07x05 - The Case of the Decadent Dean

[bunniefuu]

(theme song playing)

♪♪

(alarm ringing)

Let's get out of here! Fast!

(alarm continues ringing)

(engine starts)

(tires squeal)

(tires squeal)

We are ready to finish
our project on Walt Whitman.

Suppose we how review some
of the distinguishing features

of the poet.

You want to start, John?

Well, um...

he-he sort of spoke up when
his country needed him most.

You know, Dr. Stuart,

when the Civil w*r
split the country.

Yes. In the realm of ideas,

Whitman stressed unity.

What else? Perkins?

He went looking for his brother,

found him on the b*ttlefield
and nursed him back to health.

After that, he became a
medical aide to the Union Army.

Yes, I think we can say
that both as a thinker

and a doer,
Whitman's life can be...

(door opens)

Dr. Stuart!

Why... Mrs. Perkins.

I must speak to you at once.

Of course, Mrs. Perkins,
of course.

Continue with the assignment.

Well, uh...
what's wrong, Mrs. Perkins?

Twice, twice I wrote you letters

demanding an explanation of the
material you use to teach here.

You ignored those letters.

- Letters?
- Oh, don't act so surprised.

Other mothers wrote you;
you ignored them, too.

The man was right.

- What man?
- The man who called me.

Leaves of Grass
by Walt Whitman!

Poetry, you call it.

Well, I call it filth.

Well, now, come, now,
Mrs. Perkins,

you couldn't possibly say that
now that you've read the poem.

Read it? I didn't read it,
but I...

But the man who called, was he
man enough to give you his name?

As a matter of fact,
he didn't, but...

But still, you let yourself
become panicked

by an anonymous crank call.

Well, that's a new concept in
justice, isn't it, Mrs. Perkins?

Guilty until proven innocent.

(bell rings)

And of all the innocent poems...

This isn't a courtroom.

It's a private school,
where I pay for the privilege

of being arbitrary.

I'm taking my son out
of this school at once.

Bruce!

You come with me.

Mom, what's this all ab...

Never mind,
come with me at once.

Oh, Dr. Stuart...

Later, Janet, please.
I'm busy at the moment.

Oh, you must listen to me,
now, you must.

I'm sorry to appear an insistent
pest about this thing,

but I simply can not fulfill
our science program

if I don't have
the visual aids I was promised.

I've told you half a dozen
times, Janet,

those materials
were ordered weeks ago.

That's what you keep saying,

and I keep rearranging
my lesson plan, waiting.

Now I'm not so sure
they were ordered.

Janet, this hasn't been a
particularly good day for me.

I'm not trying to ignore you
or your problems, but please...

Oh, I'm sorry,
I know there must be

some sort of financial problems

with the visual aides not coming
and my salary not paid, but...

Salary not paid?

Oh, maybe it's just
some sort of mistake,

but my last month's
salary check...

No, I haven't
received it yet, but if I...

I'll speak to you later, Janet.
Excuse me.

Aaron...
Aaron, he called.

Mr. Ogden from Cliffside
is all right.

There was a cancellation
and he can

give us a room for the weekend.

Oh, a whole weekend together,
just the two of us.

I keep pinching myself;
I can't believe it.

First time in four years, Chuck.

And at Cliffside.
(chuckles)

When the call came in,
we had to anchor Marian down

to keep her from going
straight up into orbit.

What happened to the letters

Bruce Perkins' mother
wrote to me?

What?

And what about
the visual aid material

I ordered for Janet Gwynne's
class? Where is it?

Darling, I just
told you something.

Marian, please,
I want those letters first.

They must be someplace
in the office.

All right, all right, I know

I put some letters
in here somewhere.

- Oh...
- Visual aids?

Oh, and why hasn't
Janet got her check yet?

- Got what?
- You heard me, her paycheck.

Janet still hasn't
her last month's pay.

Oh, darling, no...

You must have made at least

a hundred mistakes
this past month!

Well, it was your idea
I pinch-hit as secretary.

At least there is enough money
now to pay your teachers.

This place
isn't nearly as messed up

-as you seem to think it is.
- Oh, Marian, stop it!

It's just that
here's the whole school

collapsing around our heads,

and there you are
dreaming about Cliffside or...

Well, never mind.

I'll find what I want myself.

Well, this is
the Perkins folder,

but there's not
a word in it... Marian?

Why didn't you stop her?

- She's your wife.
- Not my wife-- this, this!

What?!

I'm talking about Mrs. Perkins!

That woman came
storming into my class

with some absurd,
hysterical accusations

I never heard about,
and proceeded to drag her son

out of school for good, Tobin!

Now that's the fifth student
withdrawal we've had this month.

Aaron, that woman spoke to me
when she came in.

I knew she was upset,
all right, but I didn't know

she was ready to slam the ball
out of the park.

