12 Angry Men (1997) Movie Script

I will kill you!
...and that concludes
the court's explanation
of the legal aspects of this case.
And now gentlemen of the jury I
come to my final instructions to you.
Murder in the first degree,
premeditated homicide is the most serious
charge tried in our criminal courts.
You've listened to the testimony,
you've had the law read to you and
interpreted as it applies to this case.
It now becomes your duty to try to
separate the facts from the fancy.
One man is dead. The life
of another is at stake.
I urge you to deliberate
thoughtfully and honestly.
If there is a reasonable doubt, you
must bring me a verdict of not guilty.
If however there is no reasonable
doubt, you must, in good conscience,
find the accused guilty.
Whatever your decision, your
verdict must be unanimous.
In the event that you do
find the accused guilty,
the bench will not entertain
a recommendation for mercy.
Bear in mind that he could
face the death penalty.
I don't envy your job, you're faced with a
grave responsibility gentlemen, thank you.
Can I get a couple of you gentlemen to help
me pull those two tables together please?
Hey, get some windows open man.
Yeah!
- Piece of gum?
- No, thank you.
- Bad news.
- What?
You see the Weather Report?
This is the hottest day of the year.
Figures...
You'd think they could have
air-conditioned the place, you know?
- I don't wanna drop dead in
court... Piece of gum? - Yeah!
OK, gentlemen. Everybody's here.
You want anything, Ill
be right outside the door.
Just hit the button
'n' I'll come right in.
Thanks.
I never knew they locked the door.
They always lock the door
brother. What'd you think?
I don't know. It just
never occurred to me.
- Hey, what's that for?
- I figured we might wanna vote by ballot.
That's a great idea. We might be
able to get this boy elected senator.
- Well, how'd you like it?
- I don't know. It was pretty interesting.
- Yeah? I'm falling asleep. - What I
mean is, I've never sat on a jury before.
I've sat on juries.
One thing that always amazes
me is how these lawyers
can talk and talk, even on a
case as obvious as this one.
- I've never heard so much talk about
nothin'. - Well, I guess they're entitled.
Oh sure, everyone's
entitled to a fair trial,
I'd be the last one to say
a thing against that, but...
sometimes I think, we ought
to take these tough kids
and just slap 'em down,
before they start trouble.
It would save a lot of time and money.
Mr. Foreman, would d'ya
say, we get started here?
Yeah, let get this over with,
we probably all got things to do.
We might as well take a five minute
break. There's a man in the bathroom.
Are... we sitting in our own way?
So what do you think about the case?
I enjoyed it. No dead's
bus, you know what I mean?
We were lucky to get a murder case.
I figured us for an assault or a
burglary or something like that.
These can be dull...
Hey, can you imagine, sitting in
here for three days just for this?
Yeah, how about that
business with the knife?
I mean, expecting normal people
to believe that kind of bullshit.
Well you gotta expect that. You
know what you're dealing with here.
What's the matter? You cold?
Well, I can hardly touch my
nose, you know what I mean?
Your horn's alright. Try your lights.
Ahh, this is beautiful! The
air condition that doesn't work!
Somebody take a letter to
the mayor. Dear stingy...!
I didn't get a chance to see the
papers today. Anything new going on?
I was just wondering
how the market closed.
I wouldn't know.
You're in exchange or something?
No, no, I'm a broker.
Really? I run a messenger
service, The Beck and Call Company.
My wife's idea. We employ 37
people. Started from nothing!
Come on, Mr. Foreman, come on,
what do you say, let's go here!
Alright gentlemen, let's take seats.
This better be fast, I got two
tickets to the ball game tonight.
Yanks and Cleveland. We've got
this new kid Modjelewski in there.
This kid, he's a real
bull, you know, I mean...
Talking about a real
jug-handled. You know?
You quite the baseball fan, eh?
Where do you want us to sit?
Well, I was thinking we'd just sit
in order of jury number: 2,3,4...
I kinda like it.
If that's alright with you gentlemen.
- Sure!
- What's the difference?
I think it's reasonable to
sit according to numbers.
What was your impression
of the prosecuting attorney?
I beg your pardon?
I thought it was very
sharp the way he handled
all his points one by
one, in logical sequence.
Takes a good brain for
that, I was very impressed.
Yes, he did an expert job.
They got a lot of drive these
guys, you know, real drive.
Let's get this show on the road!
You... you'd like to sit down?
Gentleman at the window?
Would you like to sit down?
Oh... yeah, sorry!
It's pretty tough, isn't it?
I mean, the kid just kills his
father, bang... just like that!
If you analyze the figures on the...
Come on now, what figures?
It's those people I'm telling you.
See, they just let the
kids run wild out there.
Maybe it serves 'em right,
you know what I mean?
Where's that elderly gentleman?
He's in the bathroom.
Would you knock on the door please?
Sure.
Thank you.
You a Yankee fan?
No, Milwaukee.
Milwaukee? What, you kidding?
It's like getting hit on the
head with a crowbar once a day!
I mean, tell me, who they got?
Really, I'm asking you, who they
got? Besides great grasskeepers?
We'd like to get started here.
Oh, I'm sorry.
I didn't mean to keep you waiting.
Quite alright.
Alright gentlemen.
You can handle this
any way you'd like to.
I have no rules.
We can discuss it first and
then vote, that's one way
or we can vote and
then see where we stand.
That's all I have to say...
I think it's customary to
take a preliminary vote.
Yeah, come on, let's vote!
Then we can all go home!
It's up to you, but let's just remember
this is a first degree murder charge.
If we find him guilty, he
could die by lethal injection.
Yeah, let's vote.
Yeah, let's see who's where!
Anyone who doesn't wanna vote?
Let's just remember
that this is gotta be
twelve to nothing either
way, that's the law.
Everyone ready?
All those voting
guilty raise your hands.
Eleven.
All those voting not guilty.
One.
Eleven-one guilty.
Now we now where we stand.
Well there's always one, eh?
So what do we do now?
I guess we... talk.
Honestly, you really
think he's innocent?
I don't know.
I mean, let's be reasonable here.
You sat in the court
room, you heard everything.
The rest of us did. This man is a
dangerous killer, you could see it.
Man? He's 18 years old.
He's old enough!
He knifed his own father,
four inches into the chest.
Pretty obvious. I was
convinced on the very first day.
Sure, who wasn't?
I really think this is one
of these open and shut things.
I mean, they proved it
a dozen different ways.
Would you like to list 'em for you?
No, no, no...
Then what DO you want?
I just wanna talk!
Well, what's there to talk about?
Eleven men here agree.
I mean, who would have to
think twice about it except you?
Hey look, let me ask you a question.
Do you really believe that boy's story?
I don't know if I believe his
story or not, maybe I don't.
So then, why did you
vote not guilty for?
Look, eleven men voted guilty.
I just don't find it easy to raise my
hand and send a boy to prison for life
or maybe even to be executed
without talking about it first.
- Who says it's easy for me?
- No one.
What, because I voted fast?
No.
I honestly think the kid's guilty.
You couldn't change my mind
if you talked a 100 years!
I'm not trying to change your mind.
We're talking about
a person's life here.
We can't just decide in 5 minutes.
Suppose we're wrong?
Suppose we're wrong! Suppose the
whole building fell on my head!
You could suppose anything you want.
That's right.
So then what difference does
it make how long it takes?
If we honestly think the kid's guilty,
suppose we finish in 5 minutes, so what?
Suppose we take an hour, your
game doesn't start till 8 o'clock.
Ok slugger, be my guest.
Who's got something to say?
Not me.
I'm willing to put in an hour.
- What? - Great! I heard a
pretty good story last night...
There is this woman, she goes
running into the doctor's office...
Excuse me, that's not why
we are sitting in here for.
Alright then, you tell me
what are we sitting here for.
Well, maybe for no reason,
I don't know, but look...
...this kid has been knocked
around all of his life,
been born in a slum, he lost his
mother when he was just, what, 9...
and he spent a year and
a half in an orphanage,
while his old man was doing
a jail term for forgery.
That's not a very good headstart.
He's had a rotten 18 years.
I just think we owe that
boy a few words, that's all.
Hey look, I don't mind
telling you this mister,
but we don't owe him a thing!
That's right!
I mean, he had a fair trial, didn't he?
What do you think that trial cost?
And he was lucky he got it.
We're all grown ups in here and
we heard the facts, now didn't we?
Now you're not gonna sit there 'n' tell
us we're supposed to believe this kid
knowing what he is.
Look, I've lived among them all my life.
I mean, you can't believe a word
they say. They are born liars.
It suddenly occurs to me that
you must be an ignorant man.
What are you talking about?
You think you have a
monopoly on the truth?
Why are you making a federal case out of
this, come on man, how do you like this guy?
I think certain things should
be pointed out to this man.
This isn't Sunday, we
don't need a sermon in here.
I don't see any need to argue like that,
I think we ought to be able
to behave like gentlemen,
if we're going to discuss this case.
Maybe the gentleman who's disagreeing
down there could tell us why.
Tell us what he thinks and we could
show him where he's probably mixed up.
- What are you doing?
- Eh?
What is that?
It's one of the products I work
on at the ad agency: Rice Pops.
"The breakfast with the built
in bounce" I wrote that one.
Oh, that's where that came from.
That's very catchy.
Do you mind?
I'm sorry, I just have this habit
of doodling. It keeps me focused.
We're trying to do something.
We could be sitting here forever.
No, look, look, look,
I might have an idea.
I mean I'm just thinking
out loud, but it seems to me
that it's up to us to convince this
gentleman that we're right and he's wrong.
Maybe if we each took a minute or two
to explain how we feel, you know...
- It was just a quick thought.
- No, no, no, that's good.
Suppose we go once around the table.
- Anything, just let start it off!
- Fine, why don't you go first?
No, not me...
I think we ought to go in order.
Ok, that's fair... in
order. Two minutes a piece.
That means you go first.
Oh, well, um...
Well, it's hard to put it into
words... I just think that he's guilty.
I thought it was obvious from the
word go. Nobody proved otherwise.
Nobody has to prove otherwise. The burden
of proof rests with the prosecution.
The defendant doesn't even
have to open his mouth.
I know that! What I meant was...
The man is guilty,
there was a witness.
