The Power of the Midwife’s Word: Examining Women’s Work Through Statutory Rape and Infanticide Trials in the Sonoran State Judiciary, 1820-1880

This study is based on the criminal cases of infanti-

cide and statutory rape from the northern state of

Sonora, Mexico, between 1820s and 1880s. Midwi-

fes were called to share their knowledge, and their

proven word could be critical on trial, and had the

power to influence the judge. The problem was in the definition

of statutory rape for the law in that time, in accordance with its

moral values, which applies only when the victim loses her vir-

ginity, and in result affects the family and victim’s honor. The

judges’ trust in midwives represents the expertise they have of

the female body, but when it came to medical inspection, they

werenot always accurate. The lack of professional training cau-

sed an inefficient medical inspection and in ambiguous deci-

sions from the judiciary, propelled by the strict legal definition

of statutory rape. Midwives’ paper in justice decisions was a

complex issue, back in Sonora’s judicial system. They recogni-

zed the power they had as agents of the families involved in the

trials and the judiciary sector, and these roles can shed a light

in gender studies. This social relevance lasted until the number

of midwives declined when replaced with male medical doctors

and the rise of urban centers in the 1860s.

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This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.

 Meyibó se encuentra bajo la Licencia Creative Commons Atribución 4.0 Internacional (CC BY 4.0).