Congress enacts the Judiciary Act of 1789, granting federal courts power to issue habeas corpus writs

The First Congress passed the Judiciary Act of 1789, which in Section 14 authorized federal courts to issue writs of habeas corpus to prisoners held under federal authority. President Washington signed the act the same day he signed the bill establishing the federal judiciary itself. The writ gave any federal prisoner the right to appear before a judge and demand that the government justify the legal basis of their detention.