Somebody saw him do it.
Ok, here's what I think.
And I have no personal feelings
at all, I'm talking facts.
Number one, let's take
the old man who lived
on the 2nd floor directly
underneath the room
where the murder was committed.
Now, he says that about 10 minutes
after 12 on the night of the killing
he heard a loud noise from
upstairs. Sounded like a fight.
And he heard the boy yell
out: "I'm going to kill you"
A second later the body hit the floor,
he run to his apartment door, looked out,
saw the kid running down the
stairs and out of the house.
He called the police and they found
the father with a knife in his chest.
- And the coroner fixed the
time of death around midnight.
He's right. These are facts. You
can't refute facts. This kid's guilty.
Look, I'm as sentimental as the
next guy. I know he's only 18.
But he's gotta pay for what he did.
I'm with you pops.
It was obvious to me that the
boy's entire story was flimsy.
He claimed he was at the movies
at the time of the killing
yet one hour later he couldn't
remember what films he saw.
- He claims that.
- That's right. Did you hear that?
That's absolutely right.
And no one saw him going
into or out of the theater.
And what about the
woman across the street?
If her testimony don't
prove it, nothing does.
That's right, she's the one
who actually saw the killing.
That's right.
Come on fellas, let's go
in order here, come on.
Now look. Here's a woman
who's lying in her bed.
She can't sleep, dying from
the heat, you know what I mean.
And then she looks out the
window, and right across the street
she sees this kid stick
the knife into his father.
It's 12.10 on the nose. Everything fits.
And look, she's known
this boy all of his life.
His window is right
opposite hers right across
the el tracks and she
swore she saw him do it.
Through the windows of
a passing elevated train?
This el train had no passengers on.
It was just being moved downtown.
Lights out, remember that?
And they proved in court
that at night you can
look through the windows
of a passing el train
with the lights out and you can see
what's happening on the other side.
Now they proved that!
Could I ask you a question?
Go ahead.
You don't believe the boy.
Why do you believe the woman?
Isn't she one of them too?
Oh you're just a real
smart fellow, aren't you?
Take it easy.
What's he so wise
about? I'm telling ya...
Alright, alright, we don't
need none of that in here.
Now, whose turn is it?
Alright, you're next.
I pass.
- What did he say?
- He passes.
It's his privilege.
How about the next gentleman?
I don't know...
I came convinced very early
in the case. Excuse me.
See, I'm looking for motive.
I think it's very important. If you don't
have a motive you don't have a case, right?
So anyway, that testimony from those people
across the hall from the kid's apartment,
well, that's why that was so important,
cause didn't they say that the
father 'n' the kid had an argument
and the kid run out
sometime around 7 o'clock
that night, I could be
wrong about the time...
It was 8 o'clock.
Yes, that's right, it was 8 o'clock.
They heard the argument but they
couldn't tell what the argument was about.
Then they heard the
father hit the son twice
and then later they saw the son
walk out of the apartment angrily
...but what does it prove?
It don't exactly prove anything, I'm just
saying it's part of the picture, that's all.
Yeah, but you did say it revealed the
motive and that's what the prosecution said.
To me it's a very weak motive!
This boy has been hit so many times that
violence is a normal part of his life.
I don't think a couple more hits in
the face would provoke him to murder.
It may have been two hits too
many. Everyone has a breaking point.
- Anything else?
- No.
- How about the next gentleman?
- Me?
I don't know...
I mean it's practically all
been said already, you know?
I mean we could talk about it forever.
This kid's 0 for five. I
mean look at his record.
At 10 he's at juvenile court,
he threw a rock at a teacher,
at 14 he was in reform
school cause he stole a car,
he's been arrested for muggin',
he's been picked up twice for trying
to slash another teen with a knife,
he's real good with that switchblade
you know. Everybody said that.
This is a real fine boy.
Ever since he was 5 years
old, his father beat him up
and he used his fists.
So would I. A kid like that?
Wouldn't you call those beatings a
motive for him to kill his father?
I'd say it's a motive for him to
be an angry young man, I'd say that.
These kids, the way they are nowadays.
They're angry, hostile.
I mean, look at the way they talk.
When I was at his age I called
my father "Sir", that's right!
Ever hear a boy call
his father that anymore?
Fathers don't seem to think
that's important anymore.
- No? You got any kid?
- Two.
I got one.
He is 32.
We did everything in the world
for that boy that could happen.
When he was 9 he run away from a fight,
I saw him do it, I was so
ashamed I almost threw up.
And I said to him right straight out,
I said "I'm gonna make a man out of you
or I'm gonna bust you in half trying".
I made a man out of him alright.
When he was 16 we got into a battle,
he hit me in the face, big kid, ya know.
I haven't seen him in 14 years.
Rotten kid!
You work your heart out...
Well come on, let's get on with it.
I think... I think we're
missing the point here.
This boy, let's say he's a
product of a filthy neighborhood
and a broken home, he can't help it,
we're here to decide whether
he's guilty or innocent of murder,
not to go into reasons
why he grew up this way.
He was born in a slum.
Slums are breeding grounds for criminals,
I know as a view it's no secret.
Slum big grounds are
potential menaces to society.
You can say that again!
Alright, kids who crawl out of these
places they're nothing but trash.
Hey, I don't want a think in the
world to do with them, I'm telling you.
I lived in a slum all my life!
I nursed that trash in Harlem
hospital six nights a week.
Hey, now, come on!
I used to play in a backyard that was full
of garbage, maybe it still smells on me!
Now, come on, why you got to go there...
- Let's be reasonable, there's nothing
personal... - There is something personal!
Now, now, let's not be so sensitive.
This kind of sensitivity I understand.
Alright, let's stop all this
arguing, it's just wasting time.
Now, it's your turn, let's go.
Me? I didn't expect a turn.
I thought everybody was trying to
convince me, I thought that was the idea.
Check, I forgot about that.
I mean, what's the difference?
He's the one keeping us here,
let's see what he's got to say.
Wait a minute! We decided we're
gonna do this a certain way,
let's stick to what we said.
Come on, stop treating us like kids!
- Kids? What are you talking about?
- Just what I said.
What, just that I'm trying
to keep things organized here?
Listen, you wanna do this? You sit here!
You take responsibility.
I'll just shut up.
What now, why'd get so hot about it man,
why don't you just calm down up there!
Don't tell me to calm
down, here's the chair.
You keep things runnin'
smooth 'n' everything.
You think it's a snap?
Come on man Mr. Foreman,
let's see how great you run this show.
- You ever seen a thing like that before?
- Oh you think it's funny now, eh?
Hey, this whole thing is unimportant.
It's unimportant?
What? You wanna try it?
No, look, you're doing a beautiful job!
You're doing a beautiful job!
Come on now, let's hear from somebody.
Excuse me gentlemen!
If you would like to hear
how I feel about all of this,
I'd be glad to tell you right now.
I don't care what you gonna do!
Oh now, he's mad, you mad?
I don't have anything brilliant and
I already know what you all know.
From the testimony,
the boy looks guilty.
- You can say that again!
- Alright, now maybe he is, but,
I spent 3 days in court listening to
that evidence build up and build up
and everyone seemed so positive, I began
to get a peculiar feeling about this case,
because nothing is
that positive, nothing.
I had a bunch of questions
I wanted to ask about all
these things, they mean
anything or not I don't know,
but I do know that I felt the lawyer,
the boy's lawyer, was not doing his job.
He was letting too many
things go by, little things
What do you mean little things? Look,
when these guys don't ask questions,
it's because they know the answer and they
figure that they'll probably get hurt by it.
Yeah, but it could also mean that the
lawyer is just plain stupid, couldn't it?
Sounds like you've
met my brother in law.
Anyway... I put myself
in the boy's place.
If I was that boy, I would've
asked for another lawyer.
I mean, if I'm on trial for my life
I would want my lawyer to
take all of the prosecution's
witnesses and just tear
them to shreds, or try.
Now look, there was one
eye witness to this killing
and someone else said
that they heard it and then
saw the boy running out later.
There was a lot of
circumstantial evidence,
but those two witnesses where the
entire case for the prosecution.
Suppose they were wrong!
What do you mean suppose they were wrong?
What's the point of having witnesses at all?
Could they be wrong?
They took the stand under oath!
What are you trying to say?
Well, they're people.
People make mistakes.
Could they be wrong?
No, I don't think so.
Do you know so?
Nobody could know something like
that. This isn't an exact science.
That's right, it isn't.
Let's try to get to the point.
Let's take the knife they
found on the father's chest.
Wait a minute! Don't
you think we ought to...
Some of the people haven't
had the chance to talk.
They can talk anytime they want,
just gimme a second here, will you?
What about that knife?
You know the one our fine, upright boy
admitted buying the night of the murder?
Let's talk about it.
Yes, let's talk about it.
As a matter of fact let's look at it
again. I'd like to see it. Mr. Foreman?
We all know what it looks like. What
are we gonna gain by seeing it again?
He brought it up.
The gentleman has a right
to see exhibits of evidence,
the knife, where it was bought, it's
pretty strong evidence, don't you think?
Yes I do.
- We're gonna need that knife.
- OK.
One: The boy admitted
going out of his house
at 8 o'clock on the night of the murder
after being punished
several times by his father.
He said slapped, not punished. There's
a difference between a slap and a punish.
After being slapped
several times by his father.
Two: The boy went directly
to a neighbourhood junkshop,
where he bought,
what do you call it?
- Switchblade!
- Switchblade knife!
Thank you, thank you. Three: This
wasn't what you'd call an ordinary knife.
It had a very unusual carved handle.
Four: The storekeeper who sold it to him
identified the knife in court and said
it was the only one of its kind
that he had ever had in stock.
Five: At about 8:45 the boy run into
three friends of his in front of a diner.
Am I correct so far?
You bet he is! Listen to this man,
he knows what he's talking about.
The boy talked with his friends for
about an hour, leaving them at 9:45.
During this time, they
saw the switch blade knife.
Six: Each of them identified the death
weapon in court as that same knife.
Seven: The boy arrived
home at about 10 o'clock.
Now, this is where the
stories offered by the
boy and the state begin
to diverge slightly.
He claims that he stayed home until 11:30
then went to one of those all-night movies,
he returned home at about 3:50 in
the morning to find his father dead
and himself arrested.
