[ENGINE STOPS]
[FOOTSTEPS APPROACHING]
[g*nshots]
Francis?
Francis, are you here?
- Ah! Oh.
- Don't look, Bobbi.
[GASPS]
Thank you.
[ELEGANT JAZZ MUSIC PLAYING]
[GUESTS CHATTERING]
What a crowd.
Tonight's the first opening since that
policeman was k*lled here last month.
Hmm.
Too bad Paul couldn't be here.
Yes, I imagine he would have
some pithy comments to make
concerning the Pop Art trend.
We should do this sort of thing
more often.
Not all of our clients are
as sophisticated as Francis Clune.
- Isn't that a little much?
- The price?
I agree.
If Mr. Clune takes that kind of money
for this kind of thing,
he may need a lawyer
to stay out of jail on fraud charges.
CLUNE:
I agree with you.
Mr. Clune, my secretary,
Ms. Street.
- How do you do, Ms. Street?
- How do you do?
You know, some of this so-called
Pop Art to me too
is nothing but junk, pure junk.
But you do display it and sell it.
I take the money
from sales such as this
and use it to buy otherwise
unsalable canvases
and sculpture by other artists
of genuine talent.
[MASON CHUCKLES]
That's an expensive form
of philanthropy.
CLUNE:
Not at all. It's an investment.
I'll put them aside
for as long as necessary
until there's appreciation
for the genuine work of art.
Then I'll be in a position
to turn a handsome profit.
And now, Mr. Mason, would it be
possible for the two of us to talk?
- Certainly. Would you excuse us?
- Mm-hm.
CAMPBELL:
Disgusting, isn't it, eh? Heh.
So blatantly obvious.
DELLA: Heh. It is?
- Well, of course.
Why should it need a title card?
What else could it be
but a naked soul?
I've never seen a naked soul.
- You're an artist, Mr., uh...?
- Boyd.
Campbell Boyd.
Probably the only true talent
represented anywhere in this place.
Well, then this isn't one of yours?
Heaven forbid.
You think I could put the true inner
tormented writings of my creative being
on cheap display
for the crude mawkish gawking
of unintelligent apes?
So that's been the situation
since I did my duty as a citizen
and reported my suspicions of
Sunrise in Sausalito to the police.
Wasn't there a little more to it
than that?
If I remember correctly,
you had some trouble last year
concerning stolen art objects.
I was completely exonerated.
I had all my invoices,
my receipts, all in order.
You know, a gallery owner can't be
expected to investigate personally
every item he displays.
Wouldn't that account for some of this
subsequent difficulty with the police?
They have to be suspicious.
It's their job.
Even so...
Do you have Sunrise in Sausalito
on display tonight?
Yes, it's in the stock room in back.
And the police officer, Harry Marberg,
who was k*lled here last month,
he was the one to whom
you reported?
I had an appointment with him here
that night to discuss it with him.
Just what were your suspicions
concerning this masterpiece?
Well, nothing tangible, actually.
It was just that, well,
if I'm any judge of art,
it should have sold for ten times
what my buyer, Ms. Dane, paid for it
at auction in North Beach.
So if it were stolen, the thief
was unaware of its true value?
I wasn't sure of that, Mr. Mason.
And after the previous
misunderstandings with the police,
I wanted to protect myself
in advance.
Since that moment,
my life hasn't been the same.
The police suspect me
of being a fence for art thieves.
And with Detective Marberg
k*lled here, they're watching me,
every move, constantly.
And you want me to do what?
I don't know what you can do.
But I need some kind of legal
protection from police harassment.
I'm going out of my mind.
This, um, buyer of yours, Ms. Dane,
is she here tonight?
Yes, she is.
She's probably in the stock room.
Thank you very much. Ooh.
Thank you.
Well, I didn't expect
to see you here, Steve.
This isn't social, Perry. This is
Sergeant Deke Bradley of Robbery.
- Perry Mason.
- Homicide, Robbery.
I can't blame Mr. Clune.
He does have something
to worry about.
He called you in?
Perry, I'd like to give you
some advice.
Stay out of this case.
I don't know what you're talking about.
But it's clear enough that you're--
I made a promise to
Harry Marberg's wife and two children
that if it takes the rest of my life,
I'm gonna get his k*ller.
So I say, stay out of it.
That's good advice, counselor.
