Leo Frank

Leo Frank, born on April 17, 1884, in Texas to a Jewish-American family, was a mechanical engineer who made significant strides in his field. After earning his degree from Cornell University in 1906, he relocated to Atlanta in 1908, where he became the superintendent of the National Pencil Company. In 1910, he married Lucille Selig, and by 1912, he was actively involved in the Jewish community, even serving as president of the Atlanta chapter of the B'nai B'rith.

Tragedy struck on April 26, 1913, when thirteen-year-old Mary Phagan, an employee at the factory, was found murdered. The investigation led to the arrest of several individuals, including Frank, who was indicted for murder on May 24, 1913. The trial, which began on July 28, was marked by controversial testimony, particularly from Jim Conley, a janitor who claimed to be an accomplice. Despite the defense's arguments pointing to Conley as the true murderer, Frank was convicted on August 25, 1913.

Following a series of unsuccessful appeals, including a final plea to the Supreme Court in April 1915, Governor John M. Slaton commuted Frank's death sentence to life imprisonment. However, the case ignited a wave of antisemitism and public outrage, culminating in Frank's kidnapping and lynching by a mob on August 16, 1915, in Marietta, Georgia. Despite the new governor's promises to hold the lynchers accountable, no one was ever charged.

In 1986, the Georgia State Board of Pardons and Paroles issued a pardon acknowledging the state's failures in protecting Frank and allowing him to appeal, though they did not address his guilt or innocence. Frank's case has had a lasting impact, inspiring numerous works in literature and media, and it played a pivotal role in the founding of the Anti-Defamation League and the resurgence of the Ku Klux Klan.