- How could I?
- Crystal-gazing isn't a required

subject for gym teachers, Aaron.

So don't snap
Chuck's head off, too.

- As I did my wife's.
- Okay.

Sweating out the news about the
Foundation Fund Endowment

has us all a little edgy.

But even so, knowing what
Marian's been through...

Well, if she were my wife,
I'd watch my temper.

But she isn't your wife
is she, Tobin?!

Hey, Aaron.

That's all right, Chuck.

That's exactly the kind
of thing you expect

your best friend to say to you.

Oh, I didn't mean to...

Oh...

You know, every once in a while,
I look at that bottle and say,

"I can see you, you're there.

"I only have to reach out,
but I won't.

I don't need you anymore.”

Marian, did Harvey Forrest call?

Yes, he wants to see you today.

Seems we're two months behind
with the school mortgage.

I can count.

You can do lots of things.

You told me so many times.

Oh, Marian, please.

I seem to remember nights

sitting out on the bluff
at Cliffside,

all the things you told me
you would and could do.

What were some of them?

You'd pluck the stars out of
the sky for my wedding band.

We'd toast our undying love in
the ambrosia of eternal poetry.

Oh, Aaron.

Everything's closing in
on me, Marian.

I'm... I'm half out of
my mind with worry.

I don't mean to hurt you.

Please, don't let go of my hand.

I've been so wrapped up
in the school, the endowment,

wanting it, needing it so much.

AARON:
I'm sorry, honey.

Please forgive me.

When I'm alone,
I think of the other time.

What I was and what I did.

I get frightened, Aaron,
so frightened.

Hey, hey,
you're not in trouble.

You're okay.

You have been for a year now.

It's me, Marian.

I'm the one who
needs help, your help.

Oh, Aaron.

The endowment, the school will
get the grant, you're sure?

Well, the fund's had
our records for months now.

We qualify, we'd have
gotten them back.

And three of our best students
took the special exams.

I think we're all right;
I really do.

Well, in that case, Dr. Stuart,

you better go see
Harvey Forrest.

Otherwise, there'll
be no school for us

to spend all that
lovely fund money on.

(chuckles)

Now.

There you are.

$ , .

Thank you, Aaron.

I hope this isn't...
I mean, your creditors.

Is the shoe getting
a little tight?

Well, you can run a prep school
like ours to make money

or to make well-educated
young people.

To do both, means an outside
source of financial backing.

Well, the
Foundation Fund Endowment.

That could do it.

Well, if they knew you
like I know you, Aaron,

there wouldn't be
any question about it.

Of course, you... you could
lessen the pressure on this

quite a bit, if you wanted to.

Oh, that real estate deal.
(chuckles)

Ah, the man's still willing
to trade for your place.

I've told you no.

If it's the last thing I do,

I'll make
Manzana Valley Prep work.

Well...

If that's the case, this won't
help very much, but...

But, Mr. Forrest, that's, that's
our mortgage payment.

Well, it can wait
for another month.

By then you'll have
your endowment.

In the meantime,
I imagine this $ ,

will be a reasonable cushion

between you and those
restless creditors.

You won't be sorry, Mr. Forrest,
I promise you.

- Oh, that I...
-(phone rings)

Oh, excuse me.

Harvey Forrest.

May I help you?

Well, yeah... well, as a matter
of fact, he's here right now.

Would you like to...?

All right, I'll tell him.

That's a Miss Della Street
trying to locate you.

Oh, that's
Perry Mason's secretary.

The endowment, he's got news
about the endowment.

There's a man from the fund
with Mason right now.

They're waiting for you
in his office.

- Well, I'd better run.
- Ah.

Oh, Aaron!

- Good luck.
- Thanks.

As the Fund's representative,

I can assure you
that you'll get your answer

soon enough, Dr. Stuart.

But there are some things
I must know first.

You've asked the same questions
and received the same answers

over and over again.

It can't be any secret.

I'd just like to know
where we stand.

Let me ask you a question
I haven't asked before:

Is it true that your school
is virtually insolvent?

That you're on the verge of
filing for bankruptcy?

Well... who told you
a thing like that?

- Of all the...!
- Aaron...

Mr. Ryan...

as trustee for the estate
that created the school,

I can assure you that Manzana
Valley Prep School

is basically sound.

Dr. Stuart has consistently
poured profits back

into improving
his school facilities.

Don't misunderstand me,
Mr. Mason--

I'm not questioning Dr. Stuart's
complete honesty

in applying for the endowment,
it's just that--

Somebody has smeared my name
and reputation

and you're here to check it.

That's part of my job,
Dr. Stuart.

There's another matter--
a more serious matter.

The Foundation funds special
student examinations.

Do you have the results?

How did we do?

I have the results, yes.

students from a hundred
California schools

took the special examinations.