Better take it.
You're suggesting that my client
is somehow involved.
I appreciate that all of you
on the force become more involved
when one of your own is k*lled,
but that doesn't mean
the legal bars are down.
Whether a man is accused of k*lling
a policeman or any other person,
he still has to be proven guilty
in a court of law.
And that's where you come in?
MASON:
Of course that's where I come in.
I want an end
to this police harassment.
- How is he being harassed?
- Because of the trouble in the past.
He wasted no time
in reporting his suspicions.
- Reporting to whom?
- Why, to the police.
The officer who was k*lled,
Officer Marberg.
Are you sure about that, Perry?
BRADLEY: Harry Marberg was
the most thorough, methodical man
who ever worked on my detail.
You show me any place
where Harry recorded any report
from your client, and I'll hand you
my retirement pension.
There was no record at all
of a call from Mr. Clune?
There was no call.
All right, if you think
Francis Clune is guilty, book him.
Have the district attorney's office
indict him.
But stop insinuating
that he's involved in m*rder.
I'm sorry, Perry, very sorry.
Next time I talk
to Mrs. Marberg or the kids,
I'll explain to them how tough
I've made it on poor Mr. Clune.
MASON:
This isn't like you, Steve.
You'd better develop
a proper perspective on this case,
not for my client's sake
or mine but for yours.
DRUMM:
Save your worry for your client, Perry.
When I get what I need
for an indictment, believe me,
he's gonna need
all the help he can get.
BRADLEY:
Lawyers.
Help!
BUD: In here, Bobbi.
- No!
[g*nsh*t]
[g*nsh*t OUTSIDE]
[TIRES SCREECH]
[CROWD MURMURING]
It's Bobbi. Is she...?
- Get an ambulance.
- I'll take care of it.
You got a blanket?
It was the same two men who tried
to kidnap me in San Francisco.
Remember, Francis?
Right after the policeman
was k*lled?
The same two men?
You sure of that, Ms. Dane?
Well, now, why would
they wanna kidnap you?
I don't know.
I don't understand any of this.
Well, let's see.
One of the men chased you.
The other one, sitting in a car
in an alley, grabbed you.
You ran, he fired at you twice, right?
This whole thing, Mr. Clune, has
an odor of a three-day old mackerel.
BOBBI:
I don't care. It's true.
I know it doesn't seem to make sense
the way I tell it, but it did happen.
It was the same two men
in both places.
All right, Ms. Dane,
I'll pull some appropriate mug sh*ts.
When you're feeling better,
come on down,
- take a look at them.
- I certainly will.
Frankly, Mr. Clune, Lieutenant Drumm
has a reason to be skeptical.
You think Bobbi deliberately
got herself run over by a car?
Of course not, but we both know
there's much more to this affair
- than either of you has told me.
- No, no, I swear it.
Then why was that police officer
k*lled in your stock room?
And what's behind the two kidnapping
attempts on your employee?
- I don't know.
- Tell me about Bobbi.
- Who exactly is she?
- She's a rare person, Mr. Mason.
As sensitive as she is practical,
young but very capable.
Since she came to work for me,
we've built up the galleries
from a modest success
to what it is today.
- You trust her completely?
- Yes, without reservation.
I hope you're right, Mr. Clune.
What have you got going out of this
terminal tonight, Deering?
I call you Sergeant Bradley,
and you call me Mr. Deering.
Now, what do you want?
I didn't send for you.
No, you didn't send for me,
Mr. Deering,
but I'm going to be here
every time I get a chance.
And when I'm not around, I'm gonna
have somebody else watching you.
Sooner or later, I'm gonna find
what I'm looking for.
And, Mr. Deering, I'm gonna
put you where you belong,
on the inside, looking out.
Get off my back.
BRADLEY:
Oh, I'll do that, as soon as I find out
why three of your trucks
have been h*jacked
and no other trucker has lost
more than one.
I wanna see
the cargo manifest of anything
- that's going out of here tonight.
- The manifest is my business.
BRADLEY: It's also the insurance
company's business.
How much longer do you think
they'll go on insuring you
when the only trucks that get h*jacked
are those with valuable cargo?
Well, you were rusty on maneuvering,
but you did fine on the road.
Floyd, have your driver sign for
the cargo and let's get him out of here.
We haven't had time
to check his references.
- I said sign him out.
