The Trial of Lou Graham
A high-profile arrest of a prominent madam in 1891 Seattle ends abruptly when the city fails to prove its case in a spectacle of moral policing.
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.
Judge Rivers held a session of the police court last night for the hearing of the cases of the dissolute women. The case of Lou Graham was called. J. T. Ronald, L. C. Gilman, and S. H. Piles appeared for the defense. After some time was spent in selecting a jury, the case proceeded. The City Attorney called Officer Long as the first witness, who testified that he did not know if the house at the corner of Washington and South Fourth had the reputation of a house of ill fame. Lieutenant Templeton testified that he knew Lou Graham's name was on the door, and that the house had a reputation for ill fame, but other officers called to testify, including Captain Pier, stated they did not know the reputation of the house or who lived there. After the city introduced a deed to the property as evidence, the defense moved for a dismissal on the grounds that no competent evidence had been introduced. Defense attorney L. C. Gilman argued that attorneys are compelled to defend even the vilest criminals when called upon, so why not a 'fallen woman?' Judge Rivers charged the jury to decide the case on the evidence alone. The jury retired, and inside of three minutes returned with a verdict of not guilty.
“He said that the vilest criminals are not only entitled to counsel, but that attorneys are compelled to defend them, when called upon; then why not a fallen woman?”
Lou Graham was the most famous madam in Seattle's history, a figure whose wealth made her a target for the moral panics of her day. The trial captures the tension between the 'respectable' city's attempt to regulate the vice district and the legal realities of proving such charges—an early instance of Seattle’s long, complicated relationship with its downtown red-light economy.
From readers
No comments yet. If you know something about this story — a correction, a family memory, a source — it belongs here.