Your students, Dr. Stuart--

all three of them-- failed.

Huh.

I don't believe it.

RYAN:
I'm sorry, but it's true.

That and...
well, the fact that someone,

anonymously, he thinks,

has been sending us
derogatory information

about you and your school.

I think you're having
trouble at Manzana,

and frankly, if I were you,

I'd look pretty close to home

to find out the person
who might be causing it.

They all failed.

Failed?!

Oh, that's impossible.

Why, those are three of the
brightest kids I ever taught.

Well, it happened,
and I am going to find out...

Well, I'm sure they
were well prepared.

They did all
the special homework.

You made them read everything
listed in the blue book?

The blue books?!

Those guide sheets
the Fund sent out.

Well, the reading list
was all on the typed notes.

No, it wasn't.
It was in the blue book--

Well, he told me you
checked it over yourself.

He?

Tobin Wade.

Aaron.

- This is Tobin's desk.
- You can help.

The files,
start going through them.

Sure.

What are we looking for?

To begin with, a folder full of
blue information books

from the Foundation Fund--
start looking.

Chuck...

Chuck, aside from here,

where else would
Tobin keep papers?

Important papers?

Well, not in his place
out in Topanga,

if that's what you mean.

Look, if Tobin's
mislaid something...

Hey, th-that's a blue book.

Tobin, what are you doing here?

Getting a drink.

But you know that...

I know, I know, and...

I'm sorry, you're just gonna
have to find another monument

to your abstinence--
I... I need this.

What is it? What's wrong?

Got a call from Chuck.

It seems he walked
into the office

and found my esteemed friend,
your husband,

going through my desk
like a thief.

I don't believe it.

Then try this on for size:

Chuck also informs me
that the good Dr. Stuart

has just fired me.

That's ridiculous.

He couldn't fire you.

Not Aaron.

I'll call him and we'll clear
this up here and now.

You don't really think
that'll help, do you?

Now the Aaron we knew,

he couldn't and
wouldn't fire me.

But it's not the same Aaron
anymore, is it?

Do I have to tell you
that he's changed?

He's sick.

He's way off his track.

- That isn't true.
- Oh, isn't it?

Remember the old times we had
at my Topanga shack?

I mean, before Manzana Prep,

just the three of us.

Friends to the bitter end.

We even swore an oath on it.

Boy, you could belt 'em
with the best, then.

On the juice of the grape...
we swore it.

He's been so busy.

Oh, for Pete's sake,
Marian, wake up.

He doesn't need me.

He doesn't need you.

No, he doesn't need
anybody or anything

but-but-but his precious school.

It's the only thing
he cares about.

No, you're wrong.

He'll tell you himself,
you're wrong.

Whatever the misunderstanding
is, he-he'll...

Whatever it is, he won't
listen to my side of it.

He's got to have someone

to blame his troubles on,
that's all.

He's listening to nobody
but his own imagination.

Why don't I wait and
talk to him tomorrow

when we're at Cliffside?

- He'll be more relaxed then...
-(laughs)

Well, I know he'll
listen to me, Tobin.

You won't be at
Cliffside tomorrow.

What?

That's right,
he's not taking you.

I heard him tell Chuck myself.

He said, quote,

"Call up and cancel
that silly reservation.”

Know what tomorrow is?

Double anniversary.

Sure, I know.

One year since...

since you took your last drink.

It's...
it's my wedding anniversary.

Happy anniversary.

I thought you left hours ago.

Where's Jenkins?

Doing some shopping
for your wife.

He asked me to close up and I
thought I better hang around.

I mean... you find
what you're looking for?

More than I expected.
Look at these.

The letters from Mrs. Perkins,
from the other mothers.

I don't understand.

Here, a list of parents
checked off.

Wade knew of these letters.

He knew because he was the man

who made the phone calls
to the parents.

He was the man behind
all the school's troubles.

Wade? Tobin Wade?

Deliberate sabotage. Proof!

Every one of these papers
tells part of the story.

He wanted to destroy me,
destroy the school.

That doesn't make sense. Why?

I don't know why.

But don't worry, I'll find out.

Oh, evening, Doc.

Just put the groceries away.

Managed to fix that kitchen
cabinet while I had the chance.

Oh, say, Doc?

Mrs. Stuart, uh...

she's all right now, isn't she?

All right?

She looked sort of, you know,
sort of sick-like

when she left with Mr. Wade.

Say, Doc, did I say something?

Hey, Doc, what's the matter?

Did they say
where they were going?

- Well, I'm not at all sure...
- Where did they go?

Well, I-I guess I did hear
Mr. Wade say something

about, uh... Cliffside?

Is there a place
called Cliffside?

WADE:
Hey, buddy.

Yeah, I'm glad you got here.

Let the husband take charge,
I say.

You got her to drink,
knowing she was sick,

knowing what it would do to her?

