01x25 - The Case of the Empty Tin

[bunniefuu]

LOWELL: "Personal. Wanted.

"Information concerning
the daughter

"of a man named Hocksley

"who was a partner
in certain adventures in China

"during the years


"The daughter is approximately


You must forgive, my dear.

My eyes are not
what they used to be.

DORIS: Here, let me read it,
Mr. Lowell.

Go ahead, my dear.

"To claim estate
in excess of $2,200,000,

"proof of identity
and evidence of paternity required.

"Contact Elston Carr,

"133 North Remuda Drive,
Los Angeles, California.

"Warning! Impostors
will be prosecuted

"to the full extent
of the law."

$2 million.

Hocksley.
An unusual name.

How many women
named Hocksley your age

do you think there are
in San Francisco?

Just one, Miss Hocksley.
Just one.

You.

It would not be fair
if we did not try, huh,

Miss Hocksley?

More than $2 million.

Good morning, Becky.
Morning, Mr. Neil.

Any messages for me?

Yes, uh, a Miss Gladstone
phoned at 9:15,

and a Miss Walker
a few minutes later.

At 10:00, some woman called,
but she refused to leave her name.

Ah, me, what did I do
to deserve such popularity?

I often wonder.

Now, don't you worry, Becky.
You're the only one I love.

Now, what else
is on the agenda?

Um, a Miss Doris Hocksley
is waiting to see you.

Another Hocksley?
Mmm-hmm.

All right.
Let's get it over with.

That's quite a history.
What did your father look like?

I don't remember.

I just have kind of
an impression of him.

I was only a child
the last time I saw him.

What was his given name?
Adam.

Your mother's maiden name?

Wickford.
Octavia Wickford.

My birth certificate
is in here. I'm 29.

Wedding license,
a photostat.

Rent receipts, Denver,

San Francisco.

This is all the evidence
you have, no photographs?

We never had
a photograph of him.

No letters?
My mother used to get letters from him,

but after she d*ed
he didn't write any more.

Oh. I got a package
from China.

Peiping.
Just a few years ago.

A book and a note.

The note was written
on the back of a picture.

Mr. Neil,
did he die in Peiping?

Adam Hocksley d*ed there.

His note sounded
almost like goodbye,

as though he knew
he was going to die.

Something about a partner double-crossing him,
turning Judas.

Was that true?

Miss Hocksley,
where is that picture?

Where did you get
all this information?

These papers,
who supplied them to you?

What do you mean? Nobody.

Why are you
talking like this?

I believe you're a fraud.

Oh, you have what looks like a well-documented case,
very carefully put together,

but, uh, there are
two things missing,

two pieces of evidence
which would prove
beyond a doubt

that you are Adam Hocksley's daughter.
You have neither of them.

If you'll let me
talk to Mr. Carr, he'll...

He'll turn you right over
to the district attorney.

I'm sorry.

I'm sorry you made
the trip down here for nothing.

Miss Hocksley.

If you had
that additional evidence,

your claim
would be foolproof.

Well, I can't think
what it could be.

Well, I don't know
specifically
what it is either,

but I know where the answer is.
My uncle's safe.

So near and yet so far.

Seems a shame, doesn't it?

Mr. Neil...
I wonder.

I was just thinking,

a girl like you could probably
find more use for $2 million

than the
Havermeyer Foundation.

The Havermeyer Foundation?

Yes. That's where
all my uncle's money goes

in the event he doesn't locate
the right Hocksley girl.

Isn't that
a horrible thought?

All that money going to a cold,
heartless foundation.

Almost makes me
want to gamble.

How do you feel
about gambling?

I don't think I understand.

Are you, uh, familiar
with the game of draw poker?

Yes.

Well, suppose,
and mind you, I say suppose

that the dealer were
friendly to you

and managed to deal you
the winning hand.

Would you feel inclined
to tip him?

Just as
a matter of curiosity,

how much would the dealer think
his services were worth?

Half the pot.

Half of $2 million?

Well, without the dealer,
your hand is worthless.

You think it over,
Miss Hocksley.

And if you decide to sit in the game,
you let me know.

Well, that's an interesting
story, Miss Hocksley.

