Legal Chaos and the Chinese Exclusion Era
A convoluted series of arrests and court cases in Seattle reveals the systemic targeting of Chinese residents during the height of the Exclusion era.
The local courts saw a confusing series of cases involving Chinese residents, including the arrest of Lee Toy, a Portland merchant, on robbery charges. When a friend, Lee Sang, arrived in Seattle to assist him, he was attacked by four men. Following a series of arrests and counter-arrests, including charges of assault, carrying concealed weapons, and perjury, the proceedings highlighted the use of the judicial system as a tool for personal vendettas. By February 1884, the situation remained tense as multiple charges were filed and dismissed, with the prosecution of witnesses for perjury becoming the latest development in a deeply biased local legal environment.
“This case, throughout, has been a most peculiar one, and appears to have been merely a bold-faced attempt to use the courts of justice as tools to further some scheme of private revenge.”
This incident serves as a chilling example of the 1880s legal climate in Seattle, where the city’s judiciary was frequently weaponized to harass and displace the Chinese community, a precursor to the violent expulsions that would peak in 1886.
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