Now, what happened to
the switchblade knife?
He claims that the knife fell
through a hole in his pocket,
sometime between 11:30 and 3:50 while
he was on the street to the movie
and that he never saw it again.
No! This is a tale gentlemen!
I think it's quite clear that he
never went to the movies that night.
No one in the house saw him go out at
He couldn't even remember the
names of the pictures he saw.
Now... what actually happened is this.
The boy stayed home, had
another fight with his father,
stabbed him to death with the
knife at about 10 minutes after 12
and fled from the house.
He even remembered to wipe the
knife clean of fingerprints.
Thanks man.
Please give me the knife.
Are you trying to tell me that the knife
fells through a hole in the boy's pocket,
that someone picked it up off the
street where it was the boy's house,
stabbed his father, just to be amusing?
I'm just saying that it is
possible that the boy lost the knife
and somebody else stabbed his
father with a similar knife.
It's possible, that's all.
It's possible...
Take a look at that knife.
I've never seen one like it.
Neither has the storekeeper
who sold it to the boy.
And you're asking us to accept
a pretty incredible coincidence?
I'm not asking you to accept anything.
I'm just saying that it's possible.
And I say it's not possible!
What are you trying to do?
Who do you think you are...
Hey, what is this? Where
did you get that knife now?
Where has that come from?
Quiet, quiet, please!
Where did you get that knife?
I was out walking last
night, just... thinking...
I was in the boy's neighborhood,
that knife comes from a pawn
shop three blocks from his house,
it cost 25$.
- It's against the law to buy it.
- I broke the law.
Listen, you pulled a
pretty bright trick here,
now suppose you tell me what it proves.
There could be ten
knives like that, so what?
There could be...
What does that mean?
I mean, so he got the
same kind of knife,
what is that, the discovery
of the age or something?
It'd still be an incredible
coincidence for another person
to have stabbed the father
with the same kind of knife.
Come on, the odds are a million to one!
But it's possible!
Alright gentlemen, let's take sits.
There's no point meddling around here.
Very interesting that he should find a
knife exactly like the one the boy bought.
What's interesting about
it? It proves anything?
Proves? No, no, no... I didn't mean...
How come the kid bought the
knife in the first place?
Well, he claims...
I know he claims he bought it
as a present for a friend of his,
who was gonna give it
to him the next day,
because he busted the other kid's
knife dropping it off the pants!
That's what he said.
The friend testified in court
that the boy did break his knife.
How long before the killing?
Three weeks, right?
So how come our noble lad bought this thing
an half an hour after his father smacked him
and three and a half
hours before they found it
shoved up to here into
the father's chest?
Look, he was gonna give it to his
friend, he just wanted to use it first.
Let me ask you a question, this is
something I wanted to bring up in court.
If the boy did buy the knife to use
on his father, how come he showed
what was going to
become the murder weapon
to three friends a couple
of hours before the killing?
All this is just talk!
The boy lied and you know it.
Do you think he lied?
That's a stupid question,
damn right he lied!
And you sir?
You don't have to ask me that,
you know my answer, he lied, yes!
And you?
- I think maybe...
- Maybe, wait a second!
What are you, the kid's
lawyer or something?
Who are you to come in here
and start cross examining us?
Isn't this what's supposed
to happen in a jury room?
There are still eleven of us
in here who think he's guilty.
Yeah, I mean what'd you
think you gonna accomplish?
You're not gonna change anybody's mind!
You wanna be stubborn and
hang this jury? Go ahead!
The kid'll be tried again and
found guilty, as sure as he's born.
You're probably right!
So then what do you wanna do about
it? We could be here all night...
It's only one night. A boy may die.
Oh brother!
Anybody got a deck o'cards?
I don't think he should joke about it.
I don't see how all this talk about
the knife's got to do with anything.
I mean, come on, somebody
saw that boy stab his father.
What more do we need?
I got three car washes out there going to
pot while we're sitting up in here talking.
Come on, let's get done with
this so we can get outta here!
Excuse me, but...
...the knife was very important
to the district attorney,
he took one whole morning with that!
Come on, that guy was a 15th assistant
or something... What does he know?
I think we should get on with it.
These side arguments only slow us up.
Now, what about it?
You are the only one...
Gentlemen...
I have a proposition.
I'd like to call for another vote,
I want you eleven men to
vote by secret written ballot
and I will abstain.
If all eleven of you vote guilty,
I'm not gonna hold out, we'll go in
with a verdict to the judge right now.
But if anyone votes not
guilty, then we stay and talk!
And... that's all...
I'm ready right now,
if you'll all go for it.
Finally, you're behaving
like a reasonable man!
Come on, let's do it!
Anyone who doesn't agree?
Alright, pass these along.
Come on, today man...
Alright...
Guilty.
Guilty.
Guilty.
Guilty.
Guilty.
Guilty.
Guilty.
Guilty.
Guilty.
Not guilty.
Guilty.
Well how do ya like that?
And another chap flips
his god damn wings!
Come on who was it? Cause I wanna know!
Excuse me! We agreed that
this would be a secret ballot.
- Secret?
- Yeah!
- What are you talking about?
- Secret...
There's no secrets in the jury room...
I know who did it...
Brother you are really
something, you know that?
You come in here
and you vote guilty like everybody else
and then there's golden voice preacher
over here starts to tear your heart out
with a lot of stories
about a poor little boy
who just couldn't help
becoming a murderer.
So you change your vote...
...that is the most sickening...
Why don't you drop a quarter
in his collection box?
Wait a minute, you can't talk like that!
Sit down!
- He's very excitable.
- Damn right I'm excitable!
We're trying to put a
guilty man where he belongs
and somebody's telling us fairy tales
and we're listening!
- Take it easy.
- What do you mean take it easy?
You feel like seeing a proven
murderer walking the streets?
I'll tell you what! Let's give him
his knife back, make it easier for him!
Alright, stop the yelling!
Now does anyone have
any other suggestions?
Excuse me, I would
like to say something.
I've always thought that
in this country a man was
entitled to have an unpopular opinion.
Hey look, let's stick
to the subject, ok pal?
Why did you switch your vote for?
Now look... ain't none of
your fucking business...
He didn't switch his vote, I did.
Would you like me to tell you why?
No, I wouldn't like
you to tell me why...
Well, I'd like to make
myself clear anyway...
If you don't mind.
Do we have to listen to this?
Hey look, the man wants to talk!
Thank you!
This gentleman has been
standing alone against us.
He doesn't say the boy is not guilty.
He just isn't sure.
Well it's not easy to stand alone
against the ridicule of others...
He gambled for support
and I gave it to him.
I respect his motives.
The boy on trial is probably guilty.
But I wanna hear more...
I'm talking here!
You have no right to just walk...
He can't hear you. He never will.
Sit down.
If the speech is over, may we go on?
I think we ought to take a break,
there is a man inside there...
...we should wait for him.
Look I... was pretty excited,
you know what I mean...
I didn't mean to get nasty or anything.
Thank you.
God, I wish I knew some
way we could break this up.
You know in advertising... I told
you I work in an ad agency, didn't I?
Well, we got some pretty
strange people down there.
Well, not strange really,
they just have peculiar ways
of expressing themselves
sometimes, you know what I mean.
It's probably the same
thing in your business.
What is it you do?
I'm a watch maker.
Really?
Finest watchmakers in the world
come from Europe, don't they?
Anyway! Like I was saying...
At the ad agency, when we reach
a point like this in a meeting,
there's always some character
ready with an idea that kills me.
I mean it's the weirdest thing
sometimes, the way they...
...percieve their idea with
some little phrase, you know,
like some count exec would go
"Oh here's an idea, let's
hang around the flag pole,
see if anyone sings the national anthem"
or... "Here's an idea, let's put it on
the bus, see if it gets of at Wall Street"
I mean, it's idiotic
really, but it's funny.
- Excuse me.
- Sure.
So, I wonder if I can
ask you a question.
Are you one of those nation Islam guys?
I only ask cause I've never
met one of you guys before.
I was...
But we didn't exactly see things
eye to eye, you know what I'm saying?
Not really...
But anyway, I was wondering
if you could do me a favour,
maybe take it a little
easier on the old man.
I figure once you get up that high in
years, you know, deserve a little break?
I guess that's a no.
- You a salesman?
- No, architect.
- You know what a soft sell is?
- Yes...
You're pretty good at it!
I've got a different
technique, you know?
- Jokes, drinks, knock'em on their asses.
- Yeah...
I made 57 thousand last
year. Selling marmalade.
That's not bad. I mean, you
know, considerin' the marmalade.
So what are you getting out of this?
Kicks? The boy's guilty pal.
Why don't you let us go home
before we all get sore throats?
What's the difference whether you
get one here or at the ball game.
...That's too... No difference
pal, no difference at all...
Nice bunch of guys!
- Same as any... I guess.
- Yeah.
- You know, that guy with the hat?
- Yeah.
He's a real prince!
And out loud every second
everyone stalks by this kid
...the way he's
talking... is embarassing.
Murderous day!
Will we be much longer?
I don't know.
He's guilty you know! Not
a doubt in the whole world.
Should have been done by now!
Not that I really care, I
mean, beats working... Right?
You think he's innocent?
I don't know.
Well, I don't know you, but I'm bettin'
you've never been wronger in your life.
Better wrap it up.
Just waisting your time.
Suppose you were the one on trial.
Well... I don't do a lot of supposing...
You know, I'm just the working man.
Let my boss do my supposing.
But if you want I'll try one.
Suppose you talk us all out o' this
and that kid really did stick
that knife into his father.
Alright gentlemen, let's take our seats.
Looks like we'll be here for dinner.
Let's get down to business.
Who wants to start it off?
- I'd like to say something...
- Be quiet...
Excuse me!
Number 6.
Alright, please go
ahead, go ahead, please...
This may be a small point, but anyway...
The boy had a motive for the killing.
The beatings 'n' all, right?
If he didn't do it, who did it?
Who else had a motive?
I mean, that's my point.
You don't go out and just
kill somebody for no reason,
unless you're just plain nuts.
As far as I can see, we're here to
determine whether or not this boy
is guilty beyond reasonable doubt.
