there were no laws about slavery in virginia's early history. however, in 1640, a virginia court sentenced john punch, an african, to slavery. this was because he tried to run away from his service. he ran away with two white people. the two white people were sentenced only to one more year of their indenture, and three years' service to the colony. this is the first legal sanctioning of slavery in the english colonies. it was one of the first legal distinctions made between europeans and africans.