"( noirish jazz theme playing )" "( uneasy theme playing )" "I'll put it to you bluntly, mayor." "Ever since the death of Roger Pearson, the governor has been looking for a replacement." "To head up the crime commission?" "That's right." "Well, that's a very responsible job." "Sure it is." "Oh, thank you." "That's why the governor hasn't made the appointment yet." "Now it's come down to two men." "You mean I'm one of them?" "That's right." "Arnold Webberly's the other." "He's a fine man." "A great attorney." "Yes, he is." "I understand you're friends." "Yes." "Good friends." "Although most of his legal practice is in Los Angeles, he still lives here in town." "Of course, he has the advantage of being free to take the job." "I'm still mayor here in Upton." "Well, your term is up this year, Jim." "This is a once in a lifetime opportunity." "MAN:" "The job would wait." "Of course, I'm only the governor's birddog to sound you out." "The governor still has to make the decision." "But he wants to know if you're interested, Henderson." "What do you say?" "It's up to you, Jim." "You know I wouldn't interfere." "But it is a big step up, isn't it, Mr. Carter?" "A big step." "Yes, yes, I'm interested." "Good." "Good." "Now, why don't you come along with me?" "We'll talk this thing out." "Very well." "The governor wants to attack the narcotics problem, juvenile delinquency." "JIM:" "I'll be very happy to talk with the governor." "( suspenseful theme playing )" "It's been a great pleasure meeting you," "Mrs. Henderson." "We think a great deal of your husband in Sacramento." "Thank you." "We think a great deal of him here in Upton too." "( chuckles )" "(car starts )" "Tom?" "Our deal's off." "Something's come up." "I'm sorry." "I can't afford to take any chances now." "My husband's career is at stake." "( telephone ringing )" "( tense theme playing )" "( ringing continues )" "Yes, Tom?" "Mona, I don't know what you're up to now, but you can't pull out on me," "I won't stand still for it." "I've got more than 70,000 dollars tied up in options." "I'll have to make it up to you in some other way." "We're going ahead." "Just as soon as the information I need reaches the mayor's office, you're going to pass it on to me as per our agreement." "Or I go right to the newspapers and dump the whole thing on their front pages." "Make up your mind, Mona." "All right." "But you haven't even paid me for what I've done so far." "I've got it, 10,000 waiting for you." "No." "I can't come to you." "I'll have to arrange something." "Let me see" "The Highway Hotel on 101." "After you register in your room, wait for me there." "Or I may send Jim's secretary, Susan Connolly." "I've have to be very careful, Tom." "All right." "What time?" "Well, um..." "Make it about half past 1." "( suspenseful theme playing )" "MRS. HENDERSON:" "I know it's an imposition," "Susan, but when I told Jim I'd do the errand for him," "I completely forgot I promised I'd be at the club and on the first tee by 1." "Well, it's no imposition at all, Mrs. Henderson." "I'm glad to help." "I'll explain to Mr. Henderson." "You said the Highway Hotel on 101." "Yes, that's right." "Mr. Stratton will be waiting for you in the lobby." "He'll give you an envelope for me and that's all there is to it." "I think it's wonderful news about Mr. Henderson." "Yes, it is." "Even if he doesn't get the appointment." "But he will." "I only wish there was something" "I could do to help." "Oh, you've been a tremendous help," "Susan, just being his secretary." "And you are helping out, right now." "( tense theme playing )" "Highway Hotel." "One moment, please." "Yes, ma'am, may I help you?" "Yes, I was supposed to meet a Mr. Stratton here." "Would you have him paged for me please?" "Are you Miss Connolly?" "Yes." "A message was left to have you meet Mr. Stratton in his room." "Room 204." "Thank you." "( dramatic theme playing )" "Are you Susan Connolly?" "Yes, sir." "You'd better sign this receipt, Miss Connolly." "All right." "Right there." "Ten thousand dollars." "Didn't you know what you were picking up?" "Oh, no." "I didn't." "You better count it, Miss Connolly." "I wouldn't want any misunderstandings." "( dramatic theme playing )" "MAN:" "Well, here it is." "You never saw two more surprised people." "Who are they, anyway?" "Never mind." "Whoops." "You did say 100 dollars." "That's right." "One hundred dollars." "Thank you." "Thank you." "What are you going to do with the photograph anyway?" "Oh, that 100 dollars answers all questions, Frank." "I have one question" "I've