A Case Analysis of the Trial of the Century, the Leopold and Loeb Trial of 1924

The murder of Bobby Franks and the Illinois vs. Leopold and Loeb Trial of 1924 shocked the populace of Chicago?. The murder was gruesome. The motive unknown. The murders—crazed. The Leopold and Loeb Trial is undoubtedly worthy of the title “Trial of the Century” because the perplexing crime gripped the imagination of the people and because the trial highlighted captivating, dramatic speeches.

To begin, the Leopold and Loeb Trial is worthy of the title “Trial of the Century” because the “cruel and vicious” crime was shocking enough to capture Chicago’s imagination.

The murder of Bobby Franks was not the first of its kind. 150 murders occurred in Chicago before Bobby was killed. What made this crime so interesting? For starters, the murderers were not mob bosses or notorious gangsters4. They were wealthy teenage boys. This trial is worthy of its title because the crime entertained the imagination of Chicago because the assailants were unsuspecting teenagers.

The lack of motive, other than the determination “to commit a perfect crime,” made the situation stranger and more bizarre.

Leopold and Loeb chose Bobby from among the crowd’. They simply killed Bobby because they could and because their minds contained the twisted notion that they would get away with it. America could not comprehend such a vicious attack for no reason. They could not understand why two wealthy boys would kidnap and kill their own neighbor out of sheer ability to do so. Chicago had not experienced a crime like this. The unfathomable nature of the crime resulted in people rightfully dubbing the event At the onset of the trial, all of Chicago knew Leopold and Loeb were guilty.

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So, why did people continue to watch and follow the trial? The emotional speeches and tense conflict were mesmerizing. Darrow’s “twelve hour long” summation, described as a mix of “poetry and prose, science and emotion … hatred of bloodlust and love of man” was a speech like no other.

The courtroom speeches were a rhetorical battle between Darrow and Crowe, each desperate to convince the judge of their argument. The Leopold and Loeb Trial is worthy of the title “Trial of the Century” because it contained the dramaticism only important cases have. The trial was monumental because it was the first trial where “a lawyer used evidence of mental problems to avoid the death penalty without claiming insanity10.” The trial exemplified conflict. Crowe and Darrow hired their own psychiatrists, and inevitably, these psychiatrists presented conflicting evidence”. One side was looking for a corner to pin the murderers in, and the other was looking for an escape route for its clients. The combination of dramatic dialogue, plot twists, and conflicting perspectives made this trial worthy of the title “Trial of the Century.”

Although the evidence suggests that the Leopold and Loeb trial is worthy of the title “Trial of the Century,” some evidence suggests otherwise. Technically, the trail was not a trial. After the guilty plea was established, the jury’s decision became irrelevant, leaving the decision to the judge. This is not a trial but a hearing, making it the “Hearing of the Century.” This trial is not the only trial in history to be called the “Trial of the Century.” Many others include the Scopes Trial and the O.J. Simpson murder trial13. Other trials show that the Leopold and Loeb Trial is not in a category of its own. The title is purely subjective and dictated by the surrounding context. Nonetheless, the Leopold and Loeb Trial captivated the mind, then and now.