Judge Lichtenberg
Named in 61 stories. Back to all names
- Jan 18, 1891The Constitutional Right to Not Be Imprisoned for DebtWhen local merchants tried to jail a man for unpaid loans to prevent him from leaving town, a Seattle judge put the state’s progressive constitution to the test.Seattle, WA
- Jan 24, 1891The Wharf King’s Victory: Yesler Wins Millions in Land BattleJudge Lichtenberg rules that the state cannot seize waterfront property without paying just compensation, halting the Harbor Line Commission and protecting H.L. Yesler’s empire.Seattle, WA
- Jan 28, 1891The Plot to Lock Up a Witness: How Greed Tried to Silence a PioneerWilliam De Shaw, a respected Seattle merchant and witness to a will worth millions in British Columbia, was nearly committed to an insane asylum by land speculators who wanted his testimony silenced.Seattle, WA
- Feb 1, 1891The Battle for Seattle’s Soul: Saloon Owners vs. The City Over 'Music with Booze'In a landmark legal clash in 1901, three prominent saloon proprietors sued the city to block a $1,000 tax on their establishments, arguing that entertainment and alcohol should remain legally intertwined.Seattle, WA
- Feb 3, 1891Chamber of Commerce Fights to Keep its RestaurantSeattle's business elite debates the merits of maintaining a members-only dining room while scouting for a new headquarters in the rapidly shifting downtown core.Seattle, WA
- Feb 4, 1891The Salmon Bay Land DisputeA court ruling strips a soldier's homestead claim, favoring university land selection.Salmon Bay, Seattle, WA
- Feb 14, 1891Divorced Women Expose Husbands' Cruelty and GamblingA Seattle judge grants three separations after testimonies of physical abuse, betrayal, and abandonment.Seattle, WA
- Feb 27, 1891The Lieutenant Who Beat the ArmyA National Guard officer successfully sues the state to get his job back after a botched, 'railroaded' court-martial.Seattle Armory, Seattle, WA
- Dec 28, 1891A Defaulting Treasurer’s Debt Finally Comes Due—for a Governor and His BondsmenA Seattle judge orders E. P. Ferry and other sureties to pay King County $29,143.60 plus years of interest for George D. Hill’s vanished public funds.Seattle, WA
- Jan 7, 1892The Custody Battle of a 'Simple-Minded' GirlA teenager’s mother and a Catholic institution square off in a Seattle courtroom, revealing a tragic cycle of poverty, abuse, and parental abandonment.Seattle, WA
- Jan 19, 1892The Seven-Century-Old Shop-Worn BuddhasA Seattle jeweler’s lawsuit over antique statues reveals a strange, centuries-spanning trail from a Japanese temple to a King County courtroom.Seattle, WA
- Jan 23, 1892The Street Preacher on Pioneer SquareA Seattle man, parading through the city with a Bible and an American flag, faces a jury trial to determine his sanity while his wife struggles to support their family.Pioneer Square, Seattle, WA
- Jan 24, 1892The Trial of the Man Who Named Himself 'Defendant'A former newspaper man takes the witness stand in Seattle to explain his eccentric public preachings, his 'divine' inspirations, and his rejection of the name Jones.Seattle, WA
- Jan 30, 1892The Six-Month Trap: A Seattle Divorce ScandalA husband abandons his second wife after a bigamous marriage, forcing a judge to rule on the legality of vows broken before the ink was dry on a divorce decree.Seattle, WA
- Jan 31, 1892The Unwelcome Return of the CarpenterWhen an injured husband returned home to Seattle after months of medical treatment in San Francisco, he found his wife had replaced him with a local fireman.Seattle, WA
- Feb 3, 1892The University Student Who Refused the DrillA Seattle college student takes the faculty to court, arguing that mandatory military training interferes with his ability to work and pay his way through school.University of Washington, Seattle, WA
- Feb 4, 1892The City vs. The Tide FlatsWhen the Columbia & Puget Sound Railroad attempted to drive piles for a slip at the foot of Jackson Street, the city of Seattle flexed its legal muscles to prevent the privatization of the waterfront.Jackson Street, Seattle, WA
- Feb 5, 1892The Secret Life of 'Little Mac's' WidowA bitter probate court battle in 1892 Seattle pulls back the curtain on a woman’s desperate struggle to survive and her husband’s attempts to police her past.Front Street, Seattle, WA
- Feb 11, 1892The Trial of Amelia TuttleA young woman in Houghton is dragged into court by a neighbor on charges of insanity, revealing a tangled web of rural gossip, romantic rivalry, and petty jealousy.Kirkland, WA