been meaning to ask you for a long time." "And I've had one answer" "I've been meaning to tell you for a long time." "I don't know how you mean that." "Now you know." "( closes door )" "What did you do after the photograph was taken?" "Nothing." "I was bewildered." "I still don't understand what it's all about." "Did you take the money?" "No." "What about the receipt you signed?" "Oh, no." "Mr. Stratton has it." "Not very smart, Miss Connolly." "But I was confused." "I didn't know what I was doing." "What did you do after you left the hotel room?" "I went back to the office." "I tried to reach Mr. Henderson and couldn't, he was with Mr. Carter somewhere." "Then I tried to get in touch with Mrs. Henderson." "You said she told you she had a golf date." "I called the club, the starter said she didn't keep her appointment." "Then I just couldn't stand it any more, Mr. Mason." "I came here to you, for help." "Do you know of any connection between Mrs. Henderson and this Thomas Stratton?" "No, I" "I didn't even know who he was until I looked him up." "What'd you found out?" "Just that he's a real estate dealer." "You mentioned Henderson was seeing a man by the name of Carter." "Yes, well, that's another thing." "Mr. Henderson's up for an appointment to head the governor's new crime commission." "And if a word of scandal or anything unethical were to be connected with him it would" "It would hurt." "Yes." "And you wouldn't want that." "No." "Of course not." "Other than what you told me, did Stratton give you any clue to all of this?" "Well, he did say a very curious thing." "He said, "I wonder what else" "Mona Henderson has to cover up?"" "Julia, oh, you must know about, uh, the governor's appointment by now." "Mm-hm." "Makes us sort of competitors after all these years." "Oh, this is the putter that won you the Reno Woman's Open, isn't it?" "Mm-hm." "Oh, you played splendidly." "I remember when you went to Reno for the tournament." "Or was it for the tournament?" "What do you mean?" "Oh, I remember how positively brilliant Arnold was as the attorney in the Brigham-Putnam civil case, that was right around the time you went for tournament, wasn't it, Julia?" "Well, yes, but..." "That was his biggest case, put him right in the big league." ""Noted lawyer unearths surprise witness."" "What are you getting at?" "The surprise witness' name was Buonanova." "A striking-looking man, hunchback, if I recall." "Mona" "Isn't it odd he didn't come forward with his sensational testimony, until after you had a little talk with him in Reno." "Are you suggesting I did something wrong in Reno?" "You met Mr. Buonanova in Reno, on June 14th, last year." "On June 15th, he appeared in Los Angeles with sensational testimony for your husband." "How do you know all this?" "I've got evidence." "You're accusing me of suborning perjury." "That's right." "It's not true." "Well, the question is, since this is such a delicate period in your husband's public life, what will the newspapers believe?" "I've done nothing wrong." "You're twisting the circumstances around." "Arnold had been looking for Buonanova for a long time." "I just happened to see him there." "He had just returned from Europe and he didn't even know Arnold was looking for him." "Think it over, Julia." "I'm sure you don't want the slightest hint of scandal to touch your husband." "True or not, it will hurt him." "Mona." "Mona, I can't believe this." "We've been such good friends." "What do you want?" "I want your husband to tell William Carter that he's not interested in the governor's appointment." "Well, I've got something," "I don't know how much good it'll do." "First of all, His Honor Mayor Henderson hasn't been back in his office all afternoon." "You know where he's been?" "No." "Did you speak to Mr. Stratton?" "No." "Mona Henderson?" "No." "But you did say you have something." "I hope." "If two and two add up right." "The City of Upton is 27,000 strong, give or take a few." "During the last 10 years, the population explosion has been fourfold." "Fourfold?" "What does that mean?" "It means that at a special election the citizens voted in school and sewer bonds." "And Mr. Stratton?" "Has been buying up options on certain parcels of land." "Has the planning commission selected sites and so on?" "I don't know." "What do you think?" "It's quite possible that Mr. Stratton might have a direct line right into the planning commission's office." "Or through Mona Henderson directly into the mayor's office." "Getting a picture of Susan Connolly in that badger setup could