08x21 - The Case of the Fatal Fetish

[bunniefuu]

(theme song playing)

♪♪

(buzzing)

(buzzing)

(sighs)

Sadie-- where's Sadie?

Your maid took ten dollars, plus
my assurances I was a friend,

and let me bring you
your coffee.

I've never laid eyes
on you before.

I suppose you do have a name.

(sighs)

Mignon Germaine.

Larry is my son--

the son you seem to have made up
your mind to destroy.

(groans)

A hangover and you.

Look, lady, do me a favor:
just, just go away.

I've worked hard
to give Larry a chance

to make something of himself.

I'm not going to see him ruined

by some immature infatuation

for an alcoholic floozy.

You know something?

I don't blame you.

But, then,
I don't blame myself either.

Larry's fun.

Could be I love him.

You've never loved anything
but yourself and money--

the kind of money
Larry doesn't have,

won't have for years.

Dear me, and I thought
assistant district attorneys had

such profitable fringe benefits.

He's already borrowed beyond his
means to satisfy your appetites.

I like him.

I enjoy his company.

He's a big boy now
and such a nice big boy,

and if he wants to stay around,

that's his business,
not his mother's,

and there's nothing, absolutely
nothing you can do about it.

That's not quite true,
Miss Wileen.

You can call me Carina, Mother.

Larry's well-being is the most
important thing in my life.

If necessary, to protect him,
I'd do anything.

Anything?

Even k*ll me?

There's an experience
I haven't had-- death.

Might almost be welcome.

Be my guest.

(door closes)

(crying)

Levinson filed an affidavit
under ,

asking for a change of venue.

Ha, he must be kidding.

For that two-time loser
he represents?

He claims a fair and impartial
trial is impossible.

The hearing's tomorrow morning
at : -- Department .

Well, we'd better file
a counter affidavit.

I've already had one drawn up.

Good.

(sighing):
All right, good.

- Anything else?
- No, I think that's it.

- Larry.
- Yeah.

About that Duncan fraud case...

I sent you a memo on that.

Yes, I know you did,

recommending
that we take no action.

That's right.

Well, Jack Randall,
the man who claims

Brady Duncan defrauded him,
was in here this morning.

He asked for you but he saw me
when it became obvious

that you were going
to be... late.

He's pretty insistent.

He says that he's only
holding up his civil action

until after we finish
our criminal prosecution.

That's his side of the coin.

I don't think there's a basis
for civil or criminal action.

No intent to defraud.

Well, maybe it's constructive.

Maybe it's implied instead
of expressed fraudulent intent.

Representations were never made
to Randall

that Duncan ever assumed
would be relied upon.

Larry, I bucked that memo
back to you.

I want you to think
about it some more.

I suggest you set up
an appointment

for Mr. Duncan and his attorney
here with you and me.

Neil Howard represents him,
doesn't he?

Yes, good man.

Yes, he is, I agree.

Did you meet Neil Howard
through Carina Wileen,

or did you meet Carina Wileen
through Neil Howard?

Wait a minute, is that
an insinuation of misfeasance,

of undue influence
affecting my decision

in the Duncan case?

Larry, please try to understand
what I'm saying to you.

Is there anything else,
Mr. Burger?

No, Mr. Germaine, nothing.

(intercom buzzes)

-(door closes)
- Yeah.

SECRETARY (over intercom): Neil
Howard, the attorney, called.

It's important.

He'd like you to call back.

BURGER: Are you sure he didn't
ask for Larry Germaine?

SECRETARY:
He asked specifically for you.

All right, call him back.

Oh, and then make me
a reservation for tonight--

the dinner show
at the Club Caribbe.

Brady, when you told me
you weren't feeling well today,

you promised to stay home
and rest, not work.

Only a few more minutes, Ruth,

but then I promise
to take a nap.

I'm sorry, Ruth,
I wouldn't have come over

if it could have waited
until tomorrow.

All right, a few more minutes,

and, Curt, we're expecting you
for dinner tonight.

I'll be here.

Oh, dear,
first the general manager,

now the company attorney.

Five minutes, Brady, no more.

Then I'll come in
and throw them both out bodily.

How are you, Neil?

Fine, Ruth, fine.

I, uh, I thought we'd better
discuss this personally.

I spoke
to the district attorney.

They're going to drop

those ridiculous charges
of Randall's, hmm?

Well, I was sure that's what
they'd decide, but I was wrong.

