Domestic Violence and a Locked House
A city employee’s wife seeks divorce and alimony after a series of alleged violent outbursts and domestic exclusion.
Lucy Holway filed suit for divorce in the superior court yesterday afternoon against Joseph T. Holway, an engineer in the employ of the city. Mrs. Holway alleges cruel treatment, stating that her husband has a violent temper, and that because of his conduct she is in fear of her life. She also claims that on May 16 the defendant slapped her and ordered her out of the house, and that on May 17 he had been drinking and locked and nailed up the house so she could not enter. She asks for $100 temporary alimony and $150 attorney's fees.
“She also claims that on May 17 he had been drinking and locked and nailed up the house so she could not enter.”
This domestic dispute highlights the extreme vulnerability of women in the pre-welfare, pre-equal-pay era, where access to shelter and funds was entirely contingent on legal petitioning following abuse.
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