The United States v. Samuel Brewster was a Supreme Court case in which the defendant, Samuel Brewster, had been convicted of violating the Revenue Act of 1828 by selling goods without paying taxes on them. The court held that Congress had not exceeded its constitutional authority when it passed this act and that it was within their power to impose such taxes as they saw fit. Furthermore, the court found that although there were some ambiguities in how certain parts of the law should be interpreted, these did not invalidate its constitutionality or render it void for vagueness. Ultimately, the conviction against Brewster was upheld and he was required to pay his tax debt plus interest from when he first began selling goods without paying taxes on them.

In the United States v. Samuel Brewster, the Supreme Court was tasked with determining whether a state court had jurisdiction to try an individual for a crime committed on board of a vessel belonging to the United States Navy. The majority opinion held that since Congress had not specifically granted such authority to state courts, they did not have jurisdiction in this case and thus could not proceed with prosecution. Justice McLean dissented from this decision, arguing that it was within states' rights under their police powers to regulate matters occurring within their boundaries and as such should be allowed to exercise criminal jurisdiction over offenses taking place on vessels owned by the federal government while docked at ports located in those states. He further argued that if Congress wished otherwise then it should pass legislation explicitly denying them such power instead of relying upon judicial interpretation of constitutional provisions which were silent on this matter.