How One Of America’s Most Notorious Gangsters Was Brought Down By A Boundary-Pushing Pioneer
There are plenty of people out there who have never heard the name Eunice Carter, but maybe it’s about time that changed. Carter was a pioneer of the early 20th century, an African-American lawyer who overcame the challenges of her time to rise to the top of her profession. Without her, in fact, there’s every chance that one of America’s most powerful mob bosses might have escaped justice forever.
Overcoming obstacles
Carter was working in law at a time when neither women nor African-Americans were reaching prominent positions. No other Black woman, in fact, had ever graduated from Carter’s law school before she did. There were clearly obstacles in front of her, yet she persisted and overcame them.
A weak assignment
Carter rose through the ranks and eventually became part of a legal team in a high-profile case against a prominent mobster. Even now, though, she was still faced with issues to maneuver. She was assigned a role that was seen as quite minor, while her male colleagues worked on the meatier parts.
A game-changing strategy
But even though Carter had been trusted with lesser parts of the case, she worked hard. And in a testament to her skills as a lawyer, she actually noticed something that nobody else had. Based on her discovery, she helped formulate a strategy that ultimately altered the outcome of the trial.
Transformative vision
And the strategy set a template for prosecution cases that came afterwards. Carter’s vision had transformed the legal basis for tackling organized crime, and it left one particularly powerful boss behind bars. Thus her work had shaped the country in a very real way.