We're not concerned with anyone else's
motives, that's a job to the police.
Alright... but it can't
help letting the only
motive we know of
creep into our thoughts.
We can't help asking ourselves,
who else might have had a motive.
I mean, this gentleman is
asking a reasonable question:
Somebody killed him, if it
wasn't the boy, who was it?
Modjelewski!
Ohhh, you're talking
about the man I love!
Maybe if you haven't got anything to
add besides jokes, I suggest you listen.
I'm sorry, I was just
letting off steam. Go ahead.
Maybe you can answer me, who
else might have killed the father?
Well, I don't know... I mean...
The father was hardly a model citizen,
we knew that he served a prison term
and that he was an inveterate
gambler and a consistent loser
and he frequented all of the local bars.
Usually after a couple of drinks
he'd get into a fight over a woman
...I wouldn't mind telling that...
He was a mean, cruel,
primitive kind of man.
He couldn't even hold a job for longer
than 6 months in his entire life.
So, hell, he could have been murdered
by anyone of the prison inmates,
or a bookmaker, or somebody he
beat up, or a woman he picked up,
or anyone of those tough guys
that he used to hang around with.
Look, come on man, we know
that the father was a bump,
what's that got to do with anything?
Well, I didn't bring this thing up, the
man asked who else might have killed the man
and I gave an answer.
That gentleman there
asked a direct question.
Well, everybody is a lawyer...
Suppose you answer this for me...
The old man downstairs heard the
kid yell loud: "I'm gonna kill you".
A split second later,
the body hit the floor,
then he saw the kid
running out of the house.
Now what does all that mean to you?
I was wondering how well you could hear
that boy's voice through the ceiling.
He didn't hear it through the ceiling.
His window was open. The
window was open upstairs,
it was a hot night, remember?
The voice was from another
appartment, it's very difficult
to identify a voice, let
alone a voice that's shouting.
He identified it in court.
He picked the boy's voice out
of 5 other voices blindfolded.
That was just an ambitious
district attorney putting on a show.
Look...
The old man knew the boy's voice very well.
They lived in the same house for years.
But to identify the voice
positively from another appartment...
Isn't it possible that he was wrong?
Isn't it possible that he
thought the boy was upstairs
and therefore he just assumed that
the voice he heard was the boy's voice?
I think that's a bit farfetched!
Look, the old man heard
the father's body falling.
Then he saw the boy running out of the house
What about the woman across the street?
She looked right out into the open window,
saw the kid stabbin' his father, I
mean, come on. Isn't that enough for you?
- Not right now it isn't.
- Oh man!
How do you like this guy, eh?
It's like talking to a dead phone!
The woman saw the kid through the
window of a moving elevated train.
The train had 6 cars and she saw it
through the windows of the last 2 cars.
I mean, she remembered the
most significant details.
I don't see how you can argue with that.
What do you got to say about that?
It doesn't seem right to me.
Well suppose you think about it, eh?
I wonder if there's anyone
here that has an idea
how long it would take a 6 car el train,
travelling at, what, medium speed...
Wait a minute!
This is not a game!
- Who do you think you are?
- Take it easy.
Come on now, sit down!
That's all we need, a fighting here!
Did you see him? The
nerve, the absolute nerve!
Who does he think
he's dealing with here?
Come on now, it's over.
Now let's just sit here...
It's not over, I want an apology!
Alright georgie, apologise, now let's
just hear what the man's got to say.
Thank you.
As I was trying to say, I wonder
if anybody here has an idea
how long it would take an el train
to pass a given point,
going at a medium speed.
What the hell does that
got to do with anything?
Well go on, just take a guess!
I wouldn't have the slightest idea.
You?
I don't know, 10, 12 seconds maybe...
- What's all this for? - Well that
sounds like a pretty good guess...
Anyone else?
That sounds right to me.
Come on, what are the
guessing games for?
You, how about you?
Alright, say 10 seconds.
What are you getting at?
Just this!
It takes 10 seconds for a six car
el train to pass a given point.
Let's say that given
point is the open window
of the room where the murder took place.
You can practically reach out that window
and touch the el tracks, couldn't you?
- Yeah.
- Yeah.
Let me ask you another
question gentlemen.
Is there anybody here who has
ever lived next to an el line?
I just finished painting in an
appartment over next to an el line.
- Yeah?
- It took us three days.
- And what was it like?
- What do you mean?
Noisy?
Yeah! Yeah, noisy! We were all punchy about
our business anyway, but yeah, it was noisy.
Yeah, well. When I was very young, I
had an apartment on the second floor
right next to an el line
and I wanna tell you,
when that window is open and the train
is roaring by, the noise is unbearable.
You can't hear yourself think!
OK, you can't hear yourself think,
now will you get to the point?
OK, let's try and tie two
pieces of evidence together.
No 1, the old man in
the apartment downstairs,
he swears that he heard the boy say
"I'm gonna kill you" and
then a split second later
what sounded like a body
falling to the floor.
- One second later, am I right?
- Right.
OK. Now the woman across the street,
she swears that she saw the stabbing
through the windows of
the last two cars of an
elevated train, the last
two cars, am I right?
What are you making here?
Alright, we agreed that it takes
to pass a given point.
If the woman witnessed the stabbing through
the last two cars, then we must assume
that the body fell just as
the train was passing by.
Therefore, it was
roaring by the old man's
window for a full 10
seconds before the body fell.
The old man, now, according
to his own testimony,
hearing the boy say
"I'm going to kill you"
and the body falling, must
have heard that statement
while the el was roaring
by right under his nose!
It's not possible that
he could've heard it.
It's idiotic! Sure he heard it!
You really think so, eh?
The old man said the boy yelled
it out, that's good enough for me.
Well, whatever he
heard, he couldn't have
identified the voice
with that el roaring by.
You're talking about a matter of seconds
here, nobody could be that accurate!
Well, I'll tell ya,
I think the testimony
that can send a human being to
death should be that accurate!
I don't think he could've heard it...
Yeah, maybe he didn't hear
it with all that el noise.
What are you people talking about?
- Well it stands to reason.
- It's crazy!
Why should he lie?
What's he got to gain?
Attention, maybe.
You keep coming up with
these bright sayings.
Why don't you sell'em to the
Reader's Digest, they pay $50.
Why do you keep talking
to him like that, hah?
No, a guy who talks like that to an old man
ought to get stepped on, know what I mean?
You oughta have little respect!
You go ahead, you say whatever
you want! Noone's gonna stop you!
Why do you think the old man might lie?
Well,...
...it's just that I looked
at him for a very long time...
The seam of his jacket
was split under the arm.
Any of you notice it?
I mean, to come into court like that.
He was a very old man with a torn jacket
and he walked very
slowly towards the stand.
He was dragging his left
leg and trying to hide it,
because he was ashamed.
I think I know him
better than anyone here.
This is a quiet, frightened,
insignificant old man who's
been nothing, all his life.
Never had recognition, never
seen his name in the newspapers.
Nobody knows him. Nobody quotes him.
Nobody seeks his advice after 75 years.
You know...
...that's a very sad
thing, to be a nothing.
A man like this needs to be recognised,
to be listened to, to be quoted,
just once. That's very important.
He would find it hard to
recede into the background,
when there's a chance
for him to become a...
Wait a minute, wait a
minute! Are you trying to tell
us that the guy would lie
just to be important once?
He wouldn't... really lie!
But perhaps he'd make
himself believe that
he heard those words and
recognised the boy's face.
That's the most fantastic
story I've heard in my life!
How can you just make
up some stuff like that?
What do you know about it?
Sit down!
You sit down!
Sit down!
Gentlemen, let me remind
you, this case is based on
a reasonable and logical
progression of facts.
Please, let's keep it.
Facts may be covered by the personalities
of the people who present them.
Let's not forget that.
- Would anybody like a cough drop?
- Yeah, I would, thank you.
Say what you like fellas...
I still don't see how anybody
could think this kid's not guilty.
There's one thing I did wanna
talk about for just a minute.
I think that we have proven
that the old man could not
have heard the boy say
"I'm gonna kill you".
But suppose that...
What are you talking about, "prove"?
You haven't proved it at all!
What are you talking about?
But suppose he did hear it.
I mean, how many times have we
all probably used that expression?
Hundreds of times, you know!
I could kill you for that darling, or...
...junior, I'm gonna kill you if
you do that one more time, or...
...kill'em Rocky, kill'em!
You know, it's just a common everyday...
It doesn't mean we're gonna kill someone.
Wait a minute, what are
you trying to give us here?
The phrase was "I'm going
to kill you" and the kid
screamed it out on the top of his lungs.
Don't tell me he didn't mean it!
Anybody who says something like
that, the way he said, they mean it.
Well, gee, I...
...I don't know...
I remember I was arguing with this
guy that I work next to at the bank,
so he called me an
idiot, so I was yelling...
This man is trying to get you to
believe things that just aren't so.
The boy said "I'm going to
kill you" and he did kill him!
Do you really think that he
would shout out something like
that for the whole neighbourhood
to hear? I don't think so.
I think he's too bright for that.
Bright?
He's the common ignorant slob.
- He don't even speak good english.
- He does not even speak good english.
Mr. Foreman...
...I'd like to change
my vote to not guilty.
- Oh you got to be kidding me!
- You heard me.
Are you sure?
Yes, I'm sure.
The vote is 9 to 3 in favour of guilty.
Well, if this isn't the livin' end!
What are you basing it on?
The stories this guy made up?
I mean, this guy... he should
write for Amazing Detective Monthly.
He'd make a fortune!
Now listen, Milwakee, there are facts
there and their right in your face.
And everyone of them says
"This kid killed his old man"!
I mean, his own lawyer, knew right from
the beginning he didn't stand a chance.
His own lawyer!
You could see it!
- Body, he deserves to die!
- Oh, does he?
For your information,
it's happened in the past
that people had been convicted
of murder and then executed
and later, years later, someone comes
along and confesses to the crime.
You see, sometimes, the facts that
are staring us in the face are wrong...
Hey listen, I'm talking
to him, not to you!
Boy, this guy's beautiful, isn't he?
Yeah, listen, the kid
had a lawyer, didn't he?
The lawyer presented the case, not you!
- How come you got so much to say?
- The lawyer was court appointed!
So what does that mean?
