Washington Bans Armed Mercenaries
Legislators override a veto to criminalize the employment of private armed bodies, a move targeting industrial labor conflicts.
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.
The anti-Pinkerton bill of the last session was passed by the present legislature over Governor Laughton's veto. It states that it shall be unlawful for any person, corporation, or association to organize, maintain, or employ an armed body of men in this state for any purpose whatever. Parties offending shall be guilty of a misdemeanor and fined between $1,000 and $5,000, and may be imprisoned for up to one year. All arms, uniforms, and accoutrements in possession of such bodies shall be seized and forfeited to the State of Washington.
“It shall be unlawful... to organize, maintain, or employ an armed body of men in this state for any purpose whatever.”
This bill was a direct reaction to the violent labor disputes of the era, where private security firms like Pinkerton were used to break strikes. It represents an early, aggressive legislative attempt to reclaim the state's monopoly on the use of force from private corporate interests.
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