FLOYD: Okay.
- Who do you wanna send with him?
- Nobody.
To San Francisco
with TV sets and appliances,
a guy we hardly know?
That doesn't make sense.
DEERING:
When you start running this business,
Floyd, I'll ask your advice.
Get the manifest back from that cop,
Bradley, and get this rig loaded.
[FLOYD SIGHS]
Heh. I get the idea your dispatcher's
kind of leery about me.
He didn't question my license,
but I'm afraid I didn't do too well.
You don't have to worry about Floyd.
It's my partner who's not gonna fall
for a snow job.
You check in with her
at the San Francisco depot.
Watch her. She's tough.
She can handle a rig like this
all by herself.
And she's got eyes
in the back of her head.
You haven't told her about me?
Well, is there some reason
you can't trust her?
I don't trust anybody, Drake.
Not anymore.
I've got to know
who's been fingering my trucks.
That cop that was knocked off knew,
and that's at the bottom
of all my trouble.
And I still think the sane thing to do
would be work with the police.
I didn't hire you for advice, friend.
I hired you to take this load through,
and with nobody on the outside
knowing what it is
or what route it's taking.
You take the San Diego Freeway
out towards Bakersfield.
Now, I want you to cut back in here,
take a secondary road here,
then head northwest.
Okay.
Check your cargo, and I want you out
of here no less than an hour from now.
Oh, Turner, what's your route plan?
- Mr. Deering has it.
- Will you get it, please?
I have to enter it in the dispatch log.
You'd better see the boss yourself,
Floyd.
You can't come in here. You have
to have permission to see her.
Okay, ma'am.
I just wanted to surprise her.
You come outside and wait.
[GLASS SHATTERS]
- Where did he go?
- Who?
The man who came out
of Bobbi Dane's room.
- Her boyfriend, I guess.
- I don't know.
Well, that's all we know, Paul.
- Bobbi Dane has disappeared.
- And the nurse didn't see her leave?
Well, the nurse said
she was asleep when she left.
Her boyfriend was around,
but he left.
Right after that,
we discovered she was gone.
While the nurse called the police,
I went through
the clothes in the closet.
And I found one thing
that might help me.
That's why I took a chance
and called you at the terminal.
There's something you can do for me
while you're in San Francisco.
Okay.
This claim check from
the San Francisco Bus Terminal
isn't much, but it's all we have.
Well, I'll turn it in when I get there
and see what they hand
across the counter.
But, Perry, if Steve Drumm finds out
about this, he'll skin you alive.
I'm not gonna withhold
a thing from him.
As soon as we see what that is,
I'll turn it over.
But it's all we have to go on.
The guy's driving
the Gaige-Deering rig.
That's all I know.
Never saw him before.
KANNON:
Is he driving alone?
Do you know where he's headed?
I just don't believe Bobbi Dane would
walk out of the hospital in her robe.
Well, obviously, she did.
But did she run
or did someone haul her away?
And if she ran, why?
And if she was forced, why?
I don't know why.
I don't know who took
a couple of sh*ts at her.
I don't know who tried to kidnap her
in San Francisco.
I just don't know.
I don't even know if she's still alive.
Come on out, hands first.
This is a g*n.
Keep your hands in your lap.
Now, start talking.
I was going for my press pass.
I'm Bert Kannon.
You've read my column,
"The Kannon's Mouth."
I never heard of it.
What are you doing here?
Put that away, will you?
Look, I'm onto a story,
a big hijacking and cop k*lling.
And by luck you happened
to find out where this truck was going
- and came along for the ride, huh?
- You don't believe me.
- No.
- Look, pal,
you can't drive this rig and hold that
g*n and watch me at the same time.
What do you want me to do,
stop the truck and let you out?
Okay, okay, as soon as we see
a light where I can get a ride,
I'll get out,
but put that g*n away, huh?
Why are you so anxious
to have me stop this truck?
Then don't stop it.
Take me to Frisco with you.
How did you know
I was going to Frisco?
KANNON: There's an accident.
You'd better pull up and stop.
PAUL:
Uh-uh.
- What kind of a guy are you?
- Shut up.
[ENGINE STARTS]
Well, it looks like your friends
have recovered from their accident.
Now it seems
they're looking for another one.
They're no friends of mine.
Listen, I came out here
looking for a story.
You're interested in hijacking
and m*rder?