Evidently they're still
considering prosecution

for criminal fraud.

What are the chances
for conviction?

In my opinion, practically nil,
Mr. Ordway.

ORDWAY: And Jack Randall's
chances in a civil suit?

Well, juries, even when
they're trying to be fair,

are sometimes influenced
subconsciously

to favor the,
the little man fighting

the big industrial giant.

What you're saying is,
we could lose,

could be tied up
in the courts for years

fighting injunctions, appeals.

I don't like it.

There must be something
you can do, Neil.

Well, it's possible,
just possible that,

that something has been done.

ANNOUNCER: And now the
Club Caribbe is proud to present

Return of the Spirits
from Beneath the Water.

Ladies and gentlemen,
Mambo Mignon.

♪♪

(applause)

(chuckles)

You don't really believe
you can cast a voodoo hex

on someone by sticking pins
in a doll like this, do you?

Magie noire is no joke.

What did you call it?

Magie noire-- black magic.

The voodoo sorcerer uses it
to summon evil spirits--

the same evil spirits
that are now holding your tongue

to prevent you from saying
what you came here to tell me.

It concerns Larry, doesn't it?

Yes, it does.

I'll admit
I've been worrying about him.

Because of Carina Wileen?

You know about her?

I know.

We've been good friends,
Mignon, for a long time.

When I gave your boy a job,
I was doing more of a favor

to my own department
than I was to you.

His law school record
was just excellent

and he's done
very good work for us,

but in spite of that
and friend or not,

I now find myself facing
the possibility

of having to fire him.

Because of what he's doing?

No, no, the problem is
something he's not doing.

Larry, you did come.

Oh.

I'm sorry, but when they told
me, I thought you were...

This is Agnes Fanchon.

Hamilton Burger.

Mr. Burger is
the district attorney.

He not only stopped by to see

the show
but to apologize for Larry.

You did say
that Larry was tied up

with some very important work,
didn't you, Hamilton?

Why, yes, that's right.

Larry is busy tonight working.

(Wileen sighs)

-(sighs)
- Carina.

Oh, I, I just started
to put my head down,

all of a sudden I got dizzy,
but I'm all right now.

I'm all right now.

Haven't you had enough
of that stuff?

You're as bad as your mother.

My mother?

She was here this morning,

ordering me
to stay away from you.

Carina, I'm sorry.

Don't be; she's right.

You really can't afford me,
you know.

Yeah.

Larry, maybe
you should find yourself

some sweet, simple thing

who yearns for a tract cottage
with a tract picket fence

-and tract neighbors.
- Carina, stop it.

You knew what I was,

you knew what I earned,
what I could earn.

- Why did you...?
- Why did I lead you on?

Because I like the way you dance
and I like the drinks you mix.

Carina.

Baby...

baby, you wouldn't have
to worry about money,

would you,

if you were a partner
in a fat old law firm?

And you could have
a partnership in his law firm--

that's what Neil Howard said.

- Neil Howard?
Mm-hmm.

You know I'm working on a case
against Brady Duncan

and you know that Howard
represents Brady Duncan.

And you spoke to him
about a partnership for me?

But, baby,
I was only trying to help.

Carina, do you realize
the position you've put me in?

How stupid can you get?

(shatters)

Carina, I'm sorry, I didn't...

Carina!

(laughing)

My wife Mrs. Duncan.

- How do you do?
- Hello.

Curt Ordway.

Mr. Ordway is general manager

of my company
Allied Pharmaceuticals.

Now, since you've seen fit
to barge in on us

at this rather unusual hour,

I take it
your business is urgent.

I'm sorry, I didn't realize
you were entertaining,

or I would have...

What is it you wish,
Mr. Germaine?

Mr. Duncan, why did you
deliberately maneuver me

into a compromising conflict
of interests?

Conflict of interests?

Trying to buy me off

through your lawyer Neil Howard

with an offer
of a partnership in his firm.

Why, you impertinent...

BRADY:
Curt.

Were you afraid
the D.A.'s office was going

to throw the book at you?

For criminal fraud,

Jack Randall's
groundless accusations?

Hardly, Mr. Germaine.

As for any offer made to you,

I neither authorized, suggested,

or was even aware
of any such offer,

and I suspect the same will be
true of Mr. Howard.

Neil needs another partner
like a hole in the head.

I assume you're a lawyer

and don't need to be reminded
about defamation.

This is not the privileged arena
of a courtroom.

Exactly, Mr. Germaine.