Me got her to drink?

Why, you're out of your mind.
Hey, Aaron!

Come on, now, let go, Aaron.

Tobin! Tobin!

(splash)

Yes, sir.
Can I help you?

You'd better arrest me.

I just k*lled a man.

Thou shalt give life for life.

AARON:
Life for life...

But by signing a confession,

insisting on pleading guilty,

I think we can afford
to be less harsh, Dr. Stuart.

At tomorrow's
preliminary hearing,

I shall ask that
you be bound over

on a charge of
voluntary manslaughter.

I'll be representing Dr. Stuart
in court, Mr. Baxter.

Strictly pro forma.

Just introduce the confession
and, uh, well...

Tomorrow morning, gentlemen.

Aaron...

it's not as simple as
the prosecutor says.

We have our work cut out for us.

Why?

I was fighting with a man,

he fell and d*ed,
that means I k*lled him.

There's nothing can change that.

No, not after you
signed that confession

when you agreed to plead guilty.

Doctor... why didn't you
call Perry first?

What difference does it make?

I don't know yet,

but tomorrow,
at the preliminary hearing,

I want you to put
yourself in my hands,

without reservations.

Whatever you say.

Must've arched out
and down into the surf.

Doc Stuart saw him
in the water, remember?

Before the tide washed
the body out to sea.

Sheriff, could a guy fall off
that cliff and live?

Oh, you got to
be kidding, Drake.

That surf, and those rocks
and that tide?

Would you like to dive down
and try it?

Thanks, but no, thanks.

Well, if you need anything,
you just get in touch.

Perry, I got a tip that the
sheriff's boys were about to

bring Wade in questioning
before he d*ed.

They wanted some dame
to identify Wade

for something he'd done
several months ago.

I don't know what it was,
but apparently,

he had an accomplice and...

Paul, in homicide,

you know exactly what
corpus delicti means.

I ought to by this time.

It's proof that someone is dead

and that the death
was criminally caused

by someone else.

Actually, you don't
even need a body.

Just the substantial fact that
homicide has been committed.

But isn't that
Stuart's confession,

his agreeing to a guilty plea?

Perry, they've never recovered
a body off that coast.

Baxter could phone in his case

and have Stuart
bound over for trial.

I wonder.

Dr. and Mrs. Stuart
have been visitors

at my Cliffside Resort
many times.

So, of course, Mr. Ogden,
you recognized the defendant

when he drove in
looking for his wife.

Oh, yes.

She was, uh, well, rather upset

in the cocktail lounge,

crying and not feeling well.

So I took her to
one of the rooms.

When Dr. Stuart came in, he...
he asked where the man was

that brought her to the place.

And did you tell him
who that was?

Yes, I said it was Mr. Wade.

He'd bought her
the drinks and all.

What else did you tell him?

Well, I told him just what
this Tobin Wade told me.

That he was going for
a walk out to the bluff.

That if the lady, or anybody,
looked for him,

to say that they could
find him out there.

What did Dr. Stuart do then?

He headed straight
out to the bluff.

Sheriff Vincent, that same night
after the accused,

Dr. Aaron Stuart,
appeared at your office

and made certain
representations,

what did you do?

I brought him to your office,

uh, the County Prosecutor's
office.

At my office, was Dr. Stuart
induced to enter a guilty plea

or make the confession he did
under compulsion,

or by infliction of threats,
or by physical abuse,

or by prolonged interrogation
under such circumstances

as to render that
confession invalid?

Absolutely not.

This document, People's Exhibit
One for identification,

bears the signature of
Dr. Stuart and two witnesses.

This confession by
Dr. Aaron Stuart,

would you read it,
please, Sheriff?

Your Honor, I object
to the evidence

on the grounds that
it is hearsay.

Come now, Mr. Mason.

Under law, the statement
is clearly admissible

as the voluntary confession
of the defendant.

An extrajudicial confession
made outside this court.

Once his guilty plea is entered,

that of itself constitutes
a judicial confession.

He has not yet entered
a plea of guilty.

No such guilty plea
will be entered.

We had an understanding...

Possibly you had
an understanding,

but that was before defendant
consulted with counsel.

All right, gentlemen,
never mind.

But exactly where
does that leave us?

American jurisprudence,

evidence section - :

"The State must prove
the corpus delicti

"independent
of the defendant's confession,

"beyond a reasonable doubt,

by evidence other than
the confession of the accused.”

Mr. Mason,
this is a preliminary hearing.

Proof required
to hold a person to answer

need not equal that
to support a conviction.

Establish your corpus delicti,
Mr. Prosecutor.

Prove one, that a man has d*ed
and two,

that someone is criminally
responsible for that death.

Then and only then,

may the court inquire
as to who is the criminal.

But there is no further evidence
at this time, Your Honor.