You say he didn't stop you or correct you
as you went along?

No, Mr. Mason,
but I got the impression

he thinks I'm the woman
Mr. Carr is looking for.

Why didn't he let you
talk to Mr. Carr?

He said the answer to that
was in Mr. Carr's safe.

Della, get Elston Carr
on the phone, will you?

[KNOCKING AT DOOR]

Morning, Perry.
You left word you wanted to see me?

Yes. Paul Drake,
this is Doris Hocksley.

How do you do, Miss Hocksley?
Mr. Drake.

'Course, he might have figured you had
these papers duplicated.

Any good photographer
could do that.

Perry, I have Rebecca Gentrie on the line,
Mr. Carr's secretary.

She won't put us through.
All right. I'll talk with her.

Hello, Miss Gentrie?
This is Perry Mason.

Yes, Mr. Mason?

I understand Elston Carr is undertaking
the disposition of Adam Hocksley's estate?

Do you represent a claimant?

Well, no,
not at this time.

Hold on, please.

When are you leaving
for San Francisco?

Today, on the 1:30 flight.
I have to.

I've already taken
one day off from work.

What?
He wants to see me?

All right, Miss Gentrie.

No. Tomorrow
will not be convenient.

Uh, what about
this afternoon?


We have a date.

If I only knew you were going
to represent me, Mr. Mason.

Well, we'll have
to look into it a bit.

Please, I don't know
where else to go.

I just don't know
what to do.

Well, we'll see.

I'll be in touch.

Mr. Neil.
Miss Street, Mr. Mason.

It's an honor,
Miss Street.
Thank you.

A privilege, Counselor.
How do you do?

GENTRIE: Please excuse the extreme heat,
the reason for it is...

Me! I'm the reason for it!

Mr. Carr, this is Mr...
I know who it is!

It's Perry Mason, the lawyer.
Who's she?

Miss Street is my
confidential secretary.

Get her out of here!
I don't want
any notes taken.

I don't want any blackmail.

I'll go along with you, Della.
It's getting a little warm in here for me, also.

CARR: Mason? Mason!

What claptrap trickery
are you up to?

What are you afraid of,
Mr. Carr?

I understand human nature.

I know what people do to each other
when there's a dollar concerned.

I appreciate the fact
that you have to be careful

in disposing of
the Hocksley estate, but...

That's where
you're wrong, Mason.

Legally, there is
no Hocksley estate.

As far as the law is concerned,
that money belongs to me. All of it.

Adam Hocksley's daughter
isn't entitled to a penny.

I'm simply going to give her the money
as a personal gift.

So, the question of an executor
or administrator

doesn't enter
the picture at all.
Not at all.

That way you can avoid all probate proceedings
and inheritance taxes.

We're going to get along
just fine,

as long as
we understand each other.

I'm still not sure
I understand you.

Because I'm suspicious
and cynical?

For 25 years,
the three of us were partners.

Myself, John Lowell, and Adam Hocksley.
The Orient was our home.

We trafficked in g*ns,
in amm*nit*on, information.

A hundred times we saved
each others' lives.

We had it made, Mason!
A fortune in U.S. banks!

We were ready to call it quits,
when one of us turned Judas.

Which one of you?
John Lowell.

Judas Lowell.

He had Adam Hocksley and me turned over
to the Chinese communists.

They trapped us in Peiping
when the w*r broke out in Korea.

Adam was k*lled.
I was wounded.

Gow Loong saved me.
I think...

I think Gow Loong hates
John Lowell as much as I do.

[CHINESE ACCENT]
I search. I look.
I find someday.

I think Mr. Lowell
in States now.

Well, anyway, why I wanted
to see you, Mason, here.

My nephew, Alan Neil, has been helping me
find Adam Hocksley's daughter.

I need someone like you
to do the job right.

Well, take a look
at the check.

$10,000.
Just a retainer.

Which brings me
to the reason
I wanted to see you.

A young woman wants me
to represent her

as a claimant
to the Hocksley estate.

What?

Who's she?
Miriam Hocksley?

No, Doris Hocksley.

Yes, I spoke
to Doris Hocksley
this morning.

She's just another claimant.