This is my home.

I suggest you leave it... now.

Neil Howard-- suppose we see
what his attitude is.

Mr. Howard, admit it.

You did speak to Carina Wileen

about me
and about a partnership.

You surprise me.

I would have imagined that would
be the last thing in the world

you'd want me to discuss openly.

Don't you have the situation
a little reversed, Mr. Howard?

Offering a bribe
to a public officer is a felony.

I have the situation reversed?

(chuckles)

Come on, now,
let's not play games.

I've been decent enough to keep
quiet about it until now,

but it also happens to be
a felony for a public officer

to solicit a bribe.

What?

I met Carina Wileen once,

a few days ago,
at a cocktail party.

She sought me out
to deliver a message--

that Larry Germaine
was interested enough

in a law firm partnership

to make it worth my and
Mr. Duncan's time to consider.

- That's a lie.
- BURGER: Larry.

Have you any way of proving
that statement, Mr. Howard?

I suggest you find out if I'm
lying by asking the, uh, lady,

that is, if you can sober her up
long enough.

Why, you...

Good afternoon, gentlemen.

He's lying, I swear.

There's not a word
of truth to it.

He's only lying and covering up
to protect himself.

Don't you understand, Larry?

You've left me no choice.

You've compromised yourself and
you've compromised this office.

As of how
you're off the Duncan case

and all the rest of your cases.

Mr. Burger, please,
all you've got to do is ask her.

You're on suspension, pending
a full hearing by the board.

I know you've been
out of the office

because of your accident,
Mr. Mason.

We appreciate your coming here.

That's all right.

Your mother said you've been
trying to locate Carina Wileen.

LARRY:
All day.

She's just disappeared
into thin air.

Mr. Mason, I swear to you,

outside of discovery procedures,
I have had absolutely no contact

with any principal
in the fraud case.

Either Howard's lying
or Carina is.

I did not solicit a bribe.

It is serious,
isn't it, Mr. Mason?

Serious enough to cost
your son his job,

his license to practice law.

And a prison sentence.

No, don't tell me, I know.

You play with matches,
little boy, and you get b*rned.

I'll be happy to represent you
at your hearing, Mr. Germaine,

but I'll need
a lot more information.

You'd better come down
to the office with me.

I'll have Paul Drake start
to locate Carina Wileen.

This girl...
she could hurt Larry, Mr. Mason?

If she does substantiate
Neil Howard's story,

whatever her motive,
yes, she could hurt him.

Don't worry, it'll be all right.

I'll come back
and see you later.

We'll do our best,
Mrs. Germaine.

Good night.

(door closes)

What are you doing here?

It's almost time for the show.

That, that woman--

she's sitting at one
of the ringside tables

alone and very drunk.

You get ready to go on.

I'll be right with you.

(drumming)

♪♪

(laughing)

(siren wailing)

Voodoo, sticking pins in dolls,
snake worship.

Are you trying to tell me

that's what put Carina Wileen
here in the hospital?

No, Paul, I'm asking you to do a
little research on the subject.

Okay, what do I do, grab
a nonstop broomstick to Haiti?

(chuckles) I suggest
more conventional transportation

to Hancock Park and
the Los Angeles County Museum.

See Mr. Kenneth,
the deputy director.

If there are any answers he
doesn't have, he'll find them.

How is she?

Good morning, Perry,

- I'm glad you're here.
- Good morning, Hamilton.

She's very near death,
I'm afraid, Larry.

She's still unconscious,
in a coma.

She'll be kept here
under close surveillance.

Surveillance?

Well, what is it, what's wrong?

ANDERSON:
The doctors aren't sure yet.

They're still making more tests.

But why surveillance if she's
sick from natural causes?

That's just it, Larry, she's
not sick from natural causes.

She's here as a result
of an accident maybe,

possibly even a su1c1de try,

but most probably she's here as
a result of an attempted m*rder.

Voodoo is an unusual
and little understood mixture,

Mr. Drake,
a mixture of religion,

primitive spiritualism,
and animistic beliefs,

and more, much more--

uh, mental therapy, hope,
the will to live,

release from the grim realities
of life.

Realities?

Someone sticks a Kn*fe
in a rag doll,

then a curvy blonde doll takes
a step into nowhere.

Some realities.

Werewolves, magic incantations.

And snakes.

Let's not forget snake worship.

The loa of the Damballah Wedo--

personal possession
by the voodoo snake god.