Your Honor,
I move this action be dismissed.

The Constitutional guarantee
of due process of law

requires adherence
to the adopted

and recognized rules
of evidence.

Mr. Mason's points
are well taken.

His motion is granted.

Case dismissed.

I remind you, sir,

the law that you have sworn
to uphold

respects substance
more than form.

Mr. Baxter, I remind you
the law helps the vigilant

before those who sleep
on their rights.

I don't understand, Perry.

I'm responsible
for Tobin Wade's death.

It's up to the state
to prove that, not you.

Well, it's all set then.

You'll take over the mortgage
on the property

and cash out the equity.

Send the checks to me
at this address.

And thanks.

Thanks for everything, Harvey.

Well, Aaron, I...

You're paying an awful big price
for just-just one mistake.

I haven't even started
paying yet.

Sure, Mason was skilled enough
to get me off,

but, uh, in my own conscience,

I'll be paying for this
the rest of my life.

I-I think you're being too fast
in closing the school.

After all, there's still
the Foundation Fund Endowment.

No, no, right or wrong,

knowing that I'm responsible
for a man's death,

would you send your children
to my school

or grant me any kind
of endowment?

What are you gonna do?

Leave town.

Marian and I
are pulling out tonight.

Leaving town's
the best thing he could do

and just in the nick of time.

MASON:
What do you mean by that?

Remember when I said the sheriff
was investigating something

Tobin Wade did
several months ago?

Well, systematically, over a
period of the past couple years,

somebody's been stealing
prep school textbooks

from a publishing company's
warehouse.

So?

So, whoever's been swiping them

is connected
with a real prep school,

one that would ordinarily
order the books.

You mean the stolen books
were substituted

for those normally ordered.

With the thieves using
phony billing invoices,

forging endorsements
on the checks,

and then pocketing the dough.

You mean Tobin Wade
was doing that?

Make it plural, Della.

Thieves were doing that.

DRAKE:
That's right.

His accomplice,
the second book collector,

may turn out to have been
Dr. Aaron Stuart.

You know, I thought
I'd feel badly about leaving,

but somehow I don't.

Somehow the thought
of a fresh start...

I know, exciting.

The self-deluding
rationalization of failure.

Not the end of hope,
but the beginning of new dreams.

Don't be so educated.

It can't always be wrong--

the beginning
of new dreams, I mean.

I guess not,

if a person doesn't make
the same mistakes twice,

and doesn't run into more than
one Tobin Wade per lifetime.

(phone rings)

Hello?

Oh, just a minute, please.

It's Janet Gwynne.

Janet?

Hello?

I'm down the road

from Tobin Wade's shack
in Topanga Canyon.

I-I went out there
to pick up some books

that Tobin had borrowed from me,

and when I got out there...

Well, uh,
what I'm trying to say is,

I just saw Tobin Wade
at the shack.

Dr. Stuart, Tobin Wade is alive.

What is it?

What did she want?

Aaron, what's wrong?

Aaron, please.

(knocking on door)

Well, I guess things

are a little different
this time, Perry.

We're in Los Angeles,

we've got corpus delicti
and to spare,

only this time,
it's not manslaughter.

We've arrested Aaron Stuart
for first degree m*rder.

In his desperation to keep
Manzana Valley Prep School open,

Dr. Aaron Stuart
even turned to crime.

With the help
of his best friend, Tobin Wade,

he stole textbooks,

which he converted
to needed cash.

Later, when Wade,

for personal reasons
at which we can only guess,

turned against his friend,

and when Aaron Stuart had
discovered this double dealing,

had discovered what Wade
had done to Mrs. Stuart,

the two men met and they fought.

And they had
an unfortunate accident.

But later, the supposedly
dead man returned to life.

Now aside from his shock
and his fury

at finding his nemesis
still alive,

Aaron Stuart realized

that Wade could still
cause trouble,

could still have him
sent to prison

for the theft of the books.

This time,

he armed himself
with a heavy tire iron

from his station wagon,

and Aaron Stuart k*lled
Tobin Wade for good.

And then a station wagon
came around the corner

and all but knocked me down.

It was really going fast.

Now, did you report
this near-rundown to the police?

No, no, but my father did.

You see, I was leaving
for Europe,

but I was already late
when I left the house.

When did you finally talk
to the police about it?

Well, after I returned.

And what did you tell
the police?

Well, I told them

that I could identify one of the
two men in the station wagon.

The one sitting
next to the driver.

And who was that man?

Well, that was Tobin Wade,
the man that was m*rder*d.

What is your connection

with Manzana Valley Prep School,
Mr. Jenkins?

Handyman and janitor;
been there over four years now.

Are you familiar
with the school's station wagon?

Not the school's, mister.

That wagon belongs
to Doc Stuart, personal.

He's real particular about it,
let me tell you.

