A Fugitive's Reckoning
A French woman sues her partner for $15,000 after he allegedly abandoned her in America—while he sits in jail for human trafficking.
The complaint of Blanche Mascleg against Alexander Fachon, asking $15,000 damages for breach of promise, was filed yesterday by the girl's attorney, Wilson R. Cray. The paper having been served June 4, and no answer made, the case will be tried before a jury. Blanche Mascleg is the French girl who claims that Fachon prevailed on her to travel with him from Paris to the United States as his wife, by promising to marry her on their arrival in this country, which promise she alleges he failed to keep. Fachon is now in the county jail as a federal prisoner, on the charge of importing a woman for immoral purposes. It is stated that he has much property in Walla Walla county.
“Blanche Mascleg is the French girl who claims that Fachon prevailed on her to travel with him from Paris to the United States as his wife, by promising to marry her on their arrival in this country, which promise she alleges he failed to keep.”
This 1903 story reflects the legal precariousness faced by immigrant women at the turn of the century. Today's discussions regarding human trafficking and the exploitation of vulnerable populations echo the legal struggles of women like Blanche Mascleg who were caught in transnational traps.
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