You know the origin
of that god, Mr. Drake?

Nope.

The serpent
in the Garden of Eden.

You're kidding.

In showbiz patois,
Mr. Drake, I kid you not.

What's more, there's nothing
particularly mystical or unreal

about your so-called
fatal fetish.

Now, let me get this straight.

I stick a pin in a doll,
you get a stomachache,

and there's nothing at all
mysterious about it?

(laughs) Not when you realize
what's actually happening.

Then it's not the pin
or the Kn*fe in the doll?

Hardly.

You see,
that's all purely diversionary.

Voodoo black magic, Mr. Drake,

is accomplished
by means of poison,

slow-acting poison.

There's no possibility of
a misunderstanding, Mr. Randall?

None.

Brady Duncan defrauded me,

cheated me
out of a valuable formula,

and he's not going to luck out

-this time.
- Luck out?

Yeah, he's got a reputation
for all kinds of good luck,

like seven years ago
in New Orleans.

He was vice president of Allied,
in charge of the research lab.

Then, Brady Duncan's a chemist?

One of the best
in pharmaceuticals.

He was running tests one night
on a hew process

in the New Orleans lab when
the company president walked in.

Walked in, was carried out dead.

Mr. Randall, are you trying
to say that...?

No, it was nothing like that.

Don't get me wrong.

It was an accident.

Equipment blew up.

Those things happen--
nobody's fault--

but here's the lucky bit.

The president had left
some papers in his car outside,

and like a good little
vice president,

Brady Duncan went out
to get them.

And got off without a scratch

while the president was k*lled
in the expl*si*n.

Lucky, see?

(chuckles)
But that's only half of it.

The company general manager,
who should have taken over,

was tied up in Europe.

(chuckles)

Lucky Brady Duncan--
he was there.

They made him the president.

The word around town

is that Duncan's
an outstanding president.

Allied's in good shape.

If Brady Duncan has stolen
every process they own

like he's stolen mine, that's
not hard to figure, is it?

-(phone ringing)
- Excuse me.

Randall lab.

This is Jack Randall.

What?

Why, sure, uh, I guess so.

All right, tomorrow.

Yeah.

Well, that was Neil Howard,
Allied's, uh, lawyer.

I'm meeting him tomorrow.

President of the company
has offered me full settlement

plus damages
and a continuing royalty.

Maybe you were wrong
about Duncan.

Um, Brady Duncan is no longer
president of Allied.

The offer came from a man
by the name of Curt Ordway.

Brady did a lot of his work
here at home.

Mrs. Duncan has given us
permission

to go through his papers.

And did you find something
that changed the facts

in the Jack Randall
fraud matter?

Are you representing Randall?

No, I represent Larry Germaine,

who certainly cannot
be considered unaffected

by that fraud action.

Well, our offer to Randall is
without prejudice, Counselor,

and the settlement
will stipulate

that there is
no admission of fraud.

Obviously a misunderstanding.

Jack Randall's process
is excellent.

We have no desire to deprive him

of equitable compensation
for it.

This, uh, misunderstanding--
was it Brady Duncan's?

Let's just call it a symptom

of his developing illness,
Mr. Mason,

the illness that prompted
the Allied board of directors

to accept
Mr. Duncan's resignation

and replace him
with Curt Ordway.

If you don't mind, I'd like

to discuss
Brady Duncan's misunderstanding

with Brady Duncan.

Of course, Counselor.

Brady has been hospitalized,

suffering from a severe physical
and mental breakdown,

and under heavy sedation.

Is there, uh, anything else,
Mr. Mason?

A man can't think straight
with a crooked tie.

The arm feel any better
inside that cast?

Well, it is frustrating

to have an itch
you can't get at to scratch.

-(Drake laughs)
- That's better.

How'd you do at the hospital?

I'll bet the doctors wouldn't
let you in to see Duncan.

Well, it wasn't so much
the doctors as Mrs. Duncan.

Get a rundown
on Carina yet, Paul?

Partly.

She blew into town
about seven years ago

and moved right into that lush
and very expensive penthouse,

and the young lady has-- if
you'll pardon the expression--

no visible means of support.

Not if you keep your eyes open.

Meow.

(chuckles)

Officially unemployed

but she's still able
to afford that penthouse.

Plus an expensive wardrobe
and an expensive way of living.

In Carina,
some unnamed benefactor

has himself
a rather, uh, expensive hobby.

Maybe she inherited the money

or, or earned it
before she came here.