It could mean a hell of a lot!
It could mean he didn't want the case,
it could mean he resented being
appointed, what's there for him?
No hope, no glory, very
little chance of winning.
Not a very promising
situation for a young lawyer.
He would have to really believe in his
client in order to put up a good fight.
As you mentioned a minute
ago, he obviously didn't!
Oh sure he didn't!
Who the hell could?
Except maybe god come
to Earth or somebody...
Come on guys, look at the time!
Pardon me here.
- I have some notes here... somewhere...
- Notes?
I... would... like...
to ask some questions.
I've been listening very closely to
what this gentleman has been saying.
He's got some very good points to make.
Now, from what was presented at the
trial, it seems that the boy is guilty,
but maybe if we go deeper...
Come on, will ya? Gee!
I would like to ask one question.
Now, we assumed that
the boy commited murder.
That he stabbed his father in
the chest and then he run away.
This was at 10 minutes after 12.
Now, how was the boy caught...
...by the police?
He came back, at about 3 o'clock or so
and he was caught by two detectives
in the hallway of his house.
Come on man!
Now my question is this...
If he really did kill his father,
why did he come back 3 hours later?
Would he not be afraid of
being caught by the police?
Look, he came home to get his knife.
It's not nice to leave knives
sticking around out of people's chests!
Yes, especially relatives.
- I don't see anything funny about it.
- Neither do I.
The boy knew that there
were people who could
identify the knife as the
one he had just bought.
He had to get it before the police did.
But if he knew that the
knife could be identified,
why did he leave it in the first place?
Oh well...
I think we can assume he run out in a
state of panic after he killed his father.
And when he finally calmed down, he
realised that he had left the knife there.
Then this depends on
your definition of panic.
Because he was calm enough
to make sure that there were
no fingerprints on the knife.
Now, where did his panic
start and where did it end?
Look, you can throw all
that other staff out...
He came home to dig out
his knife and get rid of it.
- Three hours later?
- Sure, three hours later!
If I had killed my father,
I would not be coming back
three hours later, I would
be afraid of the police.
No... I would stay
away, knife or no knife!
Look, you voted guilty, didn't
you? What side are you on?
I do not have to be loyal to one side or
the other, I'm simply asking questions.
Well, look...
This is just off the top of my
head but it seems to me, I mean,
if I were the kid and I'd, you
know, done the stabbing and all that,
I'd take a chance and
go back for the knife.
I mean, he probably
figured that noone's seen
him and nobody didn't
discover the body yet.
I mean, it was the middle of the night.
He probably figured that the body
wouldn't be found till the next day.
Excuse me, but that is my whole point.
Now...
The woman across the street testified
that the moment after she saw the killing,
that is a moment after
the el train went by,
she screamed, then
telephoned the police.
Now, the boy certainly must have heard
the scream and knew somebody saw something.
No, I do not think the boy would have
gone back if he had been the murderer.
Two points.
One...
In his state of panic, he
may not have heard the scream,
perhaps it wasn't very loud.
Two. If he did hear it, he may not
have connected it with his own act.
Remember, he lived in a neighbourhood
where screams were fairly commonplace.
Right! There's your answer.
Maybe the boy did stab his
father, did not hear the screams,
run off in a panic and
calmed down three hours later,
came back to get his knife,
risking being caught by the police,
maybe all of those things
are so and maybe not!
I personally think there is
enough doubt for us to wonder
if the boy was there at all
when the murder took place.
What do you mean doubt?
What are you talking about?
Didn't the old man see the
boy running out of the house?
Well, see? He's twisting the facts!
I'm telling you, he's twisting them!
Did or didn't the old
man see the boy running
out of the house at
- He says he did...
- Well... "He say's he did"?
How do you like this?
"He says he did"...
Did or didn't the woman across the
street see the boy kill his father?
She said she did!
You make it like it don't
matter what people say.
What you wanna believe, you believe, what
you don't wanna believe, so you don't!
What kind of way is that?
And what do you think these people
get up on the witness stand for?
Their health?
I'm telling you man, the facts
are being changed in here.
Witnesses are being doubted
and there's no reason for it!
Witnesses can make mistakes.
Yeah, when you want'em to
they do! You know what I mean?
Alright now, let's
keep the yelling down.
Well you keep saying that!
What we need in here
is a little yelling.
These men running off every each way. Did
hear the scream, didn't hear the scream...
What difference does it make?
Those little details!
You guys are missing
the important stuff.
I mean, all of a sudden
you hear everybody...
I would like to call for another vote.
- I'm talking here! - Another vote called
for here, gentlemen take your sits.
- What are we gonna gain by voting again?
- I don't know.
The man asked for another vote,
we're gonna have another vote.
I've never seen so much
time spent on nothing!
It only takes a second...
Alright, the fastest way is to
find out who's voting not guilty.
All those in favour of
not guilty raise your hand.
Three...
...still the same.
Three not guilty, nine guilty.
So, where are we?
I mean, come on, we can yakety-yakety
until next Tuesday. Where is it getting us?
Pardon me...
I would like to change my vote.
I vote not guilty.
Oh brother!
Come on now, listen, what
are you talking about?
We're all going crazy in here!
This kid is guilty.
Why don't you pay
attention to the facts?
Tell him, will you?
This is gotta be a god damn joke!
The vote is 8 to 4 in favour of guilty.
I mean, everybody's heart is starting
to bleed for this punk little kid,
like the president just declared
"Love Your Underpriviledged Brother
Week" or something... Listen to me!
I want you to tell me why you changed
your vote. Come on, give me reasons!
I do not have to defend myself to
you. I now have reasonable doubt.
"Reasonable doubt"...
That's nothing but words!
Look at the knife!
The kid you just decided is not guilty was
seen ramming that thing into his father.
Well, look at it, Mr.
"Reasonable Doubt"!
That's not the knife...
...don't you remember?
Brilliant!
You know this is the craziest...
I mean, you're pulling
stories out of thin air.
What are we supposed to believe?
I'm telling you, if this guy
was sitting ringside at the
Tyson Holyfield fight, he'd
be trying to tell us Tyson won!
Look, what about the old man, eh?
Are we supposed to believe
that he didn't get up and run
to his front door and see that
kid tearing down the stairs,
He's only saying it so he
can be important, right?
- I mean, what's the point of this...
- Wait... wait a second, wait a second!
The Milwakee rooter is
heard from and pop-ups
are fallin' for base
hits wherever we look at.
Did the old man say he run to the door?
Run, walked, what's the
difference? He got there!
He said he run.
I don't remember what he said,
but I don't see how he could run!
He said he run, he run from his bedroom
to the front door. That's enough, isn't it?
Where exactly was that bedroom again?
It was down in the hall
somewhere. You don't remember that?
- No...
- I thought you remembered everything!
Mr. Foreman, I'd like to see a
diagram of the apartment again please.
Why don't we run the trial over just to
see if we can get everything straight...
- Mr. Foreman...
- I heard you.
What's all this for?
How come you're the only one in the room
who wants to see exhibits all the time.
I wanna see this one too!
And I wanna stop wasting time...
If we are going to start
wading through all this
business about where the
body was found, then we can...
No, we're not!
I just wanna find out if a man who
limps because he had a stroke a year ago,
can get from his bed to his
front door in 15 seconds.
He said 20 seconds...
- 15! - I'm telling you he said
He said 15...
How does he know how long 15 seconds is?
You can't judge a thing like that!
He said 15 seconds. He
was very positive about it.
He's an old man, you saw him.
Half the time he was confused!
How could he be positive
ab... about anything?
I don't see what we're
going to prove here.
The man said he saw the boy running
out, that's what he said to us.
Well, let's see if the
details bear him out.
Now, the minute the body fell,
the old man says he heard footsteps
running towards the front door upstairs.
Then he heard that upstairs door open and
the footsteps continued down the stairway.
He got to his front
door as fast as he could,
swears it couldn't have
been more than 15 seconds,
- Now if the killer started to run
immediately... - Well, maybe he didn't!
The old man says he did.
You oughta be down at Atlantic City
at the hair-splitters' convention.
Hey baseball, why don't you stop
with the smart remarks all the time?
Oh my friend, for your $15 a day
you gotta listen to everything.
Ok, now you got that thing
in here... What about it?
May I?
Ok, this is the apartment
where the killing took place.
The old man's apartment is exactly
like it, directly underneath.
Now, here's the el line,
here's the bedroom, living
room, the kitchen and the bath,
here's the hallway and way
down there is the front door
to the apartment and here
are the steps that go down.
Now, the old man was
in bed in this room.
He says he got up,
he went into the hall,
went all the way down the
hall, opened the front door,
just in time to see the
boy racing down the stairs.
Am I right?
That's the story... for the 19th time!
Correct...
The old man's bed was by the window.
That means he had to walk... 12
feet from the bed to the bedroom door
and the hall is... 43 feet 6
inches... down to the front door.
That means that he had to get up, get out
of bed, walk 12 feet, open the bedroom door,
walk 43 feet and open the
front door to his apartment,
all in 15 seconds...
Does anyone think he could have done it?
- Sure he could have done it!
- He can only walk very slowly...
There they helped him
to the witness chair...
You make it sound like
a long walk! It's not!
For an old man who's had a
stroke... it's a long walk!
What are you doing?
I wanna set this up,
see how long it took him.
What do you mean you wanna set this up?
Why didn't the kid's lawyer
bring it up if it's so important?
Maybe he just didn't think of it!
What do you mean he didn't think of it? Do
you think the guy's an idiot or something?
- It's an obvious thing, isn't it?
- Did you think of it?
Look smart guy, don't matter what,
I thought of it over the night.
Alright, let's calm it down.
He didn't bring it up cause he
thought it was gonna hurt his case.
Wait a minute! Maybe he didn't bring
it up because it would seem as if
he was badgering and
pressuring a helpless old man,
which does not sit well with a jury,
lawyers try to avoid that
sort of thing if they can...
What kind of bum is he then?
That's exactly what I've been asking!
Now, let's say this
is the old man's bed.
First, I'm gonna pace off 12 feet,
that's the length of the bedroom.
You're crazy! You can't
recreate a thing like that!
You wanna do me a favour?
Could you hand me that chair?
Put it right here...
This is the bedroom door.