have been" "Mona Henderson's way of clearing her own skirts, making it appear that the defection came from the mayor's secretary and not mayor or the mayor's wife." "Della?" "DELLA ( over speaker ):" "Yes, Perry." "Right here." "Della, keep trying the Henderson home, would you, please?" "I'd like to make an appointment with Mrs. Henderson, make it about 8:00." "( tense theme playing )" "Oh, hello." "My name is Mason." "I'm an attorney." "I have an appointment with your wife, that is, if you're James Henderson." "Yes, I am." "Come along," "I haven't spoken to my wife in the last few hours." "( gunshot )" "What was that?" "It sounded like a shot." "Mona?" "Mona?" "( dramatic theme playing )" "( tires screech )" "HENDERSON:" "Mason." "Mason, my wife..." "Mason--?" "Yes." "She's dead." "If someone was here in the house, they must have run out the back way." "We'd better call the police." "It must" "It must have been..." "It must have been who?" "Henderson." "You were just going to tell me who was here, who have fired that shot." "No." "No, Mr. Mason." "I was going to do no such thing." "( mysterious theme playing )" "Didn't you say we'd better call the police?" "( dialing phone )" "You've got just about 90 seconds to talk to me before the police get here, Mr. Mayor." "I have nothing to talk to you about." "I don't even know why you're here." "Susan Connolly is why." "I don't understand." "You mean you haven't spoken to her since lunchtime?" "About what?" "Ten thousand dollars in cash." "About your wife and a man named Stratton." "About the governor appointing someone as head of the new crime commission." "I talked to Susan on the phone." "I didn't see her." "( siren wailing )" "And we'll probably have no further chance to talk alone." "Once again, Mr. Henderson, have you any idea of who killed your wife?" "No." "( suspenseful theme playing )" "( tense theme playing )" "I was home all evening, Mr. Mason." "I heard about Mrs. Henderson on the radio." "I called you at 8:30 last night." "Oh, I" " I must have gone out for a paper." "I called you again at 9:00 and again at 9:30." "If you were at home, why didn't you answer your telephone?" "What kind of car do you drive, Miss Connolly?" "A two-tone hardtop." "Red and grey?" "Yes." "I saw your car at 8:00 last night in front of the house next door to the Hendersons." "I heard the shot, heard someone running behind the hedge, out into the street." "I saw your car pull out and drive away." "What did you do with the shoes you'd been wearing?" "What do you mean?" "You left your footprints on the walkway as you ran." "Why did you kill Mona Henderson?" "But I didn't." "I didn't." "But you did fired that shot before you ran out of the house." "Yes." "Why?" "Because of Mr. Henderson's appointment to the crime..." "Oh, I'm sorry, Mr. Mason." "I only wanted to help." "The police want to talk to me." "What should I tell them?" "( dramatic theme playing )" "I think you'd better tell them the truth." "All of it?" "Everything?" "Including the firing, the shot and the shoes." "Everything." "Susan, are you in love with him?" "He doesn't even know I'm alive." "( dramatic theme playing )" "( rings doorbell )" "Oh, hello, Mr. Mason." "Sergeant, I'd like to see James Henderson." "He's in the study." "You can go on in." "We've finished our investigation." "Thank you." "HENDERSON:" "I know this tragedy can be the cause of some embarrassment at the capital." "I also know that Arnold Webberly would make a fine appointee." "Oh." "Come in." "Sorry to intrude." "Perry Mason, Julia Webberly." "Mrs. Webberly." "How do you do?" "William Carter." "Mr. Mason." "Mr. Carter, a privilege." "State committeeman, aren't you?" "That's right, counselor." "Oh, I've been told what good personal friends the Webberly's and the Hendersons have been, despite the present rivalry." "Jim, I know how dreadful this has been for you." "Please, let me know if there's anything I can do to help." "Thank you, Julia." "I'll run along." "Goodbye, gentlemen." "Mrs. Webberly." "As far as withdrawing, Henderson, well, I'd sleep on it a bit." "Of course I haven't spoken to the governor, but unless I'm mistaken," "I don't think he's going to be influenced unless there's really something to be influenced about." "All right, I'll think it over." "Good." "Always wanted to meet you, counselor." "Sorry it had to be like this." "Mr. Carter." "Jim." "Still nothing to tell me, Mr. Henderson?" "Nothing." "What have you told the police?" "Just the truth, Mr. Mason." "Now, I have so many things to take care of." "Yes, of