Mary Jane Bailey, a free woman of color, claims that John Johnson, a free man of color, refuses to deliver her five-year-old son, Charles Henry, to her custody. She explains that her son "is afflicted & has been from his birth and requires the constant attention of his mother." She claims that she is "entitled as the mother of said Infant to have the custody and control of said Infant and manage and direct his services." She asks that a writ of habeas corpus be issued requiring Johnson to bring Charles Henry before the court so that her son can be delivered into her "custody and care." Johnson's answer reveals that Charles Henry is "the lawful offspring" of his 1860 marriage with the petitioner. Johnson explains that while he was in the "service of the United States," the petitioner married Lewis Bailey, and upon his "return and discharge from the said service," Johnson married Elizabeth Lewis. He tells the court that his current wife is "willing to take the care and custody of [Charles Henry] as if the same were her own."
Result: Partially granted.
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Repository: Maryland State Archives, Annapolis, Maryland
