A Trial Over a Reproductive Choice
A jury convicts L.M. LaPointe for producing an abortion, sparking a harsh account of the social stigma of the era.
The story, cleaned up
A cleaned-up reading of the newspaper page: spelling and layout repaired, one story lifted off a crowded page. It follows the original closely but it is not a transcription. The original page is below; read it if a detail matters.
On Saturday, the jury in the case of L.M. LaPointe, charged with producing an abortion on 14-year-old Minnie Foss, brought in a verdict of guilty. Judge Graves imposed a fine of $100. While there is no question but that LaPointe has sinned, the general belief is that he has paid dearly for it, as it is said to have cost him between ten and fifteen thousand dollars. All those who attended the trial have slight sympathy for the girl, as she exhibited little, if any, modesty and skipped through her story with a glibness that would rarely be equaled by the scarlet woman.
“She exhibited little, if any, modesty and skipped through her disgusting story with a glibness that would rarely be equaled.”
This reporting offers a window into the Victorian moralizing that permeated early Washington legal proceedings. The derogatory framing of the girl highlights how medical autonomy was historically criminalized through the lens of 'morality' and social respectability.
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