Just another fraud,
you mean.

Well, tell her
you're working for me now.

I think what happened in Peiping corroborated
her story, at least in part.

What? She had
a story about Peiping?

Well, she claimed to have received a
package from there, and a note.

What was in the package?

A book, she said,
but she didn't have it
with her.

Did she say
what kind of a book?
No.

No photograph?
No.

But she also claimed
the note said something about a Judas.

She didn't have that either.

But she did have
other documentation.

If it's a question of which,

I think I prefer to believe
Miriam Hocksley.

Miriam Hocksley must be
another claimant?

That's why I need you.
Better work for me immediately.

I'm sorry, I can't.

What? What do you mean,
you can't?

Well, I may represent
Doris Hocksley.

In the event I do,
her interests might conflict with yours.

Could you get me
Miriam Hocksley's address?

After that,
my mother remarried.

My father's name
was Adam Hocksley.

He had a biblical turn of mind.
He called me Miriam.

All I know is that he d*ed
when I was a child.

You know,
I'm not just frantic

to get my hands
on this Hocksley inheritance,

but if I'm really
entitled to it, I want it.

Well, that's understandable.

May I ask what proof
or documentation you have?

Well, I know that Mr. Carr is looking for
a book and a picture of some sort,

and I remember something
very vaguely

about a book and a picture
of my father's.

So, I telephoned
my housekeeper in Palm Beach,

and she's air-mailing
some books from my home.

I see.

Then there are some birth certificates
and, uh, handwriting specimens.

That's about all, I guess.

Well, I'm impressed.
It's all very effective.

Artless, honest, aboveboard.

But what do you think?

I don't know.

[TELEPHONE RINGS]

Hello?
DELLA: Perry?

Is that you, Della?
Where are you?

Home. Listen, service just got
a phone call from Elston Carr's secretary.

She's frantic
and wants to talk to you.

Shall I give her
your private number?
Frantic?

Hysterical. They said she said something
about a sh**ting.

All right.
Give her the number.

Right.

[TELEPHONE RINGS]

Hello, Miss Gentrie?

Mr. Mason?

Mr. Mason,
what shall I do?

I've got him trapped
inside Mr. Carr's study.

Got who trapped?

I don't know.

I just came home,
and I heard a sh*t.

It came from inside the study.

I locked the door on him,
Mr. Mason.

What shall I do now?

You mean Elston Carr
has been sh*t?

Yes. I saw him sprawled
on the floor.

There's somebody else
in there with him.

I think he's dead.
What shall I do?

Call the police.

Get a hold of
Lieutenant Tragg,
homicide division.

Do you hear me?

Yes.

Yes.

I'll be right over.
I'll get there
as soon as I can.

Come out with your hands
over your head!

That's the works?

Here are his personal effects,
Lieutenant.

Yeah, he didn't have
much on him, did he?
No, sir.

Well, that's an old baby,
isn't it?







You know, that shouldn't be opened except
in the presence of an inheritance appraiser.

I don't intend
to remove a thing.

You've checked this dial
for fingerprints?

It's been wiped clean.

This mean anything to you?

You mean the number 13?
Yeah.

Well, um, what does it mean to you, Tragg?
The combination.

The combination of the safe
is 17 left, 42 right,



If anyone
had that combination

and Carr surprised that person
while trying to open the safe,

that person could have been
forced to sh**t Carr.

Well, if that surmise
is correct,

you need only to turn right
from 13 until you reach 4.

That's right, Perry.

Big safe like that
and all that's in it
is an empty tin.

It's not reasonable.

Where did you get this Bible
and this photograph?

I asked you something,
Miss Hocksley.

Shock, Tragg. She needs
medical attention.

She'll get it.

Okay, Sanchez,
take her downtown,

and book her after the medic
looks her over.

Where are the other members
of this household?

The help
come in by the day.

Mr. Neil and Gow Loong
and I live here.

Mr. Neil has been out all evening.
I don't know where.

Gow Loong disappeared
just before dinner.

You stayed in?

No. I didn't want
to leave Mr. Carr,

but he insisted
I go to the theater.

To a show
I had tickets for.

And, uh, you left him alone?

Yes.