I take good care of it for him.

Clean the motor
and the plugs and stuff,

wash it regular, once a week.

I gather then,
that the defendant, Dr. Stuart,

doesn't let just anybody drive
his station wagon.

Not on your life,
no, sir, just him.

Well, and of course, his missus,
every now and then.

But with the exception
of Dr. Stuart himself,

and his wife,

does anyone else ever drive
that station wagon?

Absolutely not.

No, sir.

Now, the autopsy surgeon
testified

that the decedent was k*lled
by repeated blows on the head

with a heavy blunt instrument.

He also testified
that this tire iron

could've been used as the w*apon
to inflict those fatal blows.

Now, I hand you this tire iron

and ask if you can identify it.

Yep, afraid I can.

That tire iron's from out
of Doc Stuart's station wagon.

Are you sure, Mr. Jenkins?

Yes, I'm sure.

Thank you, sir.

Mr. Mason, your witness.

Now, Mr. Jenkins,
about the station wagon.

I gather you also see to it
that it's properly maintained

as far as lubrication,
gas, oil, tires.

I sure do, look after it
like it was my own.

Once a month,
regular as clockwork,

I drive her down to
the service station for a lube.

And I imagine
you occasionally use it

for shopping, other errands?

Yes, I do.

I like working for the school,
and the Stuarts.

Real nice people.

But as you testified,
only the Stuarts,

nobody else ever drove
that station wagon.

That's right.
Only...

Well, sure, I...

I mean, now, as far as I know,

aside from me, that is.

Never mind, Mr. Jenkins.

I'm sure there could've been
others beside you.

Now this tire iron,
Lieutenant Anderson,

has been identified
as the instrument most likely

to have inflicted the repeated
and distinctive blows

on the head of the deceased.

Have you examined this iron
in your police crime laboratory,

and if so, what results?

Well, this discoloration here
and here is blood.

There are also strands
of human hair.

Blood and hair matching that
of the decedent,

Tobin Wade.

Now what about the defendant,
Dr. Stuart?

Did you examine him,
his clothing?

Yes, sir.

There was blood matching that
of the decedent

on Dr. Stuart's clothes,
his face, and his hands.

In addition, his hands were
covered with grease,

as though he had tightly gripped

a filthy tire iron such as this.

The grease
on the defendant's hands

proved to be identical
to the composition

of the grease on the tire iron
used to m*rder Tobin Wade.

Jones on Evidence,
American Jurisprudence,

and Proof of Facts.

You looking for
a legal precedent or a miracle?

Neither; just working
on something Burger said

in his opening statement
to the court.

What was that?

Well, when Wade,
for personal reasons

at which we can only guess,
turned against his friend.

DRAKE:
So?

Well, maybe Burger doesn't know
what Wade was up to,

-but I'm pretty sure I do.
- What?

Della, you said the other day
that you have a girlfriend

who works with the Manzana
Valley Chamber of Commerce?

Yes, Anne Kogen.

Would you ask her to meet us

in an hour
at the Chamber office?

Perry, Anne is
a very attractive girl

who has more sense
than to work nights,

especially Friday nights,

and I'm sure she has a date
and would want to know

why we want to meet her
in offices that have been,

like all reasonable offices,
closed for the day.

You tell Miss Kogen that
we want to know how to go about

investing ten million dollars
in booming Manzana Valley.

Do you think that'll do it?

She'll be there.

Oh, Paul.

You know Ted Richert, don't you?

The motion picture cameraman?
Sure.

Well, find him,
will you please?

Tell him that we want him
this weekend

to photograph you
in a motion picture.

Hey, I like that.

What do I do
in this motion picture?

You permit yourself
to be m*rder*d.

Your Honor, Defense waives
its opening statement.

Very well, Mr. Mason.

You may call your first witness.

I call Marian Stuart.

Mrs. Stuart, for the record,

you are aware
that neither husband nor wife

is a competent witness
for or against the other

in a criminal action
or proceeding

to which
one or both are parties,

except with the consent of both.

I am, Mr. Mason.

The defendant has waived
this privilege.

Now you have the same privilege,
Mrs. Stuart.

I waive it, Mr. Mason.

I have given my consent

to being called as a witness
for my husband.

Mrs. Stuart, you've heard
the district attorney

characterize the events
on the bluff at Cliffside as,

in his words,
an unfortunate accident.

Now since you were involved,

would you tell us what happened
that night, please?

I'm an alcoholic, Mr. Mason.

Prior to that night,

I had not had a drink
for an entire year.

My husband and I

planned to celebrate
that milestone

and our wedding anniversary

with a weekend at Cliffside,
starting the next day.

Instead, the night before,

I drank, became intoxicated,

and accompanied Tobin Wade
to Cliffside Resort.

Was going to Cliffside
your idea?

No.

