What happened to Leo Frank after his trial?
After his trial, Leo Frank was found guilty of the murder of Mary Phagan and sentenced to death by hanging. However, his sentence was later commuted to life in prison by the Governor of Georgia, John M. Slaton, due to concerns about the fairness of Frank's trial and the evidence presented.
Despite this commutation, on August 16, 1915, a mob of angry citizens kidnapped Leo Frank from his prison cell and lynched him in Marietta, Georgia. The lynching was widely condemned and sparked outrage across the country, leading to the eventual formation of the Anti-Defamation League (ADL) to combat anti-Semitism and discrimination.
In 1986, 71 years after his death, Leo Frank was posthumously pardoned by the State of Georgia, clearing his name. The case remains a significant example of anti-Semitism and miscarriage of justice in American history.