When I returned, I saw this light on
from outside.

It's not unusual,
he often works late in here.

I let myself into the house
and came upstairs,

then I heard the sh*t.

There was someone
moving around in here.

[VOICE BREAKING]
I couldn't see who it was,

but I could see
Mr. Carr's body on the floor,

and I closed the door
and locked it.

Why? Carr might have
still been alive.

No, no.

From the glimpse I had of him,
I was sure he was dead.

Then I,
I called Mr. Mason.

Oh, so, she called you instead of the police.
That's very interesting.

Any idea where
this stuff came from?

Perhaps Doris Hocksley
could have brought them here.

May I see that Bible?

Notice how
the corners are rounded?

Well?
Perhaps it, uh...

Fits in this tin.

Hi, Perry.

Morning, Paul.
Anything?

A little.

It seems all the action was down here,
not up in San Francisco.

We had our share.
Go ahead.

Well, Doris Hocksley
is in trouble, financial trouble.

She has a job that pays her


out of which
she takes home about $48.

She's a widow,
married name's Jackson.

Also, she has a 6-year-old
daughter in an institution.

What kind of an institution?

One of those places for crippled children.
The kid had polio.

Hopeless?
Doris keeps hoping.

Anyway, that costs her $100 a month,
which is about one third of the usual cost.

They have her listed
under extreme hardship.

$100 a month
out of her $48 a week.

How did you find all this?

Records. Doris Hocksley never checked out
of her Los Angeles hotel.

Never went back
to San Francisco.

She said she had some things
that came from there.

Wait a minute.
Maybe she did.

There's an old guy
that runs a photo shop

next door to the apartment building
where Doris lives.

Now, he asked the manager
for a key to Doris' apartment.

Said she had called
long distance from Los Angeles

and wanted some things
from her bedroom.

He runs a photo shop?

Yeah. His name's Lowell.
Lowell?

Della,
bring in your notes
on Doris Hocksley.

Did you talk to this old man?

No. He wasn't there.
Didn't come back all afternoon and all that evening.

Della, Elston Carr said
there were three partners,

himself, Adam Hocksley,
and who else?

"John Lowell."
John Lowell.

Well, how are you feeling,
Doris?

All right, now.
Thank you.
Good.

Would you care to talk
a little while?
Yes.

You told Lieutenant Tragg
that Elston Carr telephoned you,

asked you
to come to his home.

That no one answered your ring,
but the front door was open.

When you got to the library,

Mr. Carr was dead and the g*n
was on the floor.

Do you remember
saying all those things?

Yes.

Did you have
that g*n with you?
No.

Rebecca Gentrie
said she heard a sh*t.

Did you fire the g*n?

I saw the g*n on the floor.
I picked it up.

My hand must have accidentally
touched the trigger. It went off.

All right.
I'll accept that.

There's something
I haven't told you

about Alan Neil.

He...
He offered me a deal.

What kind of a deal?

For the missing
pieces of evidence,

which he said would give me
a foolproof case.

Half the pot, 50/50.

Did Neil tell you what these
missing pieces of evidence were?

He didn't know specifically.
He said they were in the safe.

Doris, why didn't you tell me
about this deal?

I don't know.

Maybe unconsciously I felt that if everything
else failed, I'd accept it.

Did you?
No.

You told Lieutenant Tragg that
when you went to see Mr. Carr

you took the Bible
and a photograph along?

I did.
Where did you
get that photograph?

Mr. Lowell brought it down from San Francisco.
I telephoned him.

How long
have you known him?

Oh, about four months.

Ever since he opened his photo shop
next door to my apartment house.

Now, that, uh...

That photograph wasn't yours?
Mr. Lowell didn't get it in your apartment?

No,

I told you, I once received a package from
my father, a book and a note.

I kept the book.
It was the Bible.

The note was written
on the back of a photograph.
I threw it away.

The photograph Mr. Lowell brought to you
from San Francisco

was identical to the one
you threw away?

The very same picture,
but how could that be?

How could Mr. Lowell...

The corners of the photograph
were rounded like the Bible?

I don't remember.

How could Mr. Lowell bring me a photograph
I'd thrown away years ago?