course." "How many years had you been married, Mr. Henderson?" "Oh, about six years." "No children?" "No." "That's your car, Mr. Henderson?" "Oh, no." "No." "It's Julia Webber" "Webberly's." "( commotion upstairs )" "( dramatic theme playing )" "I'm looking for something, Jim." "I" " I didn't want to bother you about it, but I left it here last week." "A glove." "It must be a pretty important glove." "Do you think Mrs. Henderson deliberately hid it?" "Oh, I'm sorry." "MASON:" "What are you looking for, Mrs. Webberly?" "My glove." "Were you here looking for it last night?" "Or perhaps your husband came here for the glove." "My husband is in San Francisco on a case." "He's been there for several days." "Mrs. Webberly, if you have nothing to hide, it's better to be cooperative." "In a courtroom, sometimes, the wrong impression" "I've nothing to hide." "But you were searching for something in here." "MRS. WEBBERLY:" "My glove, Mr. Mason." "That's all." "Just my glove." "I'm sorry, Jim." "( suspenseful theme playing )" "( knock at door )" "Wow, Mrs. Webberly." "Frank, I'll like to talk to you." "Sure." "Isn't it terrible about Mona Henderson?" "Yes." "It's about Mona I'm here." "Just think." "She had an appointment with me just the other day for some golf lessons, wanted to correct her backswing." "Frank, do you remember last year in Reno when I won the tournament?" "Well, of course I remember." "Well, at the dinner when they presented the cup" "Oh, wasn't that something?" "There's the picture right there." "That girl photographer did a fine job." "Oh, I'll treasure that picture as a classic." "All the fanfare of a trophy presentation, the only thing missing was the winner." "Of course, you can be seen in the background there talking with someone." "I'd like that picture, Frank." "Of course." "Take it." "I've got some copies." "Copies?" "Why?" "Oh, I'm a sentimental guy." "Not all of my pupils win golf tournaments." "Well." "Thanks for the picture." "Seems to me I remember that hunchback, Mrs. Webberly." "Didn't he figure in that civil case your husband was trying?" "Got a sensational verdict the day after that picture was taken." "Worth millions in publicity and money." "Some people could say it was more than luck you running into that witness." "Even though you and I both know it was really innocent." "How's your backswing, Mrs. Webberly?" "Need some lessons?" "Do I?" "Oh, about a half dozen should fix you up all right." "My extra-special ones, at 1000 dollars a lesson." "( dramatic theme playing )" "I appreciate your reluctance," "Mr. Stratton, but you must" "I did nothing illegal or unethical." "Mason, what do you want?" "How well do you know Susan Connolly?" "Henderson's secretary?" "I don't know her well at all." "Had you had any business dealings with her?" "No." "Nothing involving a large sum of money?" "No." "What about Mona Henderson?" "What about her?" "Business dealings with her?" "No." "Mr. Stratton, a photograph was taken in room 2O4 at the Highway Hotel" "There is no photograph of me in any hotel room." "( rings )" "Excuse me." "I'm on my way." "Hello." "Who?" "Just a second." "Who are you?" "You don't know me, Mr. Stratton, but I saw you yesterday with a young woman named Susan Connolly in room 204 of the Highway Hotel." "What do you want?" "Well, I happen to know you were engaged in a business deal with Mona Henderson." "Now, I'm not greedy..." "I wasn't in any hotel room with any young woman." "I'm not engaged in any deal with anyone, and nobody's gonna blackmail me." "Do you understand, fellow?" "Nobody." "That's too bad." "Along with you, it's the Connolly girl who's gonna be hurt, Stratton." "( tense theme playing )" "The district attorney's office, please." "( upbeat theme playing )" "state will prove that Susan Connolly, the defendant, did use the good offices of her employer," "Mayor James Henderson, to obtain classified information, to dispose of same for illegal profit." "And did coerce, blackmail is a more appropriate word, lie, cheat and steal, and when discovered at her nefarious practices by the deceased, Mona Henderson, did murder her without pity of compunction." "Arnold Webberly." "You can adjudge me a hostile witness all you like," "I categorically deny I had any business dealings with the mayor, James Henderson, or his wife." "What about the mayor's secretary, Susan Connolly?" "Or with her." "Now, isn't it true that you met with the defendant in a hotel room at the Highway Hotel for the purpose of giving her 10,000 dollars in exchange for confidential information