Benjamin Gwinn Harris

Released
Date of birth:13. 12. 1805
Date of death:1895
Age:89† Deceased
Gender:Male
Race:White
Era:1800s
State:Maryland
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Benjamin Gwinn Harris

Biography

Benjamin Gwinn Harris was a Maryland congressman from St. Mary’s County and an outspoken opponent of the war, censured by the House of Representatives on April 9, 1864 for treasonable utterances. In May 1865 he was arrested for sheltering two paroled Confederate soldiers who came to his house and giving them money, and was tried before a military commission in Washington — a military prosecution of a sitting member of Congress at a time when the federal civil courts in Maryland were open and functioning. He was convicted, sentenced to three years imprisonment and permanent disqualification from holding any office under the United States, and jailed. He served several weeks before President Andrew Johnson remitted the prison term; the exact dates of his confinement are not documented. He resumed his seat and served out his term to March 3, 1867.

Case

Charges: Aiding and harboring two paroled Confederate soldiers — sheltering them at his home in St. Mary’s County, Maryland and giving them money, shortly after the surrender.
Arrested: May 1865
Incarcerated: May 1865
Sentence: Three years imprisonment and permanent disqualification from holding any office under the United States. He was jailed and served several weeks before President Andrew Johnson remitted the prison term; the exact dates of his confinement and of the remission are not documented, so no release date is recorded. He resumed his seat in Congress and served out his term to March 3, 1867. Verdict as recorded: Yes — convicted by a military commission at Washington, D.C. in May 1865, while the federal civil courts in Maryland were open.
Convicted: Yes

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