He's a photographer.
He could have duplicated it.

[SIGHS]

Well...

In any case, I, uh...

I know how Mr. Burger, our district attorney,
is going to think.

How he's going
to plan the prosecution.

He'll maintain that

you're a fraud.

That you were coached
and documented by John Lowell.

No.

That instead of

Elston Carr calling you,
you undertook to call on him.

Carr was in his study,
you sh*t him.

Before you could
make your escape,

Rebecca Gentrie returned
from the theater.

Locked you in the library.

It's not true.

How can I prove it?

Well, as your attorney, Doris,

we'll get the answer to that

from the only man alive
who can give us the answer.

Your very good friend,

John Lowell.

MAN: One moment, please.

Mr. Lowell?

No, Mr. Mason.
Good afternoon.

Where is John Lowell?
He is gone.

Gone? Gone where?

Just gone. I suspect
to travel, to wander.

Tell me, where has
your broken English gone?

Where is the accent I heard
when we last met?

You do not expect
an accent from me,
Mr. Mason.

Most people do.

By giving them what they expect,
I save many explanations.

Gow Loong,

did you k*ll John Lowell?

Mr. Mason,
once I saw an epitaph,

a phrase on stone.

"That this man, who for many a year
found death in life,

"may here
find life in death."

I think John Lowell should have that
on his stone when he dies.

Then he is alive?

I came here to k*ll him,
Mr. Mason.

A man is a complex thing.

He misinterprets so many things in life
because of his viewpoint.

Himself, his ego,
his selfishness.

Well, it is 50,000 years

fighting out of a cave
against 5,000 in society.

So, you misunderstood him?

I thought he betrayed us
for money.

I thought the communists reached a money figure
he could not turn down.

And it wasn't money.
It wasn't money at all.

It was back to the cave.

It must have overwhelmed him,
flooded him, drowned him.

Fear?

"Panic. No thinking,
no breathing,

"just blood in my head.

"They were going
to k*ll me slowly.

"It was like that
and nothing else.

"They were going to k*ll me."

The communists.

You see, I hated him
for selling us out,

but it wasn't for money.

He had been captured, and it was his own life
he was bribed with.

His life for ours.

How do you face that kind of choice
when the moment is on you

and breathing stops
and thinking stops?

How do you face
that kind of choice?

I don't know.

I found these scribblings
in the waste basket.

Lowell was trying to explain
to Doris Hocksley, I think.

To tell her not to hate him.
Because all the hate in the world

couldn't equal
his own hate for himself.

He tried to tell her
of the horrors.

The terrors of living these last years
with what he had done.

But he couldn't.

I think he has run away again.

I think he will run away
all the rest of his life.

And

you went through
all his papers?

Yes.

Nothing to explain that...

That empty tin box?

No, I'm sorry. Nothing.

Not even positive identification
of Adam Hocksley's daughter.

There are
so many questions in life.

Mmm-hmm.

And it's late in the day
for me to find the answers

to some of the questions
Hamilton Burger's going to ask me.

Zai jian, Gow Loong.

BURGER:
In your capacity as coroner,

would you please tell the court, Dr. Morton,
how the death occurred?

Death was practically
instantaneous.

One .38-caliber b*llet
entering the chest,

piercing the left ventricle
of the heart.

The other penetrating the peritoneum
and lodging against the spine.

Fired from how far away?

Oh, very close,


That's all, thank you.
Your witness.

How many b*ll*ts did you say, Doctor?
Two b*ll*ts.

Thank you.
That's all.

Miss Gentrie, you've described the events leading up
to your arrival at the house

on the night of April 5th.

After hearing the sh*t,
you ran to the library?

Yes.
And what did you do then?

I slammed the door shut
and locked it.

Then you locked the k*ller
in the library?

Objection!

I'm sorry,
I'll rephrase the question.

You locked someone
in the library,

and that person was thus forced to remain there
until the police arrived?

Yes.
Who was the person that you
locked in the library?

Miss Doris Hocksley.

Is she in court
at this moment?
Yes, she is.

She's sitting at that table,
next to Mr. Mason.

Thank you. That's all.

Your witness.