relating to the land sites selected for civic development?" "No." "Did you purchase options to buy certain lots and rights of ways as enumerated here on these locations?" "Yes." "I do have options on them." "Fourteen of them." "All 14 of them were recommended by the Planning Commission." "And from this group four will be purchased." "Don't you think it's strange, Mr. Stratton, that you have options on all 14 locations?" "No." "Real estate's my business." "I'm good at it." "Besides, that's what I went to see Henderson about that night." "To make a deal to save the city some money since I owned all the options." "What night was this?" "The Wednesday Mrs. Henderson was killed." "PROSECUTOR:" "And what time was that?" "About 7:00." "And did you see Mr. Henderson?" "No." "He wasn't home." "Was anybody at home?" "Mrs. Henderson." "But I only stayed there a few minutes." "Mrs. Henderson didn't know what time the mayor would arrive, and she was expecting someone any minute." "PROSECUTOR:" "Was she?" "At approximately 7:00 on the evening of March 22nd, the evening of her murder, she expected a visitor?" "Did she say who, Mr. Stratton?" "Miss Connolly, Susan Connolly." "PROSECUTOR:" "Thank you." "Cross examine." "This deal you spoke of, Mr. Stratton... now, uh, why would you have made a deal with the city when you held all the lots?" "Wouldn't the city have to come to you?" "I just wanted to expedite the whole thing." "Directly with the mayor?" "Weren't there other agencies of the civic government that would've taken care of that?" "I thought the mayor could set the wheels in motion." "Why would you go to his home?" "Not to his office?" "I wanted to make sure I'd see him." "Then you called the mayor before going to his home." "No." "Why not?" "I just assumed he'd be there." "I suggest, Mr. Stratton that you went to the mayor's home not to see him, but to see his wife, Mona Henderson." "No, what would I want to see her for?" "A photograph." "Isn't it true that you were photographed in a hotel room in the midst of what would be interpreted as an illegal payoff?" "I said it before, there is no photograph of me in any hotel room." "MASON:" "What happened to the photograph, Mr. Stratton?" "Did you buy it from the deceased?" "Did you destroyed it?" "No." "Did you killed for it, Mr. Stratton?" "No." "That's all." "Yes, sir, I knew Mrs. Henderson." "Please tell the court what happened on the morning of March 22nd?" "Well, she came to my cottage." "She was all upset." "She said she'd just found out that her husband's secretary had been selling some information to a real estate dealer." "And why did Mrs. Henderson tell this to you?" "Well, she was worried about the mayor's reputation, he was up for some kind of an appointment, and she said she'd just overhead something in the office about a date that Miss Connolly had made with this Stratton at the Highway Hotel." "PROSECUTOR:" "Go on, Mr. Sykes." "Well, she knew I took pictures of some of the golfing events and wanted me to get a photograph of the meeting, to get the proof on Susan Connolly." "I show you this photograph, and ask if you can identify it." "Yes, sir." "That's the picture I took all right." "That's Susan Connolly and that's Thomas Stratton." "PROSECUTOR:" "I ask this photograph be marked State's Exhibit G." "Mr. Mason?" "No objection, Your Honor." "Now, Mr. Sykes, what else did the decedent say to you?" "She said she'd found out that Susan Connolly was in love with her husband and was blackmailing Mrs. Webberly." "Now, how could the defendant blackmail Mrs. Webberly?" "Well, I'll have to explain the background." "Go right ahead." "Ah, Mrs. Webberly won a woman's golf tournament in Reno last year." "At the presentation dinner, she happened to catch sight of a man that her husband needed as a witness in a civil case in Los Angeles." "It was just a lucky accident." "She excused herself and went to plead with this fellow to help her husband." "At that moment, one of those girls in short skirts took a picture at the table." "In back of us Mrs. Webberly was talking with this fellow." "And as a memento of this tournament, did you keep one of the pictures?" "Yes." "Along with a lot of others, that I keep on my wall, in the living room." "I see." "Go on, Mr. Sykes." "Well, that witness turned up in Los Angeles the very next day and helped Mrs. Webberly's husband win a handsome verdict." "And that's why she came to me on that day." "PROSECUTOR:" "Would you please explain that, Mr. Sykes?" "She said she'd been approached by Susan Connolly, who told her the