A so-called model
from New Orleans?

We checked.

No on both counts, beautiful.

Any idea who the benefactor is?

Not a whisper--
we're still digging.

What about
her physical condition?

Well, there's good
and bad news on that.

If Larry isn't afraid
of what Carina might say,

the good news
is that the doctors figure

she'll be out of that coma
by morning.

Mm-hmm, and the bad news?

Carina evidently suffers
from some allergies

and takes antihistamines
every night.

The police checked the bottle
of antihistamine pills and...

And found something substituted
in their place.

A barbiturate.

Sleeping pills?

That would hardly k*ll her
unless in large doses.

Well, no, repeated small doses
of slow-acting barbiturate

can accumulate in the body
and be highly toxic,

depress
the central nervous system.

As does alcohol,
and together they're dynamite,

and you don't have
to be a detective

to know that Carina was
an alcoholic.

Then, Burger was right.

Somebody was trying
to poison her.

DRAKE: As Mr. Kenneth
at the museum put it,

"Voodoo black magic
is accomplished

by means of poison,
slow-acting poison.”

(knocking)

Mother, I...

Agnes, Agnes, I'm sorry
for what's happened to us.

I-I really didn't mean to...

I guess I learned the hard way.

Agnes, please.

That's Mother's costume.

I'm taking her place tonight.

We've done it before.

What is it, Larry, what's wrong?

I got a call from a guy
down at the office.

He said that Carina Wileen was
being poisoned with barbital.

But that's...

That's what my mother uses, yes.

Sometimes you make me furious,
Larry Germaine.

So what if Mignon
does take barbital?

So do other people, thousands
and thousands of people.

Where is my mother?

Well, I think she...

Where is she?

Well, she left suddenly, about
half an hour ago, in a hurry.

Larry, oh, Larry,
I'm frightened.

Excuse me.

(sighs)

- How is he?
- Sound asleep.

Why don't you run along home,
Mrs. Duncan?

We'll call you if you're needed.

No, thank you, I'll stay.

Uh, care for one
of these magazines?

No, no, I'll be all right.

Excuse me.

Officer!

Officer, come here!

There's a phone in .

Call down to the desk quick.

(screams)

Mr. Mason,
I was given to understand

you were counsel
for the accused.

May it please the court,

the accused has seen fit
to discharge me.

Very well, Mr. Mason.

Mr. Germaine, is it your desire

to have some other attorney
represent you?

We can postpone
the preliminary examination

until such time as counsel
of your choice is present

and you've conferred with him.

You're entitled
to a six-day delay.

Your Honor, I am aware
of my right to counsel.

I waive such right

and choose to appear
in propria persona.

Larry, this isn't
a traffic citation.

This is a capital offense,
this is m*rder.

You're a fool to try
to represent yourself.

That's my right and my decision.

Counsel is waived.

Mr. Germaine, I take it
you've received a true copy

of the complaint filed
against you,

or do you wish it read
here in court?

LARRY:
I have received and read

a true copy of the complaint,
Your Honor.

Well, since you've waived
counsel,

I assume
you're pleading innocent.

Under the provisions
of the code, Your Honor,

I reserve the right
to enter my plea

at my arraignment
prior to trial.

Accordingly I waive
further preliminary examination

and do not enter a plea
on the record.

Mr. Mason, I went over
Mignon's costume

before I started putting it on

the night
Carina Wileen was k*lled.

I checked the belt
and the dagger sheath.

That sheath was empty.

I swear to you,
that dagger was gone

before Larry came
into the dressing room.

He did not take that dagger

when he left the dressing room
to go to the hospital.

He's obviously stalling.

Waiving counsel and a hearing,
withholding his plea

are just attempts to buy time.

But why if he's innocent?

Don't you see?

He's trying to protect her.

I'm sure of it, Mr. Mason.

Larry must be afraid that maybe
his mother k*lled that woman.

Larry won't do or say anything
to clear himself

until he sees her and finds out
how deeply she's involved.

(phone buzzes)

Yes, Gertie.

Just a minute.

It's Paul.

Go ahead, Paul.

I was finally able to track down
Mignon Germaine.

The night of the m*rder,
she left town,

took a plane to New Orleans.

I've got some men there
looking for her.

What, now?

But I don't...

(sighs)

Al right.

I'll grab the next plane
to New Orleans.

I'll try and find her
and I'll try and bring her back.

Oh, I tell you,
they've bent over backwards

at Allied to please me.

