W. B. Owens — Sworn in for the State — 175th Witness to Testify

W. B. Owens, witness for the State in rebuttal, at the Trial of Leo Frank in the Fulton County Superior Court of Atlanta, Georgia, in 1913 (Testimony Portion From July 28 - August 21, 1913; Closing Arguments August 21-25, 1913)
Motorman W. B. Owens of the White City line (Georgia Railway & Electric Co.) testified that his car was scheduled to arrive at 12:05 p.m., two minutes ahead of the English Avenue car. On April 26, 1913, his car arrived on time at 12:05 p.m. He did not recall seeing the English Avenue car that day.
Owens stated he had observed the English Avenue car arrive early—sometimes one or two minutes ahead of his own—but these instances occurred after April 26. He could not confirm any early arrivals before that date.
This testimony was offered to bolster the State’s timeline by showing that the English Avenue car (Matthews’s) could plausibly have arrived as early as 12:03–12:04 p.m., placing Mary Phagan near the factory by noon—consistent with the prosecution’s claim she was killed shortly after entering.