Rabun was involved in the American Importation Case of 1820 of smuggling slaves into Creek and US territory, in violation of the 1808 law against the American slave trade. John Watson, Deputy Magistrate of Georgia, protested Rabun's interference in the execution of his legal duties in the case of 59 Africans who were allegedly seized under executive orders and later sold. The importation of the Africans and the implication of David Brydie Mitchell caused wide interest in the case. Rabun commented that anti-slave laws were being constantly violated, and that "high and low were engaging in it".