- Feb 24, 1892A Scandal of Probate: Administrator Stripped of Authority Over Baglien EstateA court-appointed referee uncovers a pattern of fraudulent claims and unauthorized spending in the estate of a man who died in a house fire.Seattle, WA
- Feb 25, 1892The Fight for Frances: A Seattle Girl’s Battle for FreedomA sister challenges the detention of a 16-year-old girl in a reformatory without legal warrant, revealing the precarious power institutions held over young women in the 1890s.Seattle, WA
- Feb 27, 1892The Trial of 'Jap Lou': A Seattle Divorce Case of 1892A rare court case exposes the social and legal precariousness of a cross-cultural marriage in 19th-century Seattle.Seattle, WA
- Feb 28, 1892The University Revolt of 1892A campus protest against mandatory military drills ends in a courtroom, where students face suspension and a professor takes to the chalkboard to mock them in verse.University of Washington, Seattle, WA
- Mar 2, 1892The Hotel Arson ScandalA bitter divorce case in Gilman turns into a criminal conspiracy mystery after a wife testifies her husband plotted to burn down their own hotel for insurance money.Issaquah, WA
- Mar 9, 1892The Calkins Hotel DespoiledA real estate trust claims tenants of an East Seattle hotel are gutting the building and flooding its rooms in a scorched-earth dispute over a lease.Seattle, WA
- Mar 30, 1892The Hundred-Thousand-Dollar Ballard Land GrabA decades-long legal battle over a prime section of Ballard real estate winds its way toward the U.S. Supreme Court.Ballard, Seattle, WA
- Apr 2, 1892The Eccentricity Defense: Sarah McDonough Fights for AutonomyA Seattle woman fights to keep control of her property after local officials attempt to commit her to an asylum.Fremont, Seattle, WA
- Apr 13, 1892The Broken Promise of a Convent GiftAn elderly benefactor sues to reclaim forty acres of land, alleging that his donation to a Catholic institution for orphans was built on a lie regarding the gender of the children served.Seattle, WA
- Apr 20, 1892The Battle for the Harmon EstateA legal dispute unfolds in North Seattle over an elderly woman’s property, a deed signed under suspicious circumstances, and a family legacy caught in the crossfire of elder care and inheritance.Seattle, WA
- Apr 22, 1892The Fight for a Son’s Birthright in Pioneer SeattleA prominent Chinese merchant takes the extraordinary step of filing court petitions to prove his son is an American citizen and thus eligible to own property.Seattle, WA
- Apr 24, 1892The Log Boom Battle at Salmon BayA railroad company takes the city of Ballard to court over control of tide lands, seeking to block the city from driving piles for its own infrastructure.Salmon Bay, Seattle, WA
- May 7, 1892The Tragedy on the StumpJames McIlveen, a carpenter, was arrested for making a political speech to a row of stumps on Queen Anne Hill after escaping from a hospital window in just a blanket.Queen Anne Hill, Seattle, WA
- May 10, 1892The Railway War on the Seattle WaterfrontA high-stakes legal standoff between competing rail lines leaves the Seattle waterfront in limbo, as judges scramble to halt construction near King Street.King Street, Seattle, WA
- May 14, 1892The First Suit for Alimony Without Divorce in WashingtonA husband leaves his wife and moves in with his son, but a judge intervenes to ensure the abandoned spouse retains the little property they had.Seattle, WA
- May 17, 1892Judge Strikes Down State Road LawsA landmark superior court ruling declares the state's method for seizing private property for public roads unconstitutional, throwing years of county construction projects into legal limbo.Maple Valley, Seattle, WA
- May 17, 1892The Bigamy Suit in Green RiverA farmer is sued by his first wife after he moves West, remarries, and establishes a new family, triggering a complex property dispute in superior court.Seattle, WA
- May 26, 1892The Unwedded Wife of SeattleA judge grants a divorce but leaves the second Mrs. Beard in a legal limbo, sparking a courtroom scene.Seattle, WA
- Jun 8, 1892The Jailhouse Gas Leak IncidentA young woman suffering from a mental health crisis dismantles jail plumbing in a desperate attempt to end her life.King County Jail, Seattle, WA
- Jun 20, 1892A Pioneer's Desperate Claim to the HarborAn elderly man was jailed for insanity after insisting he owned the entirety of Seattle's tide lands.Seattle, WA
- Jun 22, 1892The Saloon Stoop FeudA corner clothing shop proprietor scores a court victory against a neighboring basement saloon's attempt to wall off the sidewalk.Seattle, WA
