Vashon Islanders Sue After False Larceny Arrest
Three men from Burton claim they were wrongfully jailed for stealing copper cable from a local telephone company.
The Island Empire Telephone and Telegraph company was today named the defendant in three damage suits for $10,000 each, brought against it by George Mauck, Althan Aldrich, and Duncan Aldrich of Burton, Wash. The telephone company operates a telephone line on Vashon Island. In the complaint, the three men claim that on April 1, the telephone company accused each of them of having stolen $200 worth of copper cable. The men were arrested on warrants charging them with grand larceny, and were taken to jail at Seattle. After remaining in jail several days, they were brought before Justice Gordon, who immediately discharged them upon lack of convicting evidence. Each suit is brought to recover for humiliation suffered by plaintiffs on account of their undue incarceration.
“Each suit is brought to recover for humiliation suffered by plaintiffs on account of their undue incarceration.”
False accusations of theft leading to incarceration remain a stark reality for many, and the legal battle to recover for the trauma of wrongful imprisonment is as relevant today as it was in 1909. While Vashon Island has transformed from a rural outpost into a quiet commuter enclave, the vulnerability of local residents to corporate litigation and police action continues to be a point of civic concern.
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