Seattle's First Female Lawyer Fined After Courtroom Altercation
Kate Kane, the city's only female attorney at the time, was fined after throwing water at a judge she claimed insulted her.
Kate Kane, of this city, and the only female lawyer, threw water in the face of Judge Gallery while in court this morning and was fined $300. She claims the Judge insulted her by word and action, but will not say in what particular. She refused to pay the fine, and will forfeit her bail unless her friends intercede.
“She claims the Judge insulted her by word and action, but will not say in what particular.”
Kate Kane was a pioneering woman in a legal system that was entirely hostile to her presence. Her dramatic act of defiance is a striking early example of resistance against the professional exclusion and sexism faced by women entering the legal profession in the Washington Territory.
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