Matlock s01e22 Episode Script

Get off my site.
Get out! Wait! - Hold it! - What's the holdup? You guys are being paid to work, not stand around and talk.
What's happening down there? We're at the Fulton County Courthouse, where Ben Matlock is about to defend Gerald O'Hara, president of the American Brotherhood of Builders, charged with the first-degree murder of Dan Keaton.
Keaton was the Reform candidate who was challenging O'Hara in the current election, charging the union boss with fraud and corruption.
- There's Ben Matlock.
Let's go.
- There's Matlock.
Okay.
Follow me.
Matlock.
Any chance of a plea-bargain, Matlock? - Any chances of a plea-bargain? - Did O'Hara kill--? - Matlock-- - Come on, Ben, give us a break.
- Is he guilty? - Ben.
Hold it, hold it, hold it! You don't think for one second I'm gonna reveal my strategy, do you? Give me a break.
You know the DA's office.
I'm up against the toughest, wildest, most ruthless prosecutor they've got.
- Thank you, Your Honour.
- Now, Mr.
Franklin, you have testified that the bullet found in the back of this chair was fired from the gun discovered in my client's office.
That's correct.
Did the trajectory of the bullet into the chair--? Objection.
The chair isn't on trial here.
Let me ask that question again.
- Did the chair--? - Objection.
The chair isn't in the witness stand.
Though I'm sure if it were, Mr.
Matlock would be piercing in his examination.
Rephrase, Mr.
Matlock.
I'd be pleased, Your Honour, if I could get a gnat's eye's worth of space to get my question out.
Now, Mr.
Franklin, when you followed the path of the bullet into the chair, did that tell you anything about the identity of the killer? - No, it did not.
- Or who might have transported the body from the chair, where you believe Dan Keaton was shot, to the Delroy construction site? - No, I can't say that it did.
- Thank you.
Nothing further.
Court will adjourn until 1 :30.
What the hell was that all about? I beg your pardon? Don't give me that innocent look.
Of all the unreasonable, meddlesome objections I ever heard of.
High praise.
And before lunch.
Chair on the witness stand.
I suppose you thought that was cute.
Oh, come on, Ben.
The jury was falling asleep.
I did you a favour.
Besides, your client is so guilty, the only suspense is when you're going to try to plea-bargain.
Excuse me.
Miss March, Mr.
Matlock, the judge would like to see you both in chambers.
The record should reflect that both counsel are present in chambers.
What's happened, Your Honour? One of our jurors has made an accusation against counsel: Jury tampering.
Well, that's ridiculous.
I know Miss March is new to Atlanta, but I'll vouch for her integrity without hesitation.
It's not Miss March whose integrity's in question.
- You're the one who's been accused.
- What? One of the jurors says you paid him a sum of money.
Oh, come on! Mr.
Matlock, your indignation is noted.
Who is this juror, Your Honour? Juror Number 7, Harry Craven.
The mailman? Well, let's bring him in here so we can clear this up before lunch.
I'm afraid it's not that simple.
Your Honour, the prosecution has no belief in these charges.
Charges which so far haven't even been substantiated.
Miss March, the court can't ignore these charges.
Mr.
Matlock is a celebrated lawyer.
His reputation has never been called into question.
- Miss March, Mr.
Matlock-- - Your Honour, I think there's a principle involved here, one that's just as important as the sanctity of the jury system, and that is the individual's right against unfounded charges.
Miss March, we have a charge of jury tampering here, and that charge has to be dealt with.
As of this moment, this current trial is continued pending the outcome of the court's investigation of tampering charges, which, I assure you, will be both expeditious and thorough.
- Your Honour-- - Your Honour we accept that.
I am innocent of these charges and they will be dismissed summarily.
Mr.
Matlock, I sincerely hope you're right.
I'll see both of you back here in two hours.
Thank you for standing up for me in there.
Well, I have my reputation to consider.
- Well, yeah.
- Yes.
I don't want you losing this case for the wrong reasons.
You want some lunch? Well, yeah.
Yeah, I'd like to.
But I'd better go see my client.
He may not take this too well.
Of all the stupid, boneheaded screwups.
Gerald, there's no foundation for this accusation against me.
Doesn't matter if you are clean.
Gerald, you've got no choice.
You gotta fire him right now.
Put as much distance between the two of you as you possibly can.
Now, wait a minute.
Mr.
Matlock, have you ever worked for a union? Have you ever had the Justice Department and congressional committees watching your every step? I've spent my whole life in this union, gotten to be vice president, and I'm telling you they're gunning for him.
This whole mess will be gone in an hour.
Not for him.
This jury tampering's gonna stick to him.
Did you ever hear of the presumption of innocence? Men in our position are presumed guilty.
Gerald.
