Judge Leonard Roan Charge to the Leo Frank Trial Jury

leomaxfrank
Published on Dec 16, 2022
â€œGentlemen of the jury. This bill of indictment charges Leo M. Frank with the offense of murder. The charge is that Leo M. Frank, in this county, on the 26th day of April of this year, with force and arms, did unlawfully and with malice aforethought kill and murder one Mary Phagan by then and there choking her, the said Mary Phagan, with a cord placed around her neck.â€ And so the instructions to the jury begin.
These are the exact words spoken by Judge Roan to explain the law and the responsibilities of the jurors in determining the guilt of innocence of Leo Frank. These instructions are intended to clarify the meaning of certain terms such as character and reasonable doubt to men that carry a heavy responsibility without full knowledge of the law and the legal system. Any person interested in the law can make the connection between the high profile case in Atlanta in 1913 and the execution of the law today.