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144 stories matching libel
- A Sailor's Crushed Hand and the Ship That Had to Answer for It
A seaman's right hand was crushed aboard the bark Cambridge at Port Blakely. He sued in Seattle for unpaid wages and $5,000 in damages, dragging the vessel into federal court.
- The Newspaper War of 1878
Before the digital age, Seattle's editors fought their battles in court and print, trading accusations of corruption and forgery.
- The Herald Editor Arrested in School Board Libel Feud
A simmering local dispute between Aberdeen's newspaper and the school board has escalated into a criminal charge.
- Sailors Sue the Ship Challenger Over Abuse at Sea
Eight sailors sue for wages and damages after allegedly being beaten with clubs and belaying pins during a voyage from Philadelphia to Tacoma.
- Crew of Steamer Idaho Sues for Unpaid Wages
Fourteen mariners file a federal libel suit against their own vessel, alleging the ship's owners failed to pay their wages.
- A Rescue at Sea: The Wellington Libeled for $15,000
A historic salvage claim surfaces as the captain of the San Pedro sues for payment after a dramatic ocean rescue.
- Crew Files Admiralty Suit Against Ship Challenger
Sailors sue the captain and officers of a vessel arriving in Tacoma for systemic physical abuse, including beatings with clubs and belaying pins.
- The War of the Everett Editors
An arrest for criminal libel turns into a public spectacle as two rival newspaper editors battle over a municipal bridge contract.
- The 'Orting Bank Thief' Libel Case
A political war of words between Populists and the establishment leads to a dramatic arrest for criminal libel in Tacoma.
- A Seattle Editor's Jail Sentence—and His Gallows Joke
C. H. Lugrin of the Telegram got three months and a $500 fine for criminal libel against Police Chief Bolton Rogers. He appealed—and joked that the judge couldn't hang him.
- The Man Who Crushed His Hand: A Seaman’s $3,000 Fight for Justice in Seattle
In the early days of Washington Territory, a sailor named Robert Johnson sued a ship’s captain and his vessel after a workplace accident left him permanently disabled. It was one of the first major labor lawsuits heard in the new federal court.
- The Ballad of Mrs. Mattie: A Seattle Streetcar Scandal
When a drunken motorman tried to force his way into a woman's streetcar car, the resulting courtroom drama exposed the raw power dynamics of early Seattle transit—and left the defendant claiming he was libelled by the press.
- A Crippling Debt: The Maritime Fight for Justice
After a seaman's hand was crushed working on the bark Cambridge, a legal battle for unpaid wages and damages unfolds in the Seattle District Court.
- The Herald’s Legal Victory
A landmark criminal libel trial in Aberdeen concludes with an acquittal, sparking a debate over the role of the press in public accountability.
- The Whistleblower Who Won
A Seattle man is acquitted of criminal libel for writing a letter warning labor organizers against a corrupt local official.
- A Foggy Night on the Sound
A collision between two steamships leads to a libel lawsuit and the suspension of a captain.
- The Mayor and the Editor: A Libel Feud in Ocosta
A small-town mayor charges an editor with criminal libel after a series of scathing public criticisms.
- Two Tacoma Papers Go to War Over a Bank Blackmail Charge
The Ledger accuses the News of shaking down local banks, both dailies dare each other to sue for libel, and the insults turn spectacularly personal.
- The Herald’s Victory Over Libel
After year-long court battles, the newspaper celebrates the dismissal of civil and criminal libel suits brought by a school board member.
- The Crew of the 'Tidal Wave' Strikes for Back Pay
After the American bark 'Tidal Wave' terminated its voyage at Port Madison, fourteen sailors filed a legal action against the ship's owners to recover unpaid wages, lodging, and return expenses.
- The Night the Hue Jacket Struck the Tacoma
A federal admiralty complaint lays out a Strait of Juan de Fuca collision, a missing lookout, and a $15,000 claim against a square-rigged ship.
- The Knights of Labor Civil War
A bitter internal dispute within the local Knights of Labor spills into the courts as a libel suit.
- The Rotten Beef Scandal of 1872
When a local market was accused of selling diseased meat, the ensuing war of words revealed the thin line between journalism and extortion in early Seattle.
- A Libel Trial Among Ministers Promises a Scandal in Open Court
Rev. M. H. Nichols faces a criminal libel charge over accusations against Rev. T. B. Ford, and a California witness has arrived to testify about old “irregularities” in Arkansas.
- The Editor and the Chief
The editor of the Seattle Telegraph is charged with criminal libel after publishing a scathing exposé on the police chief's alleged protection of gambling dens.
Also about this, in other words
- The Governor and the Libel Suit: A Battle for Political Character
When Governor Elisha P. Ferry sued the 'Democratic Press' for accusing him of selling pardons, he ignited a fierce debate about the limits of press freedom and the nature of public character.
- The Unwritten Laws of Seattle’s Press
When a local paper targeted young women in its columns for 'assuming social superiority' at a dance, a vigilante citizen took matters into his own hands.
- The Wild West of Washington Journalism
When the courts declared they had no power to punish libel, Seattle editors went to war with their pens—and their reputations.
- The Port Townsend Sewer of Defamation
A small-town attorney attempts to build a media empire on vitriol and libel, only to be dismantled by the Governor he targeted.
- The Great Everett Libel Feud
A theatrical legal battle between an Everett editor and his rival unfolds, characterized more by grandstanding lawyers than actual injury.
- A Church Scandal Erupts in a Seattle Libel Trial
M. H. Nichols stood accused of criminally libeling Presiding Elder T. B. Ford. The defense spent the day trading rumors, old grudges, and one complaint about the prosecutor's booming voice.
- The Pastor, the Circular, and the Hung Jury
For three days a Seattle courtroom heard accusations of adultery, an illegitimate son, and a pastor’s libelous circular. At 12:35 a.m., the jury was still deadlocked.
- The Puppet Editor's Expensive Betrayal
A cautionary tale of a local 'figurehead' editor who was used by power brokers to spread libel, only to be abandoned when the lawsuits started arriving.