Well, if that car forces us off the road,
you're gonna see the first,
and if you move one inch
closer to me,
you're gonna be the victim
in the second.
[TIRES SCREECHING]
[ENGINE STOPS]
- You just bring in the rig from L.A.?
- Yeah.
Don't you "yeah" me.
I run this place.
It's, "Yes, ma'am."
You're Turner, aren't you?
- Yes, ma'am.
- Well, come on in here.
Deering called me.
He told me about your close call.
- You all right?
- Yes, ma'am.
Yeah, you look all right to me. Heh.
About that newspaper guy
who stowed away.
Deering said you left him
in Paso Robles.
Yes, ma'am.
He filed a story on the accident,
answered the police questions.
That cleared me, and they let me go.
- Ah. Well, sit down.
- Yes, ma'am.
All right, wise guy, knock off
the "yes, ma'am.”
- Well, I thought you said that...
- Forget it.
Yeah, well, you're fresh,
but you're no mollycoddle.
Turner...
George, just between you
and me and the lamppost,
- who do think set up that hijack?
- How would I know?
You're working out of L.A.
I can see you're nobody's fool.
You've got your eyes wide open.
And Deering trusts you.
You'd be a good man to watch him.
What makes you think
Deering needs watching?
There was a cop up here from LA,
about a month ago, nosing around.
I got the feeling from him
that somebody,
maybe Deering,
is fingering our rigs.
Well, like I said,
I don't know anything about it.
Well, I know I've had nothing
but trouble since I merged with him.
I never lost a cargo,
I never had insurance problems.
I never saw a cop.
Now, after three hijackings,
the company's on my neck,
cancellations from people I've had
for years, and truck damage.
[SIGHS]
You know, you're a bright guy.
I think maybe I can do something
for you.
And you can do something for me.
- Have a drink, hmm?
- No, thanks.
I haven't had breakfast yet,
and besides, I could use some sleep.
Oh. Well, we'll fix that. I'll drive you
into town, we can get some chow.
Uh, I've got something to do first.
I'll just grab a cab.
No, you won't, heh. I'll go with you.
Then we can eat and talk.
Only, heh, don't let it get around that
I'm socializing with the help, huh?
Now get out of here.
Sign in in the next room, huh?
Uh, okay, George?
Okay, Estelle.
[GAIGE CHUCKLES]
[DOOR CLOSES]
Get me Los Angeles, Clinton .
Mr. Clune?
Heh. You were right.
Deering's private detective's here.
Why, I'm taking him to breakfast.
- I'll meet you in the coffee shop.
- Okay.
Thanks.
We'll take that.
San Francisco police, mister.
All right, let's go.
Thank goodness Paul's all right.
He leads a charmed life.
[DOOR OPENS]
Perry, you've overstepped yourself
this time.
I want an explanation,
a darned good explanation,
or I swear
I'll prefer charges against you.
A closed door suggests that
you might knock before you enter.
Don't you stall me.
You know why I'm here.
No, I don't know why you're here.
And I'm getting kind of fed up
with the free-swinging accusations
you're throwing around.
All right, Steve,
what's got you so steamed up?
I got a call from
the San Francisco police.
They arrested Paul Drake.
He used a claim check
that he got from Bobbi Dane
to pick up an artist's case.
It had a g*n in it, Perry, Harry
Marberg's g*n, the m*rder w*apon.
Paul had no way of knowing
what was in that case.
I know that. I had him released.
But tell me
that he wasn't on a job for you.
Tell me that you didn't know
what was in that case
and that you didn't wanna
get hold of that g*n.
- You have my word.
- Your what?
What in the devil
do you take me for?
You found that claim check.
Did you turn it over to the police?
No. You're not interested
in finding the k*ller.
You're only interested
in protecting your client.
Steve, how did the police know
there was a claim check?
Don't you worry about that,
Mr. Mason.
You start worrying about
the consequences
of withholding evidence.
[PHONE RINGS]
Yes, Gertie?
If you think you can prove
that I knowingly attempted to--
I want Bobbi Dane
and I want Francis Clune.
She disappeared, and we went
to pick him up, he disappeared too.
I want you to produce them,
and I mean by tonight!
[DOOR CLOSES]
It's Mr. Clune.
Mr. Clune? Where are you?
Well, it's better that you don't know.
