Between late April and early May 1913, Atlanta’s Coroner Paul Donehoo, a prodigious mind with a photographic memory despite his blindness, led the Mary Phagan murder inquest following the 13-year-old’s strangulation on April 26. This formal inquiry, spanning April 30 to May 8, involved a six-man jury and a series of sworn testimonies. Leo Frank, the factory superintendent, testified twice with shifting alibis, while Newt Lee, the night watchman, detailed the crime scene discovery. Lemmie Quinn’s contradictory statements and Dr. J. W. Hurt’s medical findings, coupled with Pinkerton detective Harry Scott’s note of Frank’s agency contact, shaped the narrative. The inquest ended with a recommendation to detain Frank and Lee, leading to Frank’s unanimous grand jury indictment on May 24. Donehoo’s meticulous oversight turned this investigation into a defining moment, fueling a trial that gripped Atlanta with its emotional and legal complexities.