Now the hallway was...
what? It was 43 feet.
Well, I'll pace over to that wall
and then back around this way again.
This is absolutely insane! What's the idea
behind wasting everybody's time with this?
...11... 12... Look, it's only gonna
take 15 seconds according to you!
...40... 41... 42... 43.
If you would... thank you very much!
This is the doorway out into the
hall and the stairway going down.
It was chain locked
according to testimony.
Now, does anybody here got
a second hand on their watch?
I have.
Alright. Will you just stamp
your foot when you want me to go,
that'll be the body falling, alright?
Time me from then.
Anybody for charades?
- I've never seen anything like this
in my whole... - Alright, I'm ready.
Come on, come on, won't you?
I'm waiting for the
second hand to reach sixty.
Go!
Oh come on, step it up, he
walked twice as fast as that!
That's too slow!
That's how he walked, he
walked like an old man!
... what will this kid's stuff do?
- No. That's too slow...
- ... that's the way he walked.
You want me to walk faster?
Alright, I'll walk faster.
- This is a trial for murder!
- Relax, will ya? Jeez!
Time!
Exactly 42 seconds!
Here's what I think happened.
I think the old man heard the fight
between the boy and his father earlier
and then a couple of
hours later, lying in bed,
he heard the body hit the
floor at the boy's apartment
and heard the woman
scream across the street.
He tried to get to the front door.
He heard someone running down the stairs
and he assumed that it was the boy.
I think that's possible.
Assumed?
Now listen to me people!
I've heard all kinds of dishonesty
in my day, but this little display...
...takes the cake! You come in here,
with your sanctimonious talk
about slum kids and injustice
and you make up a lot of wild stories
and all of a sudden you're gettin' through
to some of these little old ladies in here.
But you're not getting
through to me! I've had enough!
What is the matter with you people?
Everyone of you knows he's
guilty! He's got to burn!
We'll let him slip through our fingers!
"... let him slip through our fingers...
" What are you, his executioner?
I'm one of them!
Maybe you'd like to put the needle in!
For this kid? You bet I would!
God, I'm sorry for you...
Don't start with me now!
Ever since we've walked into this room,
you've acted like a
self-appointed public avenger.
Shut up!
You want the boy to die for your own
personal reasons, not because of the facts!
You're a sadist!
I'll kill him! I'll kill him!
You don't really mean
you'll kill me, do you?
What the hell's going on here?
Nothing.
Just a little argument, everything's
fine brother, everything is...
...fine.
Just.. things just got a little heated.
Thank you.
What are you staring at?
Well, I suppose we need someone
else to start this off again, eh?
It's getting late.
What do they do? Take us out
to a restaurant or something?
I don't know.
I sure hope they let us go home in
case we don't finish this case tonight.
My little grandson has
the mumps, face up to here,
my wife says he looks like Fat Albo...
Well, look guys,
if noone else has any ideas, I
might have a cute one here, I mean...
...I ain't putting my stock into it,
but let me throw it out in the stoop,
see if the cat licks
it up, what do you say?
"... the cat licks it up"
Yeah... it's an expression...
It wasn't much of an idea really...
Look how dark it's getting there.
We're gonna have a storm.
- Well...
- Boy, it's hot!
Don't you sweat?
No, no, I don't...
I don't either.
Well, listen! I'm wondering...
maybe we could take another vote.
Yeah... Maybe we can follow this
one up with dancing and refreshments!
- Mr. Foreman...
- Alright with me.
Anyone who doesn't wanna vote?
I think we should have an open ballot.
Call out your votes, see who stands where.
Alright... The last vote was
I'll just call out your jury numbers.
I vote guilty. Number 2?
Not guilty.
Number 3?
Guilty.
- Number 4?
- Guilty.
Number 5...
Not guilty.
Number 6...
Not guilty.
Number 7...
Guilty.
Number 8...
Not guilty.
- Number 9...
- Not guilty.
Number 10...
He's guilty brother.
Number 11...
Not guilty.
Number 12...
Guilty.
And we go into extra innings here.
Well, I'm telling you, some of you people
have lost your damn minds! A kid like that!
I don't think the kind of boy
has anything to do with it.
The facts are supposed
to determine the case.
Oh, don't give me any of that "facts"!
I'm sick and tired of facts!
Twist'em any way you want to!
Facts! Facts!
That's... That's exactly the point
that this gentleman has been making!
You... You keep shouting
at the top of your lungs
as though that were some
sort of solution, I mean...
I just wish I was a little younger...
- It's gonna rain.
- No! How did you figure that out?
How come you switched?
Well, it just seemed...
You haven't got a leg
to stand on, don't you?
I don't feel that way.
- There were a lot of details
that didn't come out. - Details?
Look, you just let
yourself to get bulldozed by
a bunch of these old
white washed intellectuals.
- That's not so!
- Oh come on, this is me!
You're just like some other folks your
age, you're scared of the white man!
They say something, you get low...
Hey you, listen!
- ... you make stuff I said!
- You have no right to...
You... loudmouth!
- Oh oh! Here it comes!
- Look at that.
Get that window, come on!
What's with this window here?
Let's try to get this air conditioning
working in here, what do you say, eh?
Hey! Look at this!
Hey, it must have been connected
to the light switch, eh?
Some rain, eh?
And what about this thing
- even Steven...
Kinda surprising, isn't it?
Yeah, yeah...
You know, that business before,
when that guy was baiting me...
That doesn't prove anything! I'm
a very excitable person, I mean...
Where does he come off calling me a
public avenger and a sadist and everything?
Anybody in his right mind
would've blown his stack, right?
He... was just tryin' to bait me.
He did an excellent job.
Man, look at it go...
You know, it reminds me of the...
...city championships three years ago.
What a game!
Score was tie, 21-21, it
could've gone out of the way...
We had this young brother Yelder.
Great kid.
Quiet, respectful, wiry,
but he could shake
you out of your shoes!
Nobody could touch him.
I'm the football coach over at Bay Side.
These gaps he just
started to have around him,
the refs said they requested
the game just to see him play.
He was renowned... I mean... I...
I'd built the whole team around him.
I knew better, but I...
...but I loved the kid.
We came out at half time and it..
...already began pouring.
Now, at the 4rth quarter
the field was mud bath!
Yelder of course, he
couldn't get to sweating.
He sat scatback and there
it was a big fullback
that's rammed down our
throats and... won the game.
But, you know...
I'll always remember...
Yelder after the game...
sitting on the bench...
still in his uniform...
staring off into... space.
His... broken heart!
Isn't that the dumbest
thing you ever saw? 6 to 6!
It's a joke!
What are we gonna do about
it? Can we break it somehow?
Yeah, well, six fools in there
aren't gonna change their minds...
I thought they already
have changed their mind.
There's no reason why they can't
be persuaded to do it again.
And how?
Just by using logic!
Yeah, logic, eh?
You listen to this man, he's the
only one in the room who knows.
Hey, you want my opinion?
Go ahead.
I think we should just quit.
What are you talking about?
I mean, come on, these
six people in there,
all of a sudden they act like it's
some kind of mission or something.
I mean, come on,
they're not gonna switch.
Let's just go to the judge
or we'll be here all night.
Let's just go and tell
her that we're hung.
To hell with this!
What am I supposed to do? Break my
brain over some... scum like that?
You took an oath in the courtroom!
You can't just quit.
Why not?
It's dishonest!
Why don't you just vote not guilty?
No, I voted guilty cause
I think he's guilty!
- But you don't care about what
happens to him! - No, why should I?
Stop this! We're not going
to get anywhere like this.
I mean, come on, what does he
want? I gave him an honest opinion.
I know.
Oh, I suppose you don't
think much of it...
No, I don't!
How about him? Is that something?
Ah well, a hung jury
doesn't mean anything.
Just have to start the trial
again with another jury.
That's not what we're here for...
What the hell is the difference?
A hung jury's what you're gonna get!
Alright, look! I'll tell
you what I think, alright?
We ain't going nowhere in here!
I'm ready to go into court right
now and declare a hung jury.
Yeah, I go for that too!
Come on, let's take it to the judge.
Let this kid take his
chances with 12 other guys.
The court is not going to accept a hung
jury. We haven't been here long enough.
Well, let's find out!
I'm not in favour of this.
Listen, this kid wouldn't stand a
chance with another jury and you know it.
Come on, we're hung...
Nobody's gonna change their
opinion! Let's take it inside.
You still don't think there's
any room for reasonable doubt?
No, I don't.
Pardon, maybe you do not fully
understand the term reasonable doubt.
Oh, what do you mean I don't understand?
Who the hell are you
to talk to me like that?
How do you like this guy,
eh? I'm telling you...
They're all the same...
You come over to this
country running for your life
and before you can take a big breath
he's telling us how to run the show.
The arrogance of this guy!
- Oh you call him arrogant cause he
wasn't born here. - Please don't...-
Well, I'm calling you arrogant
cause you were, how's that?
- Hey look, sonny...
- And who the hell are you calling sonny?
Hey look, sonny!
Nobody around here's gonna tell me what
words I understand and what words I don't.
Especially him!
Cause I'll knock his middle
eastern European god damn head off!
Alright, cut the bullshit.
We're not going in as a hung jury.
Come on, let's get back to work.
I think there's something I would like to
discuss, if it's alright with you gentlemen.
An important point the prosecution
raised, was the fact that the boy,
having said that he was at the movies,
during the time the murder occured,
could not remember the names of the
films or the stars that were in them.
- This gentleman has raised that
point several times. - That's correct.
It was the only alibi the boy offered
and he himself couldn't back
it up with any details at all.
Well, putting yourself in
the boy's place, if you can,
do you think that you would
be able to remember details
after an experience such as your
father hitting you on the face?
Yes, I think so, if there were
any special details to remember.
He couldn't remember
the movies at the theatre
he named because he
wasn't there that night.
Well, the police said they interrogated
the boy in the kitchen of his apartment,
while his father's body lay
on the floor of the bedroom.
Do you think that you could remember
details under a situation such as that?
Yes, I do.
Under extreme emotional stress?
Under extreme emotional
stress, yes, yes...
Of course, in court, he did
remember the names of the pictures
and he remembered the names of
the stars that appeared in them.