Then you can't tell the police.
The police just left.
As your attorney,
I'm advising you to turn yourself in.
That's our only hope
of clearing this up.
Oh, no, Mr. Mason.
I don't trust them.
- They think I k*lled a policeman.
- What do you propose to do?
Keep running? Hiding?
In that case, why call me?
Just before I left the gallery,
I got a call from Olaf Deering's partner,
Estelle Gaige.
She wanted me to meet her
at Olaf Deering's office at tonight.
Did she say why?
Mrs. Gaige couldn't explain too clearly,
just that...
Well, she thought if we could meet
at Olaf Deering's office
without his knowing it,
we could compare notes,
inspect the files.
I don't know what she hopes
to accomplish,
but I do know you have all the trouble
you can handle
without borrowing any more.
That's why I want you to go to
the meeting with me, Mr. Mason,
to protect me,
to give me some advice.
I have to hang up now.
I'll see you tonight.
And remember, above all,
don't tell the police.
[LINE CLICKS]
- No lights inside.
- Maybe we're early.
Or maybe something's wrong.
I don't like it, Paul.
Sometimes I wonder
about this profession.
Clients pay you for your advice,
then stubbornly refuse to take it.
Well, shouldn't you be grateful?
After all, if everybody acted
logically and sensibly,
who'd ever need lawyers?
You know, what Estelle Gaige
told your our client could tie in
with that hijack attempt on my truck.
You mean, Deering could be arranging
to have his own trucks h*jacked?
Why not?
He always gets the trucks back,
and the cargoes are fully insured.
He could be collecting twice.
Then Francis Clune is stepping
on dangerous ground.
Deering's office is down this way.
[WOMAN SCREAMS]
We're not early, we're late.
Mr. Clune!
Hold it right there.
- Mr. Mason, help us.
- Us?
Who else is...?
[CRYING]
Paul, come in here.
[SIREN WAILING OUTSIDE]
PAUL:
Olaf Deering.
- You too, huh?
- In there, Steve.
Well, you didn't waste any time
getting back from Paso Robles.
I got back as soon as I cleared you
in that accident, and you're welcome.
You'll still have to testify
at the inquest.
Well, isn't this a cozy little group?
All right, that's enough of that now.
What's the matter, lieutenant?
Don't you feel vindicated?
You got your cop K*llers
and another m*rder for a bonus.
These people haven't been charged
with any crime.
They have. They're under arrest
and they'll be charged with m*rder
as quickly as I can
get them downtown.
What's the evidence against them,
Steve?
All right. You'll get
the regular handout at headquarters
like everybody else.
Believe me, Mr. Mason, I...
We didn't k*ll him.
We didn't k*ll anybody.
It's about time we had a little talk
about that, Mr. Clune.
MASON: Answer no questions
unless I'm with you and approve.
Perry, stay out of this.
I'll do whatever is necessary
to protect my client's rights.
Paul, you take the car.
I'd better ride down to headquarters
with Ms. Dane and Mr. Clune.
That won't be necessary.
We don't play rough.
Sergeant.
Now, you have my word, Perry.
All I'm gonna do to these two
is convict them.
Oh, it's all too pat.
Everything falls neatly into place.
That is, if we assume
that Steve Drumm is right
and Francis Clune
and Bobbi Dane are guilty.
- But you don't believe that.
- No, I don't.
Francis Clune and Bobbi Dane
just don't convince me as murderers.
Well, Steve Drumm's convinced.
Marberg found out they were fencing
stolen art, so they k*lled him.
Deering found out,
and they took care of him too.
It's my hunch they've been built up as
sacrificial victims to cover for the k*ller.
And who might that be?
Well, before we answer that,
there are quite a few questions
that need answers.
For one, I'd like to know
what happened to Mrs. Estelle Gaige
at the warehouse last night.
After asking Clune to meet her,
she didn't appear.
She says she was there but saw
the police cars and didn't go in.
If that's her story, we're stuck with it.
There's that g*n
in Bobbi Dane's case
that got me arrested
in San Francisco.
Well, I'd like to know
how the San Francisco police
knew about that claim check.
And why the series of attempts
on Bobbi's life?
And why the two murders,
a policeman and a truck operator?
MAN:
Telephone, Mr. Mason.
- Your secretary, I think.
- Thank you.
Yes? Yes, Della?
