In 1926, Emelia Schaub successfully defended her client, James Corbett, against the charge of murder, and became the first woman in the State of Michigan to win a murder case. Schaub switched sides in 1936 when she was elected as the first woman prosecutor in Michigan. She was re-elected five times, serving a total of 10 years as the Prosecuting Attorney of Leelanau County. As a prosecutor, one of Schaub’s greatest accomplishments was the work she did on behalf of the Ottawa and Chippewa Indians. In 1943, she petitioned the State of Michigan for the title to seventy-seven acres of land to serve as a reservation for the Leelanau Indians. She was successful and the Ottawa and Chippewa Indians paid tribute to her act of kindness by making her an honorary member of their tribes.
Emelia Schaub was a voice for the voiceless in society. Her successful career has inspired many of the women of Michigan to speak up on behalf of the rights of others in their own pursuits of justice.
1 Emelia Schaub, Biography File. Michigan Women’s Hall of Fame.