James Jauncey, Jr. was a ship captain, merchant, and most notably a loyalist in the New York General Assembly.
At this time, James Duane (the future mayor of New York) used his influence to help defend Jauncey against the accusations.
[8] The election of 1769 was another close call as Jauncey, along with Henry Cruger, Oliver De Lancey, and Walton scraped by with votes against their Church supported party.
Jauncey found himself siding with the loyalist faction while a good majority of his supporters (members of his Presbyterian church) favoured independence.
[1] Jauncey was arrested on matters of considering himself worthy of his granted title (Master of the Rolls) that had been set in place by the prior government (under British rule).
[14] In addition, due to a being connected by marriage to Sir Gilbert Elliot, a prominent figure in Parliament who advocated against American revolutionary efforts, the Jauncey family was labelled as a suspicious group undermining the colonial government authority.
[2][15] In February 1784, he asked the New York Legislature to be sympathetic and drop their charges related to a bill of attainder; however they ignored his pleas.