- Jul 3, 1892A Brutal Marriage EndsAfter enduring months of physical abuse and a terrifying attempt on her life, Cora A. Newson is granted a divorce by Judge Lichtenberg.Seattle, WA
- Jul 10, 1892Judicial Gridlock in King CountyThe Supreme Court intervenes when two Seattle judges refuse to finalize a case, each insisting the other should sign off.Superior Court of Washington for King County, Seattle, WA
- Jul 29, 1892Great Northern Sues Rivals Over Seattle Waterfront TracksThe Great Northern Railway launches a massive legal offensive against rival lines to secure its right-of-way across Seattle's tide lands.Railroad Avenue, Seattle, WA
- Aug 6, 1892The Millionaire in the Asylum: Thomas Keeler's Chinese Indemnity DelusionA Seattle man convinced the government owed him $1,000,000 was committed to Steilacoom after seeking payment at banks and law offices.Superior Court of Washington for King County, Seattle, WA
- Sep 17, 1892The Wealthy Landowner and the Guardianship FightA judge rules that being a 'habitual drunkard' is not sufficient legal grounds to seize control of a man's assets, thwarting his children's attempt to secure their inheritance.Rainier Avenue, Seattle, WA
- Sep 22, 1892Loggers Win Right to Collective LienA landmark state supreme court decision empowers loggers to file collective liens against companies for unpaid wages.Aberdeen, WA
- Oct 8, 1892The Great Northern Election HeistDemocrats and Populists battle the county commissioners over a controversial registration district on the mountain range.Skykomish, WA
- Oct 9, 1892Voters Denied a Voice in the WoodsA legal battle erupts as King County residents claim they are being disenfranchised by a failure to establish local election precincts.Seattle, WA
- Oct 15, 1892The Battle Over Voter Registration at Martin CreekA local judge rules against the King County commissioners, setting a precedent for voter integrity in a contested territory.Superior Court of Washington for King County, Seattle, WA
- Oct 25, 1892The Court Could Make Commissioners Act—But Not Tell Them HowA mandamus bid to split Martin's Creek precinct fails, with Judge Lichtenberg ruling the board already acted within the law.Superior Court of Washington for King County, Seattle, WA
- Nov 16, 1892Shareholders Forced to Pay Debts of Insolvent MillA judge rules that the owners of the failed Fremont Manufacturing Company are personally liable for the firm's unpaid debts.Seattle, WA
- Nov 18, 1892A Violent Arrest on Yesler AvenueA streetcar operator's rapid descent into crisis culminates in a dramatic struggle with police.609 Yesler Avenue, Seattle, WA
- Nov 22, 1892Great Northern Right-of-Way Case ResumesRailroad giants clash over terminal access, threatening to destroy the city’s existing shipping infrastructure.Alaskan Way, Seattle, WA
- Nov 24, 1892The Professional Beggars of SeattleA mother is deemed unfit by the courts after training her children to beg on the city streets.Seattle, WA
- Nov 26, 1892The Theater Owner's DivorceJohn Considine, proprietor of the People's Theater, admitted to adultery and desertion, but claimed bankruptcy to minimize alimony payments.Seattle, WA
- Dec 25, 1892Hostile Takeover at the Grocery CounterA local businessman alleges he was coerced into signing away his stake in the Haley Grocery Company under threat of public disgrace.Seattle, WA
- Jan 10, 1893A Plea for Safety: Katharine Mackey’s Divorce FilingA woman sues for divorce on grounds of cruelty, alleging her life is in danger from her husband, Timothy.Seattle, WA
- Dec 19, 1893The Rich Man and the Guardianship FightA wealthy pioneer's children seek to control his estate, alleging he squanders money on 'wine and women.'Columbia City, Seattle, WA
- Feb 2, 1894A Custody Battle Over Young Hazel AbbottFollowing a divorce, a father petitions for custody, alleging his ex-wife has abandoned their child in a house of prostitution.Seattle, WA
- Feb 28, 1894The Party Says Not Guilty—and Cheers the Man It RemovedSeattle Democrats put their scandal-scarred administration on trial at Haake's Hall, buried a First Ward delegate fight, and sent David E. Durie into the mayor's race while J.M. Wolfe got the ovation.Seattle, WA
- Apr 10, 1895The Ground Under Rainier Addition: A Seven-Year Title Fight Ends—for NowAfter three trials and repeated reversals, Henry S. Alger is declared owner of a tract already platted into lots and improved by buyers who trusted the Hill title.Seattle, WA