The tragic trial of Leo Frank and the horrific aftermath

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On April 26, 1913, 13-year-old Mary Phagan, a factory worker in Atlanta, Georgia, was murdered. Her disfigured body was discovered in the factory the following day. Dried blood caked her skull and sawdust covered her body. An autopsy revealed that she had been choked, and her head had been dented with a blunt instrument.

Police ordered the factory’s superintendent and part-owner, Leo Frank, to report immediately to the scene of the crime. But instead, the police went to Frank’s home, then brought him to the morgue and crime scene at the factory.

After evaluating evidence over the next several days, the police concluded Frank was guilty: He acted suspiciously, appeared extremely nervous, and was the last person to see Mary Phagan alive. Blood stains of the victim were also found in the workroom opposite Frank’s office.

In the book “The Leo Frank Case,” author Leonard Dinnerstein writes: “Because Leo Frank was Jewish, his arrest and arraignment complicated the emotional reactions of the public. Antisemitism in Atlanta during this time eventually led to one of the causes celebres of the century: The case against Leo Frank.”

In May 1913, the grand jury indicted Frank for the murder of Mary Phagan. The trial commenced on July 23 in Atlanta’s Fulton County Court with widespread public opinion that Leo Frank was guilty.

Frank’s defense lawyers included the highly skilled Luther Rosser, who was considered one of the best criminal defense lawyers in the South, known for his skill in examining witnesses. Joining him was Reuben Arnold, also highly regarded. Defense counsel faced immense public pressure and antisemitism. They struggled to overcome the prosecution’s compelling narrative and evidence presented by lead prosecutor Hugh Dorsey and his team, which focused on witness testimony to build its theory of the crime.

The prosecution presented testimony of various witnesses that blood spots on the floor and strands of Phagan’s hair on a nearby lathe indicated that the murder had occurred in the second-floor workroom, opposite Frank’s office, and that Frank was the last person to see Phagan alive and had the opportunity to kill her.

Doctors testified that Mary Phagan’s death occurred between 12:00 and 12:15 p.m. An employee of the factory, Monteen Stover, testified that she had arrived at the factory at 12:05 p.m., looked into Frank’s office, did not see him, waited five minutes, and then left the building. Stover’s testimony was damaging because Frank, when initially questioned by detectives, told them Phagan arrived between 12:05 and 12:10 p.m. and that he had not left his office between 12:00 and 12:30 p.m. The prosecution subsequently argued that Frank murdered Phagan at the time Stover was waiting for her pay.

A key witness for the prosecution was Jim Conley, the factory’s sweeper. He testified that he had arrived at the factory on the day of the murder at 8:30 a.m. Upon his arrival, Frank sent him on errands and reminded him to return. He testified that Frank mentioned he was expecting a young lady who would come to chat for a while. Conley testified that Phagan did arrive, and he heard footsteps going back and forth to the metal work room where the prosecution argued the murder occurred, and he heard a girl scream.

Conley then testified that he saw Stover enter the building, go up to the second floor, and then leave the building. Conley stated he eventually went up to the superintendent’s office. There he saw Frank at the top of the steps shivering and trembling, and rubbing his hands, while holding a little rope. Conley continued to incriminate Frank, shocking the spectators with testimony that Frank had abused other women at the factory. Interestingly, Conley’s testimony subsequent to the trial was considered false.

The defense called over 100 witnesses in the one-month trial, but the jury still found Leo Frank guilty. He was sentenced to death by hanging. Frank was shocked and dismayed. He still proclaimed his innocence. Learning of the verdict, thousands of citizens were jubilant. Their enthusiastic support for the verdict was considered by many to be intense antisemitism.

Defense counsel filed numerous appeals, to no avail. Many Jewish organizations unsuccessfully tried to free Frank. Eventually, Governor John M. Slator commuted the death sentence to life in prison. However, on August 17, 1915, Frank was abducted by a mob that broke into the prison and lynched him, ending his life. Many years later, long after the lynching, Frank was pardoned. Due to its blatant antisemitism, falsity of trial evidence, and ultimate lynching of Leo Frank, this case and its aftermath have plagued society even to this day, as do other lynchings in the U.S., including the state of Maryland.

Source: “The Leo Frank Case” by Leonard Dinnerstein (University of Georgia Press, 2008).

Paul Mark Sandler is recently retired from the firm of Shapiro Sher. He can be reached at [email protected].