Tobin just drove there;
he didn't ask me.

Now according to your testimony

at the preliminary hearing
in Manzana County,

Tobin Wade left word
that if anyone wanted him,

he'd gone for a walk
in the bluff

and that he could be
found there.

- Yes, sir.
- In other words,

he made a particular point
of your knowing where he was

so you could tell Dr. Stuart
when he arrived.

Well, I guess so.

He said he'd be out there
on the bluff.

If Dr. Stuart met Tobin Wade
on that bluff,

and if Dr. Stuart struggled with
Wade as he claimed he did,

you wouldn't be having
a trial right now.

Now, why is that,
Sheriff Vincent?

Tobin Wade would've been k*lled
by that fall, then and there.

MASON:
And you insist that Tobin Wade

could not have survived
the fall, is that it?

VINCENT: No man could fall
off of that bluff

into the rocks and
surf below and...

and not be k*lled.

Mr. Richards,
what is your occupation?

I'm a self-employed

professional freelance
photographer.

Now please describe the
professional work that you do

involving motion pictures.

For various producing companies
and television stations,

I take motion pictures of
newsworthy events on assignment.

Now, in connection with
your testimony in this case,

have you brought with you today
motion picture film

of experiments conducted by you
under my direction yesterday?

Film which will
clarify your testimony?

Yes, sir, I have
them with me now.

If it please the court,

may I ask the purpose
of this film?

To describe an event
as it actually occurred.

To show a scene as it existed

at the time of the events
in controversy.

Counsel can't possibly
be referring to

what happened on the bluff

between Stuart and Wade.

Exactly and specifically
just that, Mr. Burger.

Motion pictures are
admissible in evidence

when properly authenticated
and relevant.

Deering's Penal Code,
Citing ,

California Appellate,
Second , Your Honor.

But this is just a...

a re-creation,
nothing but an experiment.

Two: Jones on Evidence, :

"Experiments which have been
made out of court

"may be proved for the purpose
of illustrating the testimony

which has been given in court.”

May I remind you gentlemen the
admissibility of motion pictures

is a matter solely within
the discretion of the court.

Before ruling on the objection,

we shall view the film.

(film projector whirring)

This film was taken
on the bluff at Cliffside.

For the purposes
of the experiment,

Mr. Mason enacted the role
of the defendant,

while Mr. Paul Drake
portrayed Tobin Wade.

This film shows one
sequence of the action,

first at normal speed,
then in slow motion,

sh*t from the same angle.

(projector whirring)

(film projector clicks off)

Your Honor, what you just saw

did not take a trained acrobat.

What you saw could have been
done with absolute safety

by an agile man
willing to take a chance.

The defense contends it is
the manner in which Tobin Wade

tricked Aaron Stuart into
believing he had k*lled a man.

Prosecution's objection to
the admissibility of the film

is overruled.

Proceed with your next witness,
Mr. Mason.

Now this is a receipt
for a tackling dummy

purchased by your school
for your football team.

Now, where was the dummy kept?

In the, uh,
sports equipment locker.

Padlocked.

And the only person with a key
to that locker was you.

Yes.

Now, Mr. Emmett...

that tackling dummy
isn't in your locker.

What did you do with it?

CHUCK:
Oh, no you don't.

I saw the dummy
in the motion pictures.

I know what you're trying to do.

Well, it won't work.

If Tobin Wade was to survive
that fall at Cliffside,

it meant that going there was
no spur of the moment decision.

It had to be something
he'd planned.

Planned even to the point of
getting that dummy from you.

No, no, I never
gave him that dummy.

Just the key to the locker.

You have him the key before
he went to the Stuart house?

Before he tricked
Marian Stuart into drinking?

Yes. Yes, I guess so.

Why?

What kind of hold did
Tobin Wade have over you

that he could force you
to make calls for him?

Force you to give him
things he wanted,

like the key to the locker

where you also kept hidden
some of the stolen textbooks?

Sure.

Of course. So I gave...

You, not Aaron Stuart.

You and Tobin Wade
stole those textbooks.

Isn't that correct?

Miss Witt's identification
of Wade

would ultimately have led to
an identification of you.

I guess Wade figured that

someday he'd have to
get out of sight.

In case she and the police
ever got together, I mean.

And so one afternoon,
Wade picked up the dummy,

left it planted just below
the bluff in the bushes,

went to the Stuart house,

tricked Marian into drinking,

took her out to Cliffside,
then went out on the bluff

and waited for
Aaron Stuart to arrive.

Mr. Mason, believe me,
I don't...

I had nothing to do
with all that stuff.

Then why didn't he
just disappear?

What did Wade hope to gain with
this elaborate frame-up?

Was it more than just
discrediting Stuart

and k*lling the endowment?

Was it really a means
of forcing Stuart

to lose the school
and the property?

How about it, Mr. Emmett?

