Andrew (slave)

Andrew was an American slave who was wrongfully executed for rape after having consensual sex with a white woman. The incident was recorded as a miscarriage of justice.

Early life

Andrew was owned by a man named Richard Bradford.

In 1736, Andrew and a white indentured servant named Elizabeth Williams, who was married to Joseph Williams, had consensual sex in Caroline County, Virginia. The affair was discovered and the two were tried and convicted of adultery. Unsatisfied with the verdict, some successfully lobbied for Andrew to be prosecuted for rape. Andrew stood trial at the Caroline County Courthouse. He was convicted of rape, sentenced to death, and executed by hanging on June 4, 1736. The incident was later seen as a miscarriage of justice since it was undisputed that the two had engaged in consensual sex. Going forward, the county stopped punishing black men when white women gave birth to mixed race children. However, four white women would be flogged in such cases.
On the day that Andrew was executed, Elizabeth Williams escaped from custody. She had nine weeks added to her term of indentured servitude and was fined 200 pounds of tobacco.