The Territory's First Mixed-Gender Jury
A trial in Justice Vrooman’s court draws a suffocating crowd to see if women can handle the rigors of the jury box.
The case of the Territory vs. John Keavan and wife took up all of yesterday in Justice Vrooman's court and attracted much attention. The courtroom was crowded almost to suffocation throughout the day, the crowd apparently being attracted by the novelty of female jurors rather than by any special interest in the case itself. The case went to the jury about 4 o'clock in the afternoon and in a very few minutes a verdict of not guilty was returned. This demonstrates that King county ladies can serve on juries and come to an agreement with very little ceremony, but as to whether they relish the duty, the particular ladies in question are best calculated to decide.
“The courtroom was crowded almost to suffocation throughout the day, the crowd apparently being attracted by the novelty of female jurors.”
This reflects the brief, revolutionary period (1883-1887) when Washington Territory granted women the right to vote and serve on juries, a power the territorial courts would soon strip away. It predates the national 19th Amendment by nearly four decades.
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