Oh, yes! His lawyer took
great pains to bring that out.
He had three months from
the night of the murder
to the day of the trial
in which to memorise them.
I'll take the testimony of the policemen
who interrogated him right after the murder.
Then he couldn't remember
a thing about the movies.
Great emotional stress or not!
Ok... Could I ask you
a personal question?
Oh, please, go ahead, go ahead...
Where were you last night?
I was home, yes..
Ok... The night before that?
Hey, come on, what is this?
It's perfectly alright... wait, wait...
The night before...
I went from home to my office, stayed until
Alright... and the night before that?
That was... Tuesday...
thank you, Tuesday.
That was the night of the bridge
tournament... Yes, yes, I played bridge.
And Monday night?
When you get them down to New
Year's Eve 1972, let me know!
Wait, wait...
Monday night...
...Oh yes! My wife and
I went to the movies.
Ah... What did you see?
"Lies... and... secrets".
It was a very touching story
about a black woman who...
Excuse me!
It's called "Secrets and lies".
"Secrets and lies", yes...
Correct. And who was
in "Secrets and lies"?
Wait, wait, wait a minute... It was
something with a 'B'... it was 'Be'...
I think...
Yeah, Bella, Bella... Bella...
It was Brenda.
Brenda,
...was her name. And
what was her last name?
It was an english movie...
The actors that I'm not familiar with...
...There was something with 'U'...
I'm sorry. I'm very sorry.
And you weren't under great emotional
stress at the time, were you?
No sir, I... wasn't... sorry.
I think the point is made!
Yeah, big point!
I think it is a big point.
What, because he couldn't remember the
name of a couple of two brit movie stars?
Oh well, I guess that proves that
the kid was at the movies then.
No, but it indicates that
noone can prove that he wasn't.
He might have been at the
movies and forgotten what he saw,
it's possible...
If it's perfectly logical for this
gentleman to forget a few details,
it's perfectly logical for the boy!
Being accused of murder isn't supposed
to give him an infallible memory.
Man, you can talk till your tongue
is draggin' on the ground, ok?
The kid is guilty, period!
You know what I mean, my friend?
Who's got the cough drops?
They're all gone... my friend.
You know, there's something we're forgetting
here, that I was just thinking about
and that's that old business
that dragged down forever
with the psychiatrists, where
he got all involved with...
Oh come on, don't start with all that
phony, psycho, whatsyoucallem stuff!
That boy would have reckon that is, fill
the people's heads with all that junk.
I got three psychiatrists bringing
in collars to my detail shop,
the whole three of
them bullies is crazy!
I'm trying to make a point...
I will give you a buffalo nickel for a
psychiatrist's testimony,
I would... I would!
Why won't you let the man talk?
You can do five minutes on the usages
of psychiatry after he's through.
What I was gonna say,
was that the psychiatrist
definitely stated
that the boy had strong
homicidal tendencies,
that he was capable of commiting murder.
He also described all those tests, etc.
The boy definitely was the
killer type, am I right?
I think he said something about
paranoid enmities, if I'm not mistaken.
That's right!
Let's just try to remember he said it.
Let's not forget that
we're talking about a
boy here who's always
had murder on his mind.
His unconscious mind!
I beg your pardon! In discussing...
"I beg your pardon"! Why
are you so damn polite about?
For the same reason that you are not:
It was the way I was brought up...
In discussing such a thing
as the murder potential,
we must remember that many of us are capable
of commiting murder, but few of us do.
We impose controls upon
ourselves to prevent it.
Now the most that these psychiatric tests
can accomplish along these lines is this...
They can tell us that some day, a
particular person may commit murder.
That is all! They prove nothing!
Then how come they're
admitted in evidence?
They have many uses, of course...
In this case, they added to the general
impression the prosecution
was trying to create.
Perhaps we would find,
if the twelve of us
men took the same tests,
one or two of us might be discovered
to have the subconscious desires to kill
and the potentiality
of carrying them out.
Yet, none of us has...
To say that the man
is capable of murder,
does not mean that he
has commited murder.
Yeah, but it could mean it!
Look, if they said that this kid is capable
of killing, he could've killed, couldn't he?
You're the one who said and I quote:
"I wouldn't give a buffalo nickel
for a psychiatrist's testimony"!
Look at that rain...
There goes the old ball game.
Say... Say... Could I see
that knife for a second?
Alright gentlemen...
...we're still tied 6 to 6.
- Who's got a suggestion?
- I do. Where's that dinner?
- Let's go until 7, give it another hour.
- Ok.
Listen... Something...
Something I wanna say.
It's been bothering me a little and...
as long as we're stuck...
Well,
there was this whole
business about the stab wound,
how it was made, the
downward angle, you know?
You're not gonna start that
again, they went over 'n' over it!
I know they did, but I...
...I can't go along with it.
The boy...
...was, what, 5 feet
And according to the medical
examiner, the father was 6 feet 2.
Now, that's a difference of 7 inches.
Now, it's an awkward thing to...
stab down into somebody's chest when he's
more than half a foot taller than you are.
Give me that thing!
You won't be satisfied
till you see this again,
so I'm gonna give you
a little demonstration.
Somebody get up.
Ok...
Watch this please, I don't
wanna have to do it again.
I'm about 6 or 7 inches
shorter than you, right?
Yeah, maybe even a little more.
Well, let it be more.
- Hey, that ain't funny!
- What's the matter with you?
Calm down...
Nobody's hurt, right?
Nobody's hurt.
Now...
...there's you angle. Take
a look at it. Down and in.
That's the way I would stab a taller
man and that's the way it was done.
Now go ahead, tell me I'm wrong.
Down and in! That's how it was done.
Wait a minute, wait a
minute! Let me see that!
This is a stiletto, not a switchblade.
I hate these things!
I grew up with them.
Have you ever seen them used in a fight?
Too many of them.
On my stoop, in my backyard...
...a lot across the street...
These came with the
neighbourhood where I lived.
It's funny I wasn't thinking of it...
I guess I try to forget those things...
You can't use this
kind of knife that way.
You have to hold it like
this to release the blade.
In order to stab downwards
you have to change your grip.
Well, how do you use it?
Underhand, like this.
Anyone who's ever used one of these
would never handle it any other way.
Are you sure?
Yeah, I'm sure. That's
why it's made like this.
Well, we all agree that that boy is
pretty handy with the knife, right?
Yeah, that's right.
You think he could have made the
kind of wound that killed his father?
Not with the experience he'd had using
these things, no, I don't think he would.
He'd go for my laying...
How do you know? Were you in the
room when the father was killed?
No... neither was anyone else.
You're giving us a lot of
mumbo jumbo, I don't believe it!
I don't think you can
determine the type of
wounds this boy might
or might not have made,
simply because he knows
how to handle a knife.
That's right, that's absolutely right!
What do you think?
Well...
...I don't know.
What do you mean you don't know?
I don't know!
How about you?
Hey listen, listen, listen...
I'll tell you something...
Now, I'm a little sick of this
whole thing already, you know?
I mean, all this yapping
is getting us nowhere!
So, I'm gonna break it up here.
I'm changing my vote to not guilty!
You're what?
You heard me. I... I've had enough!
What do you mean you've had
enough? That's no answer!
Hey listen, you... You
just worry about yourself!
He's right!
That is not an answer!
What kind of man are you?
You have been sitting here,
voting guilty with everyone else,
because there are a couple of baseball
tickets burning a hole in your pocket?
And now you say you're
going to change your vote
because you've had enough
with all the talking?
Alright, listen buddy...
You cannot do this!
You cannot play like
this with a man's life!
What is wrong with you?
It is a terrible and ugly
thing to do! Do you not care?
Hey, wait a minute!
You can't talk like that to me!
I can talk like that to you!
Now, if you want to vote not guilty,
then do it because you are
convinced that the man is not guilty,
not because you've had enough.
If you want to vote
guilty, then vote that way.
Or don't you have the guts
to do what you think is right?
Hey now, listen buddy!
Guilty or not guilty?
I told you, not guilty!
Why?
God damn you, I don't
have to tell you anything!
Yes, you do! Say it, why?
Cause I don't think he's guilty...
Mr. Foreman, I wish to
call for another vote.
Alright gentlemen,
another vote is called for.
And the quickest way
is to show off hands.
Anybody object?
All those in favour of not
guilty raise your hands.
All those voting
guilty, raise your hand.
...3.
The vote is 9 to 3 in
favour of not guilty.
I don't understand you people!
I mean, all these little picky points
you keep bringing up don't mean nothing!
They don't mean nothing!
How can you believe this story?
You're an intelligent man
and you're not gonna tell me
that you're not, you
know the facts of life.
Just look at what
we're dealing with here.
You know him!
You know this kid!
This guy other here, I don't know
what the hell is going on with him,
all that talk about psychiatrists...
Maybe he ought to go to one!
Now look! Let's talk facts.
These people are born to lie.
Now, that's the way they are and no
intelligent man is gonna tell me otherwise.
They don't know what the truth
is! You take a look at them!
They're different!
They think different, they act different
and they don't need some big
excuse to kill somebody either.
Well, it's true! Everybody knows it.
Smoking that crack...
Nothing but crack he is!
Look at him, smart guy...
...what's that mean, slam the door?...
Anyway, these people
they get all drugged up
and BANG!
All of a sudden somebody's
lying dead in the gutter...
Ok, look, nobody's blaming'em for.
That's just the way they are
by nature, you know what I mean?
They're violent! And human life don't
mean as much to them as it does to us.
Where are you going?
Where are you going?
Look, while you're in
there, maybe you ought to
clean out your ears,
maybe you can hear then.
Now look, listen to me now!
These spics! They stay high on
dope and they fight all the time...
Look, if somebody gets killed, so
somebody gets killed, they don't care!
They breed like animals...
Ok, sure, there's some
good things about them...
Look, I'm the first
guy to tell you that...
I've known some who were ok...
...but that's the exception!
You know you're a sick man?
- Sick?
- Why don't you sit down?
You old son of a bitch! Who are you?
No, who the hell is he to tell me that?
Sick... Look at him!
He can hardly stand up!
No, I'm speaking my piece here
today and you're listening!
- Maybe you should...
- You shut up, you sit down!
There's not one of them,...
not one, that's any good!
