Samuel Arnold, a Confederate soldier, learned the hard way about guilt by association. He had participated in discussions about kidnapping President Abraham Lincoln, but he wasn’t even around when Lincoln was shot by John Wilkes Booth on the night of April 14, 1865. But that didn’t matter to the authorities, who considered Arnold part of the assassination conspiracy after materials linking him to Booth and to the kidnapping plot were found in a hotel room (via the National Museum of American History).

President Lincoln died on the morning of April 15. Two days later, Arnold was arrested at Fortress Monroe in Virginia (via National Park Service). He was put on trial with George Atzerodt, David Herold, Dr. Samuel Mudd, Michael O’Laughlen, Lewis Powell (also known as Lewis Payne or Paine), Edman Spangler, and Mary Surratt. During the trial, Arnold claimed that he had discussed the kidnapping of Lincoln with his childhood friend Booth. He and Booth argued about the plan, which Arnold didn’t think was feasible. He later went to work at Fortress Monroe as a clerk, according to The New York Times. Despite his protests to the contrary, Arnold was found guilty and sentenced to life in prison.

Samuel Arnold went to prison for assassination plot

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