They have?
Yes, I'll go directly from here.
I'll check in with you when I'm through.
Clune and Bobbi Dane
have been charged with the m*rder
of Officer Marberg.
But I thought Burger would go
for a conviction
in the Olaf Deering m*rder.
Hmm. The pressure is on Burger
to solve the police m*rder,
so, of course, this is the way for him
to handle it.
One thing's certain.
We're sitting here asking questions,
and Steve Drumm
already has his answers. Let's go.
I don't know anything about the g*n.
When I checked my case
in San Francisco,
there was no g*n in it.
Bobbi, the thing
that bothers me about you
is that you keep coming up with
logical excuses for illogical behavior.
From the moment you bought
Sunrise in Sausalito
to the time you were arrested,
these strange things
have continued to happen.
Now, Mr. Clune says he reported
his suspicions to the police.
They say he didn't report them.
You bought Sunrise for apparently
much less than it was worth.
Didn't it occur to you at the time?
It occurred to me at the time
that I got a good buy, that's all.
Look, the police
are just twisting things.
They've decided
that we k*lled a policeman.
That's the same story
I just heard from Francis Clune.
You know, you and Francis have
only one problem with the police.
They think you committed a m*rder,
perhaps two.
While they're trying to prove you did,
we have to convince the judge
that you didn't.
I'm not sure
that I've even convinced you.
Bobbi, how did you manage
to get away from the men
who tried to kidnap you
in San Francisco?
I was waiting for an artist,
Campbell Boyd, in the bus terminal.
He was late, so I went outside.
It was dark.
These two men grabbed me.
I screamed at the top of my lungs
and they ran.
When they tried to kidnap you again
in the gallery stock room,
they couldn't have fumbled
that attempt much more
if they'd been trying.
How did you manage to get away
from them in the hospital?
Well, my buzzer wouldn't work.
And the phone wouldn't.
One of them was waiting
outside my door.
So I went to the window, hoping to get
to the front of the building to get help.
But the other one was
waiting out in front.
I couldn't go inside, so I went
to a phone and I called Francis.
Why would they want you
so desperately
that they'd make three attempts?
I don't know, Mr. Mason.
Honest, I don't know.
Floyd, that truck I was driving,
the one the hijackers tried to hit,
besides you, Deering and myself,
who knew what that cargo was
and where it was going?
BRADLEY:
Stay out of this, Drake.
I know you and Mason
are doing your best
to foul up Steve Drumm's
m*rder case,
but you're not going to foul up mine.
Harry Marberg worked
for months on this,
and I've taken over where he left off,
a ring of hijackers and fences
who operate like they own this town
and Frisco.
Who think they can get away
with anything, including k*lling a cop.
And Francis Clune is the ringleader?
Come on.
Think whatever you want, Drake,
but stay out of my hair.
Or I kid you not,
somebody's gonna get hurt.
Okay, tell me whatever you told him.
Your Honor, the state will show
that there is reasonable cause
to believe that the defendants,
Francis Clune and Bobbi Dane,
m*rder*d the decedent,
Harry Marberg.
Motivated by fear
that Officer Marberg would expose
certain of their criminal activities,
they k*lled him on the premises
of the Clune Gallery.
The w*apon they used was
the decedent's own service revolver,
and after the m*rder, that w*apon
was first concealed by the defendants
and then retrieved by an agent
acting for them.
We will show that both defendants
evaded arresting officers
and were finally apprehended
at the scene of a second m*rder,
and although that crime, Your Honor,
may appear to be entirely separate
and apart from this case,
the state will prove that
there is indeed a pattern here.
Police Officer Harry Marberg
was k*lled
to prevent him from exposing
a certain fraudulent operation
both defendants were involved in,
and the second m*rder,
to which I just referred, was committed
for exactly the same reason.
Your Honor, I object to the introduction
of any evidence of any other crime.
Your Honor, evidence concerning
another crime is certainly admissible
where it goes to prove motivation.
Mr. Burger,
I'm not going to allow that approach.
In this preliminary hearing,
you're seeking to have the defendants
bound over for trial on the m*rder
of Harry Marberg.
Now, you need only show
their involvement in that crime.
But, Your Honor,
I can recite a dozen--
I have ruled on the matter, Mr. Burger.
There will be no further argument.
Now proceed with your case.