Even set up a lab for me,
beautiful lab.

I'm delighted things
have worked out so well for you.

"Well" is hardly
the word for it.

And just a few days ago

you were involved
in what looked like, uh,

difficult
and protracted litigation

with both a criminal
and civil suit against Allied.

Or had you filed a civil suit?

No, swore out a complaint
for criminal fraud.

Figured I'd have
a stronger civil suit

after a conviction
on the criminal charges.

Was that your attorney's advice?

No, I didn't talk
to an attorney.

Look, Mr. Mason,
are you trying to suggest

there's something wrong
in what I did?

No, just surprised,
that's all, Mr. Randall,

And what could
a lawyer have told me?

That it also happens to be
a crime to maliciously swear out

a criminal complaint,
an abuse of process,

when you know
the charge is false.

You never intended
to file a civil suit.

All you ever planned to do

was to bring pressure
against Brady Duncan.

That's a lie.

Mr. Randall...

did you ever work
for Allied Pharmaceuticals?

Suppose I did?

So what?

Could it have been
seven years ago

when Duncan's predecessor,
the company president,

was k*lled
by that laboratory expl*si*n

in New Orleans?

(drumming)

♪♪

If you've come for me,
Mr. Drake,

I'm ready to go back now.

Mr. Mason, if you don't mind,

I'd like to talk
with my mother first alone.

Larry, your mother took off
in a plane for New Orleans

half an hour
before Carina Wileen was k*lled.

Now, suppose we proceed
with the business

of getting you out of trouble.

We haven't much time.

Just listen to everything
she has to say.

We can discuss it afterwards.

When we left the hospital,

after Hamilton Burger
had told us

that the girl
was close to death,

I went back to the club,
to my dressing room.

The wanga-- the doll fetish--
was gone.

So was the dagger.

One of the waiters
might have taken it.

I'd have to wait
to find that out,

and then I remembered hearing

that the girl had come
from New Orleans.

I remembered stories of black
magic and Haiti, of poison.

I telephoned friends
in New Orleans.

But she wasn't k*lled by voodoo.

She was k*lled here,
not in New Orleans,

and k*lled
with a dagger in the heart.

My friends had no knowledge
of any voodoo,

but they had learned something
about the girl herself,

about the girl and a man--
a man

who had worked
for a big chemical company.

Allied.

Mr. Mason,
their New Orleans laboratory.

Mother, his name,
did they tell you his name?

They didn't know his name.

So you went to New Orleans?

No, not then.

I talked to the waiters first.

None of the waiters knew
anything about the dagger,

but one waiter
could remember having served

a customer and his guests
that night,

an old customer
he knew very well,

a man by the name
of Brady Duncan.

Mother, in New Orleans,

Carina and the man from
the pharmaceutical company--

did you find out who that was?

I didn't learn all I hoped to,

but I knew
those people would tell me

things they wouldn't tell
others, particularly the police.

During my long career
I have made many good friends,

and I learned that the man
who knew Carina Wileen

in New Orleans
was Brady Duncan.

Mr. Randall,
would you sit down, please?

Thank you.

You've withdrawn your action

against Allied Pharmaceuticals
and Mr. Brady Duncan.

Is that right?

That's right.

It was all sort of
a-a misunderstanding.

Just a misunderstanding.

Brady Duncan was ill, you know.

It's kind of rough
to prosecute a man

who really didn't realize
what he was doing.

Mr. Randall, are you sure
it was Brady Duncan

who didn't realize
what he was doing,

or was it possibly you?

I beg your pardon?

Under section
of the penal code, Mr. Randall,

obtaining property from another
person with their consent

but where that consent
is induced

by the illegal use of fear--
that's extortion, Mr. Randall.

Extortion?

Using due process
and the authority

of this office,

instituting a false action,
threatening a prosecution

in order to obtain
a payoff for yourself.

That's extortion, Mr. Randall.

Then, I-l want a lawyer.

I'm not gonna talk
unless I have a lawyer.

(phone buzzes)

Yes.

Send him right in, please.

- That's extortion, Mr. Randall.
-(door opens)

I'm sorry to disturb you,
Hamilton.

That's all right,
Perry, you might

just as well be in on this now.

You told my girl
you had something urgent

to see me about?

Larry Germaine
is withdrawing his waiver

of a preliminary examination

and is prepared
to plead not guilty.

Get me Judge Penner
quickly, please.

