect that he owes to white persons and has always been respectful towards them." He therefore asks the police jury to authorize him to emancipate his son without compelling him to leave the state.
Result: Granted.
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Repository: New Orleans Public Library, New Orleans, Louisiana