picture could be interpreted as suborning perjury" "You know, buying false testimony." "and unless her husband declared himself unavailable as head of the new crime commission, she would send a copy of the picture to the papers." "Object, Your Honor." "Most of this testimony is been pure hearsay." "I have refrained from objecting because I wanted to hear the extent of the testimony, but I now ask that it be stricken from the record," "I further ask that the court to admonished the district attorney and assign the question to misconduct." "I agree." "Objection sustained." "The answer will be stricken." "I'd like to ask Mr. Thorne why he is not presenting best evidence." "We are trying to reach Mrs. Webberly, Your Honor." "This evidence only came to our attention an hour before court convened this morning." "If the court please," "I am asking this witness to recount what Mrs. Webberly told him only for the purpose of showing background." "I will stipulate that this present testimony will go only to the state of mind of Mr. Sykes at that time and will not be held as evidence of actions on the part of Susan Connolly, the defendant." "I will, promise the court however that we intend to put Mrs. Webberly on the stand to prove the conversation at firsthand." "We are now finished with this witness." "Since this is a hearing addressed entirely to the discretion of the court," "I will refrain from ruling on the motion to strike until Mrs. Webberly has been placed on the stand." "Cross examine, Mr. Mason." "Under the circumstances, I would like to defer my cross examination of this witness until Mrs. Webberly has testified, Your Honor." "Unless I there is vigorous opposition from the district attorney," "I will permit this unusual procedure." "No opposition at all, Your Honor." "You may step down." "Call your next witness." "Sergeant Ralph Reynolds to the stand." "Defendant's fingerprints were found on the sill of the service room window and on the windowpane itself." "Now, I show you this revolver and ask if you can identify it." "Yes." "It's the murder weapon, registered to James M. Henderson." "It was found in the murder room." "Now this box of cartridges." ".32's for the revolver." "We found it in a drawer in the murder room." "Defense will stipulate the fatal bullet came from that box of cartridges." "Now I show you these moulages and ask if you can identify them." "Defense will further stipulate the defendant was at the scene of the murder." "Then I have no more questions." "Your witness." "Sergeant, the revolver holds how many cartridges?" "Six." "How many unexploded cartridges were in the gun?" "There were five unexploded cartridges and one empty cartridge case." "There seems to be seven cartridges missing from this new box." "Perhaps, uh, two bullets were fired from the gun." "REYNOLDS:" "Well, only one was found." "Perhaps after the first bullet was fired, the revolver was reloaded." "We found only one bullet in deceased's body." "There is a window in the murder room that looks onto the rear of the house, is there not, Sergeant?" "Yes." "MASON:" "A shot could have been fired from the gun out through that window, could it not?" "Well, yes, I suppose." "Thank you sergeant, That will be all." "James Henderson to the stand." "MAN:" "You swear to tell the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth?" "MR. HENDERSON:" "I do." "MAN:" "State your name." "James Henderson." "Be seated." "I call your attention, Mr. Henderson, to the evening of Wednesday, March 22nd." "Yes, sir?" "THORNE:" "Please tell the court what transpired when you arrived at about 8:00, approximately the same time as Perry Mason, the defense attorney." "I was about to open my front door when I heard something that sounded like a shot from inside of the house." "THORNE:" "What did you do?" "I went inside." "Mason stayed at the front door." "I found my wife in the study, dead." "I went back for Mason." "Are you familiar with your secretary's automobile, Mr. Henderson?" "( tense theme playing )" "Yes." "I ask if you noticed anything in the front of your home on the street at that moment?" "Mr. Henderson, you will answer the question." "Yes." "What did you see?" "A car driving away." "Did you recognize the car?" "Yes." "It was Susan's." "THORNE:" "Did you know Miss Connolly would be at your home?" "No." "Had you reason to believe she would be at your home?" "Now, I have refrained from indulging in legal theatrics," "I could put the defense attorney himself on the stand to corroborate all the evidence surrounding this particular