One of the purposes
of a preliminary hearing--

Your Honor, this statement
is simply for the record--

is to weed out groundless
and unsupported charges

involving grave offenses

and to protect, in such cases,
the improperly accused

from the degradation and
the expense of a criminal trial.

In a hearing like this,
there are no fixed rules

regarding the sequence or order

in which witnesses
must be called to the stand,

and in this case,

with the prior approval
of the court,

prosecution has stipulated
with defense

to an unorthodox procedure--

namely, defense counsel
will examine four witnesses

before the prosecution develops
its own case.

PENNER:
Call the first witness.

MASON: Mrs. Duncan, you were
present with your husband

in the hospital the night
Carina Wileen was m*rder*d?

Yes.

In attendance on him
but not with him?

That's right.

You were also present with
your husband at the Club Caribbe

the night a dagger was put
through a doll

at Carina Wileen's table,

and Miss Wileen collapsed?

RUTH:
Yes.

At the moment she collapsed,
or shortly after that moment,

did you or any of the people
present leave your table

to go toward Carina Wileen?

I, I didn't leave the table.

Neil Howard, Curt Ordway,

and my husband rushed over

toward the table
where she'd fallen.

It was there at the club
that my husband became ill.

Did you, approximately seven
years ago, leave your husband,

who was then working
in New Orleans,

take up residence
in Reno, Nevada?

Yes, I did.

MASON: For the purpose
of obtaining a divorce?

We had a misunderstanding,

but we reconciled
our difficulties.

MASON: Misunderstanding
as to what, another woman?

Yes.

Who was that woman?

Carina Wileen.

No.

I never for one moment believed
that there was any basis

for either a criminal
or a civil suit for fraud

in the transaction between
Brady Duncan and Jack Randall.

In deference to the privileged
nature of a communication

between attorney and client,
may I ask, Mr. Howard,

since your attitude was
that Randall had no case,

did you then recommend
the settlement with him?

Quite the contrary.

I would have fought the matter
through the courts

and cross-complained
for malicious prosecution.

I understand from Mr. Randall
that Curt Ordway,

as the new president of Allied,

ordered the settlement.

HOWARD:
Well, that's not quite accurate.

It is true that Mr. Ordway
worked out the details

of the settlement
and then approved it,

but he didn't originally order
the settlement.

Who did?

Just before he became ill,

that settlement was ordered
by Brady Duncan.

Brady had been complaining
about loss of memory,

about increasing
physical disabilities.

He did have a history
of cardiac difficulties.

No, I wasn't at all surprised,

Mr. Mason, when the excitement
in that nightclub

brought on another heart att*ck

and he ended up being taken
to the hospital.

He'd evidently realized
that his illness

might someday soon
incapacitate him

and had prepared his resignation

and his recommendations
for a replacement.

He recommended you?

It was his recommendation
that I succeed him.

When he became ill,
we telephoned New York.

There was
an immediate emergency meeting

of the board of directors.

Brady Duncan's resignation
and recommendation

were both accepted.

That night at the Club Caribbe,

you, Neil Howard,
and Brady Duncan went

to Carina Wileen
when she collapsed?

ORDWAY:
Just toward her, that's all.

We got as far as the table.

By then there was such a crowd
milling around, trying to help

or see her,
we couldn't get any closer.

There was a doll and a dagger
on that table.

Do you remember seeing
that doll and that dagger?

Well, I'm not at all sure
about the dagger.

But I do remember
seeing that doll.

On the table?

No,

somebody was tearing it
to pieces,

to shreds,
throwing the scraps away.

Who was that somebody?

Brady Duncan.

Your Honor, we checked carefully

with Mr. Duncan's
attending physicians.

He is ill.

His condition is described

as "bordering
on a nervous breakdown,”

but at the request of my office,
! had him examined

by a medical specialist,

and this specialist agrees
with Mr. Duncan's own doctors

that Mr. Duncan is competent
to testify at this hearing

without risk to his health.

Mr. Duncan has agreed
to testify here.

I now call Brady Duncan.

BRADY:
I was foolish, I...

found myself infatuated

with a young,
breathtakingly attractive girl.

These things happen,

but I broke it off cleanly

and I saved our marriage

and I did not see that girl
for seven years,

not until the other night
at the club when she collapsed.

That was when you picked up
the doll and tore it to pieces?

Well, that was a ridiculous,
juvenile thing to do.

I can't explain it
except that I was, I was sick.

