Case Summary

Henry Carlton was arrested by N. Soderberg, the Justice of the Peace for Seattle, in April 1888 and was convicted of the crime of vagrancy by gambling. Carlton petitioned for a writ of habeas corpus, arguing that the commitment from N. Soderberg did not show Carlton had been convicted, that the court who issued the commitment did not have jurisdiction over the issue, and that it was not a commitment at all. R. A. Jones, a District Judge, ordered that the defendant should remain in custody on April 28, 1888, and Carlton returned to the custody of William Cochrane, the sheriff of King County, Washington Territory.

Case Information

Petition type(s)

• Carceral

Petition subtype(s)

• Vagrancy

Sites of significance

• King County Jail (Seattle, Washington)

Outcome

Writ denied

Fate of bound party

Remained in custody

Case Citation

King County Government, Judicial Administration, Territorial District Court Case Files, 1867-1889, No. 5930

Source material(s)

Case File

Length of case file

Between 21 and 30 pages

Repository(s)

• Washington State Archives, Puget Sound Regional Branch (Bellevue, Washington)

State

• Washington

Point(s) of law cited

Code Sec 1271|Sec 1272|Sec 1275|Sec 1276|Sec 1277|Chapter 133 Sec. 1910|Sec 2105|Sec 1896|Sec 678

Tag(s)

• Gambling
• Technical vagrancy

People

• Carlton, Henry (petitioner)
• Carlton, Henry (bound party)
• Cochran, William (Cochrane) (respondent)
• Jones, Richard A. (judge)

• Additional parties

  Ledgerwood, W. E. (Clerk)

  Soderberg, N. (Justine of the Peace)

  Thornton, H. G. (Constable and Keeper of the Jail of King County)

  Rochester, Junius (Notary Public)

  Hannon, H. T.