Miss Gentrie,
when you returned
from the theater,

was the front door
of the house
locked or unlocked?

Unlocked.

When you approached
the library, you heard a sh*t?
Yes.

A sh*t, one sh*t?
Yes.

Thank you.
That's all.

Lieutenant, I'm holding here
a .38 a*t*matic.

It's been examined by laboratory technicians,
who have testified

that b*ll*ts recovered from the body of Elston Carr
were fired from it.

Yes, sir.

And fingerprints found on it matched those of
Doris Hocksley, the defendant?

That's correct.

Do you recognize
this a*t*matic?

Yes, it was in the library lying on the floor
near the body of Mr. Carr.

It was there
when you broke in?

Yes, we found Mr. Carr dead,

Miss Doris Hocksley kneeling on the floor
in a state of shock.

Now, I ask you
if you also recognize,

as having been in that room,
this Bible?
Yes, sir.

And this photograph?
Yes.

And this tin box?
Yes, sir.

If it please the court, the State would like
to enter these in evidence

to be marked as Exhibits
Number 4, 5, and 6.

Your witness.

Lieutenant Tragg,
Doctor Morton has testified

that two b*ll*ts
were recovered from the body.

How many b*ll*ts were fired
from that g*n?

Three.

Was the third b*llet
recovered?

Yes.
We found it in the floor.

It was a miss.

That's an opinion,
Lieutenant.

Isn't it possible the defendant
came into the library,

saw the dead body,
and picked up the g*n wonderingly,

as an innocent person might,
accidentally discharging it

and sending the b*llet
into the floor?

Well,
that's an opinion, too.

I only ask
if it is possible.

Well, possible.

Now, Lieutenant,
Exhibit 6,
the empty tin box,

came out of a safe?
Yes.

What do you believe was the function
of that empty tin box?

Objection, Your Honor.

That calls for a conclusion of the witness
not based on facts.

I would assume that Mr. Mason
would know that.

Objection sustained.

Very well.
Let me put it this way,

in experimenting
with that empty tin box,

you found that the Bible
with rounded corners,

Exhibit 4, fitted into the box perfectly,
did you not?

Yes.

And the photograph
did not fit into it?

No. No, sir.

Did you attach any particular
significance to that fact?

No. None.

Thank you, Lieutenant.
That's all.

If it please the court,

the State intends to call Miss Miriam Hocksley
as our next witness.

However, she seems not to have understood
her instructions.

Miss Hocksley
is not in the courtroom?

She can be brought here
in 45 minutes.

You may step down,
Lieutenant.

Then, since it is
almost time for noon recess,

court stands adjourned
until 2:30 this afternoon.

Come on, darling.
We're gonna be late.

Wait a minute, darling.

Are you nervous?

You mean about testifying
this afternoon?

Should I be?
No.

But I'd like
to ask you a favor.
Of course.

Just watch yourself
on the stand.

Well, what I mean is, uh,

you don't have
to volunteer anything

about what happened the night
of Harry Foster's party.

You mean, uh, some people
might not understand?

You know
what I love about you?

I never have
to draw you a diagram.

Miss Hocksley,
you know, of course,

that since Elston Carr's death, a legal
administrator has been appointed

in the matter
of your father's...

[CHUCKLES]
Of Adam Hockley's estate?

Yes, I know.

At any time prior
to Elston Carr's death,

did you have a discussion
with Mr. Mason,

the attorney for defense
in this case?

Yes, I did.

He told me at that time that he might be
representing one of the claimants.

Did he tell you anything
about that claimant?

He told me that she knew
where the key evidence was.

And was that in the safe
in Elston Carr's library?

Objection! Hearsay.

If it please the court, I'm trying to establish
constructive knowledge

on the part
of the defendant.

I'll permit the witness
to answer the question.

Should I
repeat the question?
No.

He told me that she knew
the evidence was in the safe.

Thank you.
Cross-examine.

Miss Hocksley,

was a Bible or a photograph
part of the evidence you presented

in establishing claim
to the Hocksley estate?

No, it wasn't.

Now, you sent to your Florida home
for a book and a photograph.

Was the photograph the same as this one,
marked "Exhibit 5"?

No.

