Sunday, 13th July 1913 Affidavits to Back Mincey Story Found

The Atlanta Georgian

Sunday, July 13, 1913

Attorney Leavitt Declares Tale That Conley Admitted Killing Girl Will Stand Test.

NEWT LEE STILL HELD IN JAIL

Solicitor General Hugh Dorsey Promises to Present a Bill Against Him as Suspect.

That several negro women overheard Jim Conley when he ran the insurance agent, Mincey, away with the alleged statement that he had just killed a girl and didn't want to kill anyone else, and that the affidavits from the women are in the hands of the attorneys for the defense, was stated Saturday by Attorney J.H. Leavitt, who aided in obtaining the sensational affidavit from Mincey.

Attorney Leavitt defended the character of the man who made the affidavit and denied emphatically that Mincey even asked about the money he would receive as a witness, except whether his railroad fare would be paid if he were out of the city.

Explains Dukes' Doubts.

"I am attorney for the American Insurance Company and know its manager, J.S. Dukes, very well," said Leavitt. "He sought to discredit the affidavit very likely because Mincey left his employ to get a better position, and he had to do some of the outside work. Mincey is a college graduate and is well known in Atlanta. It will be utterly impossible to shake his evidence.

"I am not employed to represent Frank and aided in getting this affidavit purely because I happened to stumble on to the information. Before I submitted it to Mr. Rosser, Frank's attorney, I spent eleven days investigating the character of the man, questioning the women in the neighborhood and generally verifying the facts. When I turned it over to him I was convinced of its absolute truth and that it would stand the acid test."

Habeas Corpus Fight Fails.

Habeas corpus proceedings to release Newt Lee collapsed in the court of Judge Ellis Saturday morning.

By agreement, Bernard L. Chappell, representing Lee, withdrew his application for a habeas corpus; Solicitor Dorsey promised to present a bill against Lee as a suspect in the Phagan murder case, with the expectation that a "no bill" would be returned. This appeared satisfactory to the attorneys for Lee, as well as to the State.

Luther Z. Rosser, Reuben R. Arnold and Herbert J. Haas, of counsel for Frank, were in court to fight against the appearance of Frank as a witness. William M. Smith represented Conley, one of the witnesses subpenaed.

Conley Gets Third Degree.

Jim Conley underwent a racking third degree late Friday afternoon at the hands of Solicitor General Hugh M. Dorsey and Attorney Frank A. Hooper in an effort to verify or discredit the W.H. Mincey affidavit, in which the negro was charged with confessing to the murder of a girl on the afternoon that Mary Phagan met her death.

The grilling of nearly four hours followed The Georgian's publication of the details of Mincey's accusations and was undertaken with the utmost secrecy, an attempt being made to avoid knowledge of the "sweating" becoming public by taking Conley to the Commissioners' room on the second floor of the police station by a circuitous route.

* * *