Yes, sir, Harry Marberg was
a good man, a good police officer
and a good friend.
Mr. Kannon,
when did you last see the decedent?
We had dinner together,
Harry and his wife and his kids.
Afterward, we were talking.
That's when Harry mentioned that
a big story was about to break.
He wouldn't say anything definite.
That's the way he was.
He... Friend or not,
he wouldn't give me a break
over any other newspaperman.
All right, what did he tell you,
exactly?
That he was going to see
Francis Clune that evening,
that the case involved
certain art objects and hijacking.
He seemed almost sad about it.
He said heads would roll.
BURGER: And you never saw
Harry Marberg again.
No, sir. They k*lled him that night.
And now, Lieutenant Drumm,
I show you this . caliber
police special turned over to you
by the San Francisco police
department, marked State's Exhibit .
I ask if you can identify it
for us further.
Yes, Mr. Burger.
I was with ballistics at the time
this w*apon was checked,
supervised the test myself.
This is the revolver
that fired the fatal b*ll*ts.
The serial number shows
that it was Harry Marberg's g*n.
Harry Marberg worked for me
on robbery detail.
Sergeant Bradley, did he keep you
well informed on his progress
- and cases he was assigned to cover?
- Yes, sir, he was that kind of a guy.
He'd hand me a ten-page report on
a $ breaking-and-entering case.
BURGER:
To what case was he assigned
at the time of his death, sergeant?
He was tracing
a hijack-and-fencing operation.
He called me from Frisco
the night before he was k*lled
and told me he expected
to get evidence to show
that Francis Clune and Bobbi Dane
were involved in both operations.
Thank you, sergeant.
- Cross-examine.
MASON: No questions.
And when you turned in
the claim check
that you had obtained
from Mr. Mason's client,
you received in return
an artist's case, is that correct?
Yes, sir.
When you picked up that case
and looked in it,
what did you find, Mr. Drake?
- A . police special.
- I show you State Exhibit .
Is this the same g*n
you found in that case?
PAUL: It is.
- Cross-examine, Mr. Mason.
Now, Mr. Drake,
will you please tell the court
why you were asked to pick up
the artist's case,
the case which contained
the death w*apon?
Well, I was hired to pose
as a truck driver by Mr. Olaf Deering.
Objection, Your Honor.
Defense counsel has objected
to any introduction
of the Olaf Deering m*rder,
and the court has sustained him.
Therefore, anything on that subject
is certainly out of order here.
MASON: Your Honor,
in direct examination of this witness,
the district attorney introduced
the subject of the g*n.
I contend that anything pertaining
to the discovery of that w*apon
is germane to the case
against my client.
Well, you did open the door,
Mr. Burger. Overruled.
The witness may answer.
PAUL: Mr. Deering had been losing
valuable cargo to hijackers,
and he was sure
someone was tipping them off
as to which trucks to hijack.
So we decided I'd drive one of
his trucks to San Francisco alone,
keeping the route secret.
But the plan didn't work.
MASON: Why?
- Because they were staked out
waiting to hijack my truck a few miles
this side of Paso Robles.
I'm due there today for the inquest.
MASON: How could the hijackers
have known what you were carrying
and have known
what route you were taking?
They had to be tipped off
as to which truck to hit.
Who, besides you and Mr. Deering
and his dispatcher,
knew about the route?
PAUL: No one.
Even the dispatcher, Floyd Walters,
didn't know
what route I'd be taking.
Oh, one final question.
How did
the San Francisco police know
you would be presenting
the claim check at the terminal
so they could have it staked out?
PAUL:
I haven't any idea.
Thank you, Mr. Drake.
That will be all.
The witness may stand down.
May I have a moment, Your Honor?
Paul, your man's on the phone
from San Francisco.
He says he has the information
you wanted.
Perry, I have to get to that inquest
in Paso Robles.
I promised I'd be there
if they didn't hold me up here.
Della can handle the call.
You'd better go.
Thanks. I'll call in
as soon as they're through with me.
Your Honor, at this time
I would like to recall Lieutenant Drumm
for cross-examination.
JUDGE: Lieutenant Drumm,
will you take the stand?
And you're still under oath.
Lieutenant, you heard
my final question put to Mr. Drake.
I now ask it of you.
How did the San Francisco police
know to stake out that terminal?
Was it a request
from your department?
- No.
