[Photograph of the governor hung in effigy, Dacula, Gwinnett County, Georgia, 1915]

Dacula, 1915. Governor John Marshall Slaton hung in effigy as "King of Jews." He commuted Leo Frank's death sentence for the murder of Mary Phagan to life in prison. Frank was Jewish.

2003/06/19: After the Prison Commission sent the case to Governor John Slaton without a recommendation, the only chance remaining for Frank was with the governor. Support for Frank poured in from all over the country; over 100,000 appeals for clemency were received by Slaton. He also received numerous death threats and was offered political favors by Watson in exchange for leaving the sentence alone. The hanging was scheduled for June 22, 1915, the day after Slaton left office. Granting a reprieve was a tempting option. The new governor, Nathaniel E. Harris, was supported by Watson, and he would certainly endorse the sentence. The day before he left office, Slaton commuted Frank's sentence to life imprisonment. Slaton was correct in assuming that he had committed political suicide, but it was some time before he was allowed to live in obscurity. When his decision was announced the morning of June 21, mobs began to form immediately. Local "near-beer" saloons were closed, and the sale of firearms was stopped. An effigy of Slaton was hung in Marietta, the hometown of Mary Phagan. That afternoon about 500 people gathered at the Capitol and marched into the House of Representatives, denouncing the governor. Demonstrations were held all over the city. Slaton declared martial law and dispatched the militia to guard his home and office.