time of evening at your home, but this evidence has been educed for the court without it." "Now I ask you, Mr. Henderson, did you have reason to believe your secretary," "Susan Connolly, would be at your home?" "Yes, yes, she" "She phoned me." "She told me she was going to be there." "( dramatic theme playing )" "(telephone ringing )" "Hi, Perry." "He went into his house about 45 minutes ago." "What about the police?" "Well, Sergeant Reynolds's been in there for about five minutes now." "Ah, wait a minute, he's just coming out, which probably means that Julia Webberly is not there." "But Arnold Webberly is." "Oh, no." "You stay right where you are, Paul." "We need Julia Webberly." "All right, Perry." "No sign of her yet." "Perry, if we do get her to testify, she'll prove Frank Sykes is lying, won't she?" "And that would mean that it wasn't Susan who did the blackmailing, it was Mona." "That's where Sykes has been so clever, Della." "He's given Webberly a clean bill of health." "He's said to Julia in effect, "Here I've cleared you," ""I've established the innocence of that meeting in Reno, now you've got to back me up on the story I told."" "So all Julia has to do is go along with Sykes's story and her husband will probably get the appointment." "It's my guess that right now she's making a decision." "One way or the other, we'll find out what it is in court." "( dramatic theme playing )" "MASON:" "I'd like a complete picture of what happened, Mr. Henderson." "You said the defendant told you she was going to your home." "Yes, she did." "When and how did she tell you?" "At about a 7:15." "On the phone." "Where were you at the time?" "In my office." "After the call, what did you do?" "I finished up some work and went home, met you there." "That revolver shot we both heard." "Did you suspect that it was Susan who fired it?" "Let me hypothesize, Mr. Henderson." "How long does it take you to drive from your office to your home?" "Um, about ten minutes." "Takes Miss Connolly about, uh, a half an hour from her place." "What does that mean?" "Well, hadn't she told you what really happened concerning Mrs. Stratton, your wife, and the hotel room?" "Yes." "She had." "MASON:" "You then realized your own wife had deceived you." "Now, isn't it possible that when Mrs. Connolly arrived at your home and found your wife dead, she jumped to the conclusion that you'd killed her?" "And isn't that why, when she saw us at the front door she fired a shot to confuse the issue, to protect you, to cover you with an alibi?" "No further questions." "She must've been there all the time, Perry." "She and her husband came out together." "JUDGE:" "Call your next witness." "Your Honor, the prosecution rests its case." "We have proved the murder was committed and we have established the grave probability that it was perpetrated by the defendant." "We therefore ask Miss Susan Connolly be bound over for trial by jury." "Mr. Mason?" "Well, Your Honor, it was my understanding that the prosecution was going to put" "Julia Webberly on the stand." "The prosecution feels its case is concluded." "But, Your Honor-- JUDGE:" "Just a moment, Mr. Mason." "Now, Mr. Thorne, you will call Mrs. Julia Webberly to the stand." "I recall your promise to produce her." "Your Honor, we are not prepared at this time to examine Mrs. Webberly." "I'm not inclined to argue with you, Mr. Thorne." "I want Mrs. Julia Webberly on the stand and I want the defense to have the opportunity to cross-examine her." "If you make no direct examination," "I will permit the cross the greatest latitude." "Now what do you say, Mr. Thorne?" "The prosecution does not wish to examine Mrs. Webberly at this time." "Julia Webberly, come to the stand." "Swear the witness in." "MAN:" "Do you swear to tell the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth?" "I was frightened." "If the newspapers printed the story, true or not," "I felt I could never convince anyone that it was all innocent and aboveboard and" "Well, at the time, anyway, just a happy coincidence." "And then my husband told me what Frank Sykes said in court this morning and I realized that Frank was giving me a chance to make sure of the governor's appointment for Arnold." "All I'd have to do was corroborate the story." "It was very tempting." "But it was a lie, Mr. Mason." "There wasn't a word of truth in Frank Sykes' testimony." "Then it wasn't Susan Connolly who blackmailed you with the photograph, Mrs. Webberly?" "No." "It was Mona Henderson first." "And second?" "Frank Sykes." "You understand, the blackmail