The Widow, the Boy, and the Seduction Case That Backfired
A packed Seattle courtroom heard James Deedy say the widow seduced him—and Justice Caldwell ruled there was intercourse but no seduction, freeing the young man.
The case of Widow Whalen against young James Deedy for seduction ended yesterday afternoon in Justice Caldwell's court in a victory for the boy. The courtroom was packed to suffocation during the proceedings, and there were some funny incidents. Mrs. Whalen's story was about as published in the Post-Intelligencer, while the boy said the widow seduced him.
Deputy Prosecuting Attorney Morris questioned Deedy quite closely about his conduct. Deedy swore that he was as innocent as a lamb for twenty years of his life.
'I object to such questions,' said Mr. Gay. Justice Caldwell immediately overruled the objection, remarking as he did so that he would allow the state the widest scope in its search for the truth.
The justice decided that there had been illicit intercourse, and that Deedy was responsible for Mrs. Whalen's condition, but that under the law and evidence there had been no seduction. He was accordingly released.
“The justice decided that there had been illicit intercourse, and that Deedy was responsible for Mrs. Whalen's condition, but that under the law and evidence there had been no seduction.”
The case shows how seduction laws once turned private sexual conduct into public theater, with a woman's reputation and a young man's future on the line. Modern conversations about consent and sexual double standards still struggle with the same questions of power, age and blame.
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