- Now, you're an intelligent policeman.
- Didn't you wonder about it?
- Of course I did.
They acted on an anonymous tip.
MASON: But in order to give the police
an anonymous tip,
someone had to know
the g*n was in the case,
and someone had to want it
to be found.
What difference does it make?
There was a g*n
and it was the m*rder w*apon.
Lieutenant, it's almost legendary
that when a policeman is k*lled,
his fellow officers regard it
as a sacred trust, literally,
to dedicate themselves
to getting his k*ller.
Isn't that true?
Is there anything wrong with that?
MASON:
Not with the attitude or the purpose.
But not to the neglect
of proper methods.
When you allow emotions
to take over
and think only of pinning it
on a likely suspect--
You can't say that.
I handled this case myself.
I left nothing to chance.
Then why, when one of my clients
reported a possible theft
of a valuable piece of modern art,
did the whole department
ignore his story
and attempt to make him out a liar?
That's simply not true.
You're using legal tricks,
playing with Harry Marberg's m*rder.
There's no trick, Steve.
- Did Paul's man have what we want?
- Mm-hm. I took it all down.
Your Honor, in order to continue
my cross-examination,
may I request an hour's recess?
For what purpose, Mr. Mason?
MASON:
To bring in important evidence
bearing on the witness's testimony.
Very well.
Court will recess for one hour.
I warned you both
that your only chance
- was to be completely honest with me.
- But I have been honest.
BOBBI:
So have I.
And I suppose
you've never seen this before?
You don't recognize
any of the pieces described?
Why, yes, several.
They're in the stock room
at the gallery.
Where did you get this list?
From the San Francisco police.
It's the same list they made out for
Harry Marberg the day he was k*lled.
BRADLEY:
That one will do.
Hello, sergeant.
You wasted your money
sending Paul Drake's man to Frisco.
Really?
I already had all the answers.
But now you do too,
don't you, counselor?
Some of them.
I know you k*lled Harry Marberg
because he'd cracked
your robbery-and-fencing setup.
You k*lled Olaf Deering
for the same reason.
I figured you knew.
The way you questioned Drake
about the hijack setup.
The way you pinned Drumm
on the anonymous tip.
You were the only one
with access to all that information.
No wonder your man Marberg
wouldn't write anything down.
You learned he'd found you out
and that he was meeting Clune here.
You couldn't let them get together.
So you k*lled Marberg
and framed Clune for it.
I figured you was a guy to watch.
What puzzles me is your interest
in Bobbi Dane.
- Why was she important?
- She wasn't. I fouled up.
I thought she'd seen me in the car
that night behind the gallery.
That's why you tried to kidnap her
in San Francisco?
Mm-hm.
And when you failed, you used
your badge and planted the g*n.
Then the anonymous phone call
to the San Francisco police,
and then Paul Drake discovered
the m*rder w*apon for you.
You had everything figured.
Everything but this:
I tried to wise up Harry Marberg
when he was assigned to me,
but he just wouldn't wise.
So he didn't leave me any choice,
and you don't either, Mason.
[g*nshots]
You can dismiss all charges, Hamilton.
I'll give you the details in the office.
Right. Thank you.
Well, Perry, it's all fixed.
And I wanna thank you.
Thank me?
- You saved my life.
- Well, let me finish.
The way you handled me
on the witness stand,
that was deliberate, wasn't it?
Well, you really squared me away.
After you left, I saw things clearly
for the first time.
It all added up to me,
as it obviously had for you.
Wherever the police would normally
have come up with answers,
Bradley was there.
And that meant a dead end
for both of us.
A police officer masterminding
a hijack operation,
selling stolen properly,
k*lling a fellow officer.
Seems unbelievable.
Steve, it only takes one bad cop
to undermine
the work of hundreds of others.
In the courtroom,
Della told me where you went.
Fortunate for me that you asked.
You were taking a pretty good chance.
Not really, Steve.
I had the best thing in the world
going for me: one good, honest cop.
09x19 - The Case of the Sausalito Sunrise
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Defense attorney Perry Mason defends dozens of falsely accused people during courtroom drama, and he manages to clear all of them, usually by drawing out the real criminal on the witness stand.
Defense attorney Perry Mason defends dozens of falsely accused people during courtroom drama, and he manages to clear all of them, usually by drawing out the real criminal on the witness stand.