this time was purely for money." "Six thousand dollars." "Thank you, Mrs. Webberly." "That'll be all." "Now, Your Honor," "I would like to cross-examine Frank Sykes as stipulated this morning." "Frank Sykes to the stand." "I will remind you, Mr. Sykes, you're still under oath." "Well, you can't hang a guy for trying to make a living, can you?" "The truth is then, is that it was Mona Henderson, and not the defendant, who had this illegal deal with Thomas Stratton?" "Well, you'll have to ask Stratton about that yourself." "Well, I intend to." "How did Mona Henderson get the photograph of Julia Webberly and Buonanova?" "She saw it in my room." "Took it right off from under my nose." "How did you find out about it, Mr. Sykes?" "Well, I got a call from Mrs. Webberly." "About the photograph?" "That's right." "She was pretty upset." "MASON:" "What time was that call?" "It was that evening, about, oh, 6:00, I guess." "And at that time it occurred to you that this photograph could be an instrument for blackmail?" "SYKES:" "Right, yes it did." "Kind of late." "I could never put two and two together, like Mona Henderson." "After Mrs. Webberly spoke to you, what did you do?" "Ah, what was there to do?" "I would think you might have tried to find out what Mona Henderson had seen in this photograph, what it was about it that upset Mrs. Webberly so much." "Well, I did phone Mona." "And she told you what you wanted to know on the telephone?" "That's right." "Then you went to see her." "No." "Then how did you get this photograph back?" "You did get it back, did you not?" "You showed it to Mrs. Webberly later on." "Yes, that's right." "Uh, uh" "I got the photograph back the next morning." "At the Henderson's home?" "That's right." "But I was at the Henderson home the next morning, Mr. Sykes." "So were the police." "Now, how could you--?" "I guess it was the same afternoon then, and I just don't recall exactly." "But it couldn't have been that same afternoon." "You testified you first heard about it when Mrs. Webberly called you, about 6:00 that evening." "So it must've been after 6:00 that evening when you called Mona Henderson." "Yes." "I guess it was." "And it must have been close to 7:00 when you arrived at the Henderson home." "I don't know the exact time." "Well, was probably between 7:00 and 7:45, because at a 7:45 you had already left and Mrs. Henderson had already been shot." "Now, it was between 7:00 and 7:45, was it not, Mr. Sykes?" "What happened during that time?" "Nothing happened." "I asked for the photograph back and she gave it to me." "And she just handed the photograph over to you?" "Just like that." "What else could she do?" "Oh, any number of things." "She could have laughed at you, for instance." "Laugh?" "No, she didn't laugh." "She could have told you to go peddle your golf lessons." "She could have said no to your blackmail demands, sending your dreams of getting your hands on a lot of money right out the window." "And what did she say to you, Mr. Sykes?" "She got angry." "She threatened you?" "She tried to shoot me." "She went for the gun and I grabbed it from her." "And it went off." "She just stood there looking at me with the queerest look not believing it, if you know what I mean, not believing that I'd really shoot her." "Rotten luck." "Everything was going fine." "It's rotten luck." "( dramatic theme playing )" "I've told Carter" "I'm not available for the appointment and I think the governor couldn't do better than Arnold Webberly." "Was a brave thing you did, Susan." "Even if it was illegal." "She will have to face charges, won't she, Mr. Mason?" "Carter indicated he would use whatever influence he has to get the court to grant Susan probation." "That, uh" "That gun..." "How did it get in to your home, Mr. Henderson?" "Oh, I brought it home." "From the office." "And the box of cartridges too." "Certainly had me guessing for a while." "You thought that I killed Mona?" "The details fit so well." "Any plans, Susan?" "Not for a while." "Mr. Henderson?" "Oh, my job is waiting for me." "And speaking of jobs, thank you so much." "Mayor Henderson." "Thank you, Mr. Mason." "Susan." "Good bye." "Good bye." "Good bye." "DELLA:" "Good luck." "( cheerful theme playing )" "( door closes )" "What about us?" "Plans?" "I've got some." "I'm not talking about our jobs." "I am." "Here." "Take a note." "New French restaurant, just opened up, specializes in rack of lamb, mint sauce, lyonnaise potatoes" "( French theme playing ) crêpes suzette." "Mm?" "( laughs )" "( noirish jazz theme playing )"