How much were you
paid for the job?

Nothing, not a penny.

Sure, Wade propositioned me,

asked me to help him
sabotage the school,

even offered to split
some dough with me.

But I turned him down cold.

Look, don't you see,
I couldn't say anything

without talking myself
right into jail.

But I swear, I had nothing to do
with that phony death,

and I swear to you,
I had nothing to do

with Wade's m*rder!

This proposition by Wade
to sabotage the school,

did you know the identity of the
man who was paying Wade off?

Um... Well, no.

That is, not his name.

Not his name, but you
did know his occupation?

You did know he was
a real estate man.

And there was only one real
estate man who stood to profit.

Just one.

That man was Harvey Forrest.

But that is a tissue
of lies and guesses.

Why?

Why should I pay anyone

to harass Dr. Stuart
and the school?

For a half a million dollars.

Profits you would make
in partnership

with the Baker Corporation.

Here.

Take a look at this photograph.

When Mr. Baker first decided
to build a new city,

to sink millions into rapid
development of Manzana Valley,

he contacted some people
in the Valley.

Now they were delighted
to recommend him to you,

to Harvey Forrest.

Must I call Mr. Baker in?

Have him testify
that you offered him

the most fantastic piece
of property in the valley?

Property that was exactly
what he was looking for?

He agreed, didn't he?

There was only one small hitch,

one little problem.

Manzana Valley Prep School

was directly in the middle
of that property,

the key piece,
and you didn't own it.

Now, listen, Mr. Mason,

I knew nothing about Wade's plan

to frame Aaron on
a manslaughter charge.

Now, you must believe that.

Wade did hear me talking over
the property wi-with Mr. Baker,

and he... he learned
something, I suppose,

and he guessed the rest,
because it was Wade, it was he.

He propositioned me.

I admit, I agreed to
pay him a few dollars

if he could force Dr. Stuart
to close the school.

But that was all.

And even so, I told him
I wouldn't pay him

because he hadn't
earned his money.

Well, what he was
doing was so obvious

that I-I thought that Aaron
would catch on to it.

But then he thought of the
accidental death at Cliffside.

What happened after that,
Mr. Forrest?

After Stuart's trial?

Were you then contacted
by a dead man?

When I heard Wade's voice
on the telephone,

I was never so shocked
in my life.

But it... it was Wade,

he, and he was very excited.

He said, oh,

he'd closed the school
with a bang, hadn't he?

For good and forever.

And now there was
only one thing left,

I was to come up
and pay him off.

And so you went out to
his place to meet him,

to pay him off?

With what?

I didn't have a hundred dollars
to my name,

and I wouldn't have
until I...

until I cleared
the-the bigger deal.

So I went out to him
to-to explain that...

And when I got there,

that's when he told me
that he could prove, so easily,

that I was the one that
put him up to this...

this horrible stunt,

and that we were in it together,
that we were partners.

And that's why he demanded,

oh, not just a little
money, Mr. Mason--

he demanded that
I pay him $ , .

And so you k*lled him?

I..

I knew that... that would only
be the first payment, so I...

I did it,
I grabbed a log and I...

Yes, there was...
there was blood...

(sobs):
Yes.

You heard Stuart coming.

You hid.

When he showed up,
you knocked him out.

You got Stuart's tire iron
from his car,

hit Wade with it,

put the iron in Stuart's hand.

But why?

Didn't it occur to you
to just bury Tobin Wade?

A man already thought dead?

Nobody would've known.

I couldn't...
I couldn't do that.

Things were happening too fast.

I saw that school teacher
come out,

and I-I was afraid that
she might have seen Wade.

And then Aaron,
- wouldn't have hurt Aaron.

If he hadn't have come
at that time and then...

I had to be very,
very clever about it,

and-and I was,
you'll admit that.

'Cause I did just as you said,
and there they were,

and-and it was obvious,

and I was clear,
I was... I was out of it.

years, I've been
watching real estate

here in Southern California
grow and-and become important.

I was clever enough
to see that, you see.

I was part of it,
but I always made mistakes.

But the-the Baker deal,

that was... that was
a thing that would've...

They... they would've
stopped it.

(crying): It was
the only thing I could do.

It was the only thing
I could do!

Was it?

Defense rests, Your Honor.

(sobbing)

In return for deeding us
this key area

in the center of our proposed
city development, Dr. Stuart,

we have agreed with Mr. Mason
to what we trust will be

a satisfactory arrangement.

The corporation will deed to
the school this set of lots

here on the periphery
of the development.

We'll build you your school,
Dr. Stuart.

The most modern
and efficient plant

our architects can work out.

Perry, you've given
Marian and me

a second chance to start over,
and, Mr. Baker,

you're certainly giving us
the means to do it.

You won't be sorry,
either of you.

We promise.

(theme song playing)