Was the book a Bible
with rounded corners?

No.

Thank you.

Miss Hocksley,

would you please tell us

where you were on the night
Elston Carr was m*rder*d?

I object, Your Honor.
That's improper cross-examination.

Mr. Mason
is going into subjects

not covered
in my direct examination.

If it please the court,
I'm trying to establish possible bias

on the part of the witness.

On that ground,
I will allow the question.

Answer the question,
please, Miss Hocksley.

On the night of April 5th,
I was at a party in Beverly Hills,

people by the name of Foster.

MASON: Thank you.
That's all.

Call Alan Neil
to the stand, please.

In what capacity do you serve your uncle,
Mr. Neil?

Well, I was helping him uncover the
real daughter of Adam Hocksley.

On April 5th, did a pretender...
MASON: I object...

To the district attorney's
choice of words.

Really, Mr. Mason?

I used the word "pretender"
in its classic sense.

As in,
pretender to the throne.

Well, since this hearing is not being conducted
under a monarchy,

may I suggest
a choice of words

perhaps a little more
on the contemporary side,

just to eliminate
misunderstanding?

I'm inclined to agree with Mr. Mason.
Objection sustained.

On April 5th, did Doris Hocksley
represent herself to you

as the daughter of Adam Hocksley?
Yes.

Did she bring
evidence of that?
Yes.

Was it authentic?

It didn't seem so to me.
Why not?

Well, I'd been told
by my uncle

that the real daughter would present a book
and a photograph.

And Doris Hocksley did not
present these items?
No, sir.

And yet she wanted
to get in to see Mr. Carr?

Yes. I didn't pass her in,
of course.

Part of my job is to weed out
obvious frauds.

I see.
Thank you very much.
Your witness.

Mr. Neil.

The book you refer to
was the Bible?

Yes, I think so.

Think so?
Don't you know?

No, nobody knew
how my uncle

was going to separate the real daughter
from the fakes.

It does have something to do
with that empty tin box, however?

I object, Your Honor.
That calls for a conclusion of the witness.

Sustained.
Your Honor,

this case hinges
on this empty tin box.

If we knew the secret
of why it is empty,

and what its function
was supposed to be

in determining
proof of identity,

we would also know the secret
of who k*lled Elston Carr.

You Honor, it's no secret.
The State knows who k*lled Elston Carr.

Mr. Mason is just
manufacturing issues.

It seems to me, Mr. Mason, these matters
of speculation are not germane.

Proceed with
the cross-examination, please.

Yes, Your Honor.

Mr. Neil,
who else besides you
and Elston Carr

knew the combination
to his safe?

My uncle was the only one
who knew the combination.

Then how did you propose
to supply Doris Hocksley

with the missing pieces
of evidence?

I didn't.

Mr. Neil,

where were you during the evening
Elston Carr was k*lled?

At a party.

The same party
Miriam Hocksley attended?

Yes.

According to my information,
you left that party

with Miriam Hocksley
at about 11:00,

and didn't return
until after 1:00.

That's correct.

Is it not a fact
that during those two hours

you went back
to your uncle's home,

opened his safe to remove
certain pieces of evidence?
No.

And is it not a fact that you were surprised
in the act of opening the safe

by your uncle
and then forced
to k*ll him?

No.
No?

Then where did you go
during those two hours?

We went...

Miriam and I got married.

MASON: Where?
Right here in town.

We got the license
a week ago.

Your Honor, this witness
has categorically denied

every one
of Mr. Mason's assumptions.

And since all of his testimony
is subject to proof by investigation,

I see no reason we should not conclude
he's telling the truth.

Your Honor,
I agree with Mr. Burger.

I do believe the witness
is telling the truth.

And based upon that truth,
I should like to try a little experiment.

What kind of an experiment?

There must be something
about this empty tin box

which bears
on proof of identity.

Now, we know that this Bible fits
the empty tin box perfectly.

Now, if Adam Hocksley's daughter
possessed this Bible,

it would go a long way towards
proving her authenticity.

What about the photograph?
That doesn't fit.

May I, your Honor?
Your Honor!

If Mr. Mason's crawling
out on a limb, Mr. Burger,

let's give him
a chance to saw it off.