Can you explain
what happened to the dagger

pinning that doll to the table?

I saw no dagger.

At the hospital...

did you leave your room
by the balcony,

cross to the balcony
of the waiting room,

deliberately start a fire there

to divert the policeman,
then go by way

of the balcony
into Carina Wileen's room,

and, with the dagger
from that table,

s*ab Carina Wileen in the heart?

No.

No, no.

MASON: You hadn't seen
Carina Wileen for seven years.

But did you nonetheless have
a continuing contact with her?

I don't know
what you're talking about.

Haven't you,
through a third party

and a fictitious trust account
in your company,

been diverting to Carina Wileen

a specific amount of money
each and every month?

Let me now warn you, there are
documents and depositions

to substantiate this.

I arranged for monthly payments
for her, yes.

MASON:
Monthly payments.

$ , per month,

amounting to $ , per year.

For the past seven years,
a total of $ , .

For what, Mr. Duncan,

a romantic fling your wife
already knew all about,

or was the money
a form of blackmail?

No, now, you must believe me,
it was not blackmail.

What was it, then, insurance?

Seven years ago in New Orleans,
you weren't in the laboratory

when the company president
dropped in.

You didn't go out to his car

for papers
as you claimed afterwards.

You had started
a dangerous experiment

and you left
the equipment unattended.

You were with Carina Wileen

while you should have been
in that laboratory,

and when you remembered,
when you rushed back,

realizing what might have
happened, it had happened.

Just as you arrived,
there was an expl*si*n--

an expl*si*n that k*lled
the company president.

Well, Mr. Duncan?

If she had ever told
that I was with her...

...I'd have been fired--

fired and charged
with criminal negligence.

She never even read a newspaper.

She didn't know
what had happened

at the lab that same night.

Don't you see?

I..

She didn't know.

I had no earthly reason
to k*ll her.

MASON: She had never pressured
you because she never realized

the value of what she knew,
but someone else drew

that information from Carina
Wileen, added other facts to it,

and then that someone else
did pressure you.

Pressure from two directions--

the false complaint
by Jack Randall

and the truth of what happened
in New Orleans.

And didn't that someone else
pressure you

right out of your job?

I had to say I was ill.

I had to resign.

Carina never cared why.

She just accepted money
from you for seven years.

That why was a sword
over your head

but became more than a sword
over your blackmailer's head.

She knew?

Or suspected...

enough, at least, to start
adding the pieces together,

and the pieces added up
to money,

more money
than she was already getting.

The tables turned.

Now the individual pressuring
you was being blackmailed,

so he substituted those pills,

hoping her death would be
accepted as accidental.

But she didn't die.

She was coming out of that coma.

That's when he used the dagger--

the dagger he had already taken
in that nightclub--

used the dagger to m*rder
Carina Wileen.

When you picked up that dagger,

after you had begun
to poison her

with the substitute
barbiturates,

did you pick it up, Mr. Ordway,
planning to use it to k*ll her?

Curt?

She'd been drinking heavily.

That's how I was able
to find out

what had happened
in New Orleans.

Then she began to guess,

to ask me for more money.

They had no right, Brady,
to make you president.

That job was mine!

Seven years.

Seven years I waited.

In the nightclub,
when that dancer...

...when she put the dagger
in that doll,

I knew then what I'd have to do

and I did it!

Everything that happened
was because of Curt Ordway's

constant pressure
on Brady Duncan.

But why did Carina lie
to Neil Howard

about my asking
for a partnership?

Well, apparently
Ordway had found out

that you were going
to recommend,

quite rightly incidentally,

that the criminal action for
fraud against Duncan be dropped,

so, in order to keep
the pressure on Duncan,

he had Carina

deliberately compromise you
with that phony story to Howard.

But why did she play along?

Well, Carina
had finally realized

the importance of what she knew

when she realized
that Ordway had found out

that Brady Duncan
had been with her

instead of
in that New Orleans laboratory.

You see,
Carina couldn't prevent Ordway

from getting Duncan out of the
company and taking his place,

and, after all, Brady had been
her, uh, meal ticket.

So she decided
to take out a new annuity

from the new president-to-be
of the company, Curt Ordway,

and at the same time
she started blackmailing him,

she was also
helping him take over.

(chuckles) In other words,
Carina was just sort of insuring

the financial status

of her new benefactor.

Shh, this is where
Agnes comes on.

(applause)

Uh-oh, here we go again.

(theme song playing)