NOT ONE!
You hear that?
Sympathetic bastards!
And you were to wonder
you're so god damn smart...
We're facing a danger,
don't you know that?
These wetbacks are
multiplying like rabbits!
They come over here illegally
and they're multiplying five
times faster than my people!
That's five times, brothers!
And they're wild animals!
They're against us, they hate us!
They want to destroy us!
They come over here and they benefit
from everything that we've built!
That's right! Don't
look at me like that...
There's a danger...
We are living in a
dangerous time, brothers!
If we don't smack them down, if we
don't do something, every chance we get,
then they're gonna own us!
- They're gonna bring us out of existance...
- Shut up!
...I'm warning you! You listen to me...
I'm telling you, this boy...
...put this boy on trial, we got him.
We got him!
That's one at least!
I say that we get him,
before his kind gets us!
I don't give a damn about the law!
Why should I? They don't!
- Now, I'm telling you...
- I've heard enough!
Won't you just stop all of this!
Come on, wake up man! We
can make a difference here!
Sit down...
...and don't open your
filthy mouth again!
Alright gentlemen.
Let's finish what we started.
You have made some excellent points.
The last one, in which you proved
that the boy couldn't have made
that kind of overhand stab
wound was very persuasive.
But I still believe the boy
is guilty for the murder.
I have two reasons.
One: The evidence given by
the woman across the street,
who actually saw the murder commited.
...and how... As far as I'm concerned
that's the most important
testimony in the whole case!
Two...
The fact that the woman
described the stabbing by saying
she saw the boy raise
his arm over his head,
over his head, right up,
and plunge the knife down
into his father's chest.
She saw him do it!
The wrong way!
That's right, that's absolutely right!
So let's talk about this
woman for a minute here...
She said that she went to bed at
about 11 o'clock that night, yes.
Her bed was next to the window,
she could look out while lying down and
see directly into the boy's
window across the street.
She tossed and turned for over an hour,
unable to fall asleep. Finally...
...she turned towards the window,
at about 10 minutes after 12,
and as she looked out,
she saw the killing through the
windows of the passing el train.
She says, the lights went out
immediately after the killing,
but that she got a good look at the
boy in the act of stabbing his father.
You know, as far as I can see,
this is unshakeable testimony!
That's what I mean, it's the whole case!
What do you think?
What about you?
Well...
...I don't know, it's...
There's so many things
to shift through...
I... I... This is pretty
complicated business...
Really, I don't see how we
can vote for an acquiter?
Well...
...it's just not easy to
arrange the evidence in order.
You can throw out all
the other evidence!
The woman saw him do it!
What else do you want?
Well... maybe...
Let's vote now.
Alright gentlemen,
another vote is called for.
Anyone object?
I'm changing my vote.
I think he's guilty...
Anybody else?
What makes you consider this
one vote a personal triumph?
I'm the competitive type!
Here's what I think... I think we're a hung
jury, let's take it inside to the judge.
What?
- You didn't want a hung jury before...
- Well, I do now!
I... I don't understand that.
You thought it was immoral.
I don't anymore...
People in here are so god damn stubborn!
We'll never get this done,
we'll be here for a week!
I wanna hear an argument.
I say we're a hung jury...
Well, come on!
You're the leader of
the cause, what about it?
Let's go over it again.
We went over it again...
J. Walter Thomson over here
has been bouncing back and
forth like a ping pong ball!
- Wait a minute... You don't
have to call me... - I apologise!
On my knees!
Come on...
Let's get out from under this thing, eh?
Alright, alright...
Maybe we can talk about setting
some kind of a time limit.
- What's the time?
- Quarter after six.
Quarter after six... Someone
before mentioned seven o'clock.
I think that's the point at
which we might begin to discuss
the question about whether
we are a hung jury, or not.
- Excuse me!
- Yes.
Don't you feel well?
Oh, I feel perfectly
well, thank you very much.
I was saying, 7 o'clock would be...
The reason I asked was that
you were rubbing your nose...
I'm sorry to interrupt...
...but you made a gesture,
that reminded me of
one of the witnesses...
I was trying to say
something here, do you mind?
I think this is important!
Ok, go ahead, please, go ahead...
Thank you!
I hope you'll forgive
me for this, but...
...I was wondering why...
...why were you rubbing
your nose like that?
Come on now, would you please?
Right now,
I'm talking to this gentleman here.
Now...
Why were you rubbing your nose?
Well, if it's any of your business,
I was rubbing it because it bothers me.
Is it because of your eyeglasses?
It is, yes, it is, could we
get on to something else please?
Your eyeglasses make those deep
impressions on the side of your nose.
Yes...
I hadn't noticed that before...
They must be annoying.
Oh yes, oh yes, they
are... Very, very annoying.
I wouldn't know about that.
I've never worn eyeglasses.
Hey come on with the
optometrist bit already!
The woman who testified
that she saw the killing,
had those same deep marks
on the side of her nose.
Wow!
Did you see that?
Please... please... just a minute!
Please! Just a minute...
...and I'll be finished.
I don't know if any
of you noticed that...
...I didn't think about it then...
...but, I've been going
over her face in my mind...
She had those marks!
She kept rubbing them in court...
- He's right!
- He's right, she did do that a lot!
This woman,
was about 45 years old,
making a tremendous effort to look 35...
You know, for her first
public appearance...
Dyed hair, heavy make-up
and brand new clothes...
...which would have been more
suitable on a younger woman...
...and... no eyeglasses!
See if you can get a picture
a mental picture of her.
What do you mean no glasses? You
don't know if she wear glasses!
Just because she was rubbing her nose?
She had those marks. I saw them!
So what? What do you think that means?
I saw them too. He's right!
I was the closest one to her...
She had those marks!
What point are you trying to make here?
She had them!
That's the point I'm trying
to make... she had those marks!
She had dyed hair and marks on her nose,
now I'm asking you, what does that mean?
Could those marks have been made
by anything other than eyeglasses?
No... no... they couldn't...
What are you saying?
I didn't see any marks!
I... I did... yes, I did...
Strange, I...
...didn't think about
it before, strange...
What about the lawyer?
Why didn't he say anything?
Look, there's twelve people in here
that have been concentrating on this case
and eleven of us didn't think of it.
Alright... Clarence Daryl!
What about the district attorney?
Do you think he'd try to
pull a trick like that,
letting her testify without her glasses?
Haven't you ever met a
woman who needed glasses
but didn't want to wear them because
she thought they ruined her looks?
Yeah, my wife!
I'm telling you, she walks out of
the house, she takes off her glasses,
she puts them in her purse, she walks down
the street and starts bumping into shit...
Maybe the district
attorney didn't know either.
Just what I was gonna say.
Alright.
She had marks on her nose,
I'm giving you that...
...from glasses...
...she never wore them
out of the house...
...so that everybody would
think she was gorgeous!
But when she saw that kid killing
his father she was in the house!
Alone...!
Do you wear your glasses
when you go to bed?
Noone wears eyeglasses to bed, noone...
Then it's logical to say that she
wasn't wearing hers in bed either.
- How do you know?
- I don't know, I'm just guessing.
And I'm also guessing
that when she glanced out
the window, she didn't
put her glasses on either.
She herself said that she just looked
out the window, the murder took place
and one split second
later the lights went out.
She wouldn't have had time
to put her glasses on then...
Wait a second!
And here's another guess.
Maybe the woman honestly thought
she saw the boy kill his father,
I say, she only saw a blur!
How do you know what she saw?
How does he know these things?
You don't know what
kind of glasses she wore!
Maybe she was farsighted, maybe they were
sunglasses... What do you know about it?
I only know that the woman's
eyesight is in question now.
She had to identify a person 60 feet
away, in the dark, without glasses.
You can't send someone off
to die on evidence like that.
Don't give me that!
You don't think it's possible
that the woman made a mistake?
No!
It's not possible...
No, it's not possible!
No 12, is it possible?
Yes... it's possible...
...The kid's not guilty!
No 10, do you think he's guilty?
Yes, I think he's guilty...
...but I couldn't care less.
You smart bastards...
you do whatever you want!
How do you vote?
I vote not guilty.
Do whatever you want...
You're the worst son of a...
I think he's guilty!
Does anyone else think he's guilty?
No, I'm... I'm convinced...
What's the matter with you?
I now have... a reasonable doubt.
It's eleven to one!
What about all the other evidence?
The knife... all that other
stuff... the whole business!
You said we could throw
out all the other evidence.
You're alone.
I don't care whether I'm alone or not...
- ... it's my right!
- It is your right.
What do you want?
I say he's guilty.
- We want to hear your arguments.
- I gave you my arguments.
But we're not convinced.
We want to hear them again.
We have as much time as it takes.
Everything...
...every single thing that
went on in that courtroom...
but I mean everything...
says he's guilty.
What do you think I am,
an idiot or something?
You...
...lousy bunch of bleeding hearts!
Well, you're not going to intimidate me!
I am entitled...
...to my opinion!
I can sit in this god
damn room for a year!
Somebody say something...
Look...
...why don't you take
all that stuff about...
...the old man, the old
man who lived there...
...who heard everything...
...or the knife... What, just
because he found one just like it?
The old man saw him!
On the stairs!
What difference does it make how many
seconds it took, what is the difference?
Every... single thing...
That knife...
...falling through a hole in his pocket!
You can't prove he
didn't get to the door!
Sure, you can hobble around here
all you want, but you can't prove it.
I'm telling you...
...every single thing... has
been twisted and turned in here!
That business about the eyeglasses...
You don't know whether she wore glasses...
The woman testified, god d...! In court!
What do you want?
That's it!
This whole... case...
...the whole thing about the boy...
...yelling out...
...the phrase was...
..."I am going to kill you"...
...and he said it to his own father!
I don't care...
...what kind of a man he was,
it was his father!
God damn rotten kid!
I know what it's like, I know what
they can do, I know how they can...
...kill you... every day!
My god...
...don't you see?
Why am I the only one who sees?
Jesus...
I can feel the knife going in...
He's not your boy...
He's somebody else...
Let him live.
Alright...
Not guilty.
We've reached a verdict.
Ok gentlemen, take your
seats in the jurybox.
Excuse me...
My name's McCardle.
- What's yours?
- Davis.
Well...
So long...