That's State's evidence!

They're the same photograph.

Proof of identity,
Your Honor.

I submit that the pieces of evidence
in Elston Carr's safe

were just this empty tin box,

in which the rightful heir's
Bible would fit,

and the photograph
found in the false bottom of the box,

which could be compared
with this one.

And both that Bible
and that photograph

were in the possession
of the defendant.

Gentlemen, this is quite
a new development.

Under the circumstances, I think we owe it
to ourselves to give it due consideration.

Court stands adjourned
till 10:00 tomorrow morning.

[TELEPHONE RINGING]

Hello?
WOMAN: Mr. Mason?

Yes?

Miriam Hocksley.
I want you to know I k*lled him.

What are you
talking about?

My husband, Alan Neil.
He was no good. He was only using me.

He m*rder*d his uncle.

Now, you listen to me,
Miriam.

Don't you understand?
He k*lled his uncle.

I don't want that girl
pinned with something she didn't do.

Now she can go free.

What have you done?

I told you, I k*lled him.
I loved him, and I'm going to k*ll myself.

M-Miriam?

[g*nsh*t]

Hello? Miriam!

Operator,
get me the police.

Well, Neil's dead,
sh*t through
the chest and heart.

Miriam Hocksley
has a 40-60 chance to pull through.

One of the peculiar aspects
of this case, Lieutenant.

Hmm? What?
Miriam Hocksley.

She was completely honest
right through this whole thing.

She didn't know whether
she was Adam Hocksley's daughter or not.

All she cared about
was Alan Neil.

I still don't understand
why she k*lled him.

She didn't.

Well, wait a second.

You told me she phoned you
and confessed.

Tragg, you're always
jumping to conclusions.

First you think
my client is guilty,

now you're willing
to concede she isn't.

Then you think
Miriam Hocksley is guilty,

and pretty soon you're going to concede
she isn't guilty, either.

Yeah, I saw that.

How did it happen?

First b*llet she fired at Neil
must have gone wild.

He was in bed asleep
when he was k*lled.

Now, where was Miriam standing
when she fired this sh*t?

Suppose
you draw me a diagram.

I'd be glad to, Lieutenant.

But first, let's pay a little visit to clear up
something for me.

Oh, I think you better
get Burger in on this, too.

Do not understand. It is very late.
What happened?

Another m*rder.
What?

Who?
Alan Neil.

Alan?

But...

Why?

How could it be?

Doris Hocksley is still
in custody, isn't she?

Don't ask us.
Mr. Mason's running
this show.

I thought you might
be quite upset, Miss Gentrie.

A bride and groom,
practically
on their honeymoon.

The bride sh**t the bridegroom, and then
turns the g*n on herself.

Is that what happened?
No.

But it was supposed to look
as though that had happened.

You see, Miss Gentrie,
you made two mistakes.

I resent this, Mr. Mason.

I don't know
what you're trying to do.

No use in acting any longer, Rebecca.
Miriam Hocksley is alive.

[GASPS]

That's right.
Miriam Hocksley is alive.

[LAUGHS]

I loved him.

And he said he loved me.

He said it.

He said he loved me.

But he was lying.

[VOICE BREAKING]
He was lying all the time.

Do you understand?

Do you understand?
He said he loved me.

He said he loved me!

[CRYING]

Come on, Hamilton,
I'll buy you a drink.

Yeah.

And that's the story.
Carr caught her at the safe.

And to protect the plot,
Rebecca k*lled him.

It was as simple as that.

Of course, she really ran into luck when
Doris Hocksley walked in.

Just how
did her luck run out?

Rebecca was the only one who had
my private phone number.

I told Della to give it to her when she phoned
right after Carr's m*rder.

When I got the phone call
the other night

and the caller
identified herself
as Miriam Hocksley, why...

You knew it was a phony.

When we found that slug embedded in
the wall in back of the picture,

I knew how it got there.

It was the sh*t
I heard over the phone.

It was, uh,
purely a sound effect

to make you think that Miriam had turned
the g*n on herself.

Mmm-hmm.

Well, it just
goes to show you,

what some women will do
for a man is just plain m*rder.