If you wanna get through this thing clean enough to win another union election, you're gonna have to ask for a mistrial.
Let me get you another lawyer.
Ben believed in me at the start of this.
I guess the least I can do is stick with him now.
Thanks, Gerald.
You won't regret it.
And Mr.
Matlock said that if I would vote not guilty and get some of the other jurors to vote with me, well, he'd make it worth my while.
Worth your while? Fifty thousand dollars.
Fifty thousand? - You work for the post office? - Yes.
What are your assets, Mr.
Craven? Well, I have a little house, about 1 5,000 in savings, plus my pension benefits.
- Continue.
- I I said, yes.
And as soon as I said it, I felt terrible.
I wanted to back out, but Mr.
Matlock wouldn't let me.
Your Honour, I object to all of this.
It's scurrilous and completely without foundation.
Mr.
Craven has no corroboration of any kind.
Let him produce one piece of evidence to back up his story.
Just one.
Mr.
Craven? Where'd you get that envelope? In the pending O'Hara case, I'm declaring a mistrial.
Mr.
Matlock, I'm sorry.
It's my duty to refer this matter to the Atlanta Police Department and the district attorney's office for further action.
There's a lot I don't know.
I don't know who paid off this Harry Craven, but whoever did I'll bet killed Dan Keaton.
And whoever that person was has a lot of money to throw around.
What about this fellow Abe Delroy? He's got a construction company.
Now, he must have a whole lot of money.
Well, see what you can find out about this Harry Craven.
I'll stay in touch.
- Hi.
- Hi.
- Charlene, what are you doing here? - Came back as soon as I heard.
Well, what about your case in Miami? I'll get a continuance, and if not, I'll find myself a substitute.
I'm sorry to interrupt, but there was no one out front and I heard voices, so I just walked in, but I've got good news.
- Hi, Charlene.
- Hi.
I could sure use some.
I've arranged for one of the best legal minds in the whole South to defend you.
- Who? - Me.
You? Excuse me.
I've taken a leave of absence from the DA's office for the duration.
- A leave of absence? - Now, I won't have any arguments.
You can't represent yourself, so as I've often heard you say, you've got yourself a mouthpiece.
- Julie-- - Now, don't worry about a thing.
You're in safe hands.
Let me have a minute with Charlene in her office, yeah.
You're gonna let her defend you, aren't you? Please don't say it's because of my big case in Miami.
You don't think I'm good enough, do you? Charlene, it's true that you're inexperienced.
Of course, I was too when I got my first big case.
- Then why can't l--? - Charlene.
With lawyers and cases, it's horses for courses.
And this one's just not for you.
You're thinking that if I lose, what it would do to me? I'm thinking, I want you to win your case in Miami, and do what no one else can do: be my daughter who cares.
I'll call you every day.
Who knows? Maybe twice.
You know, sometime we should go somewhere else for coffee and a sandwich.
There's more to life than just the courthouse.
Oh, this is beautiful.
Sort of a fine, open-air restaurant.
Now, what is your theory? Well, Tyler's looking into Harry Craven.
I'm going back all over the stuff on the O'Hara case.
And if I can come up with one good clue as to who the killer is, then I'll know who bribed Harry Craven.
Don't you think, somewhere in your bone marrow, that your client, Mr.
O'Hara, killed Dan Keaton? No, I don't.
But there is something bothering me.
You are probably the best prosecutor in the DA's office.
- Well, one of the best.
- Yeah.
And you say they've given you a leave of absence to represent me.
I never heard of such a thing.
Accumulated vacation time, actually.
- Accumulated vacation time? - Ben, I think it's obvious: O'Hara was afraid he was going to be convicted-- Julie, for you to represent me is a serious conflict of interest.
How did they let you do that? Ben, please, wait, before you get upset.
O'Hara panicked.
He got one of his union pals to offer Harry Craven the money and he used your name.
They They actually gave you a leave of absence? How else could I be doing this? Now, drink your coffee before it gets cold.
We will go someplace else sometime.
Someplace fine.
- Mr.
Harry Craven? - Yes? This is your unlucky day.
You see, I am not selling encyclopaedias or passing out religious tracts.
I am a professional investigator in the employ of one Ben Matlock.
Get out of here.
Now, I don't blame you for being anxious.
I'd be a little nervous if my conscience was as guilty as yours.
- Beat it.
- You listen to me, friend.
I know you're lying about Matlock and I intend to prove it.
No matter what they paid you, you will never be able to spend it.
No matter what they promised you, you will never be able to enjoy it.
Because, you see, not only am I in the employ of Ben Matlock, I am his friend.
Interesting theory, but what you're suggesting would be impossible, Mr.
Matlock.
Well, that $50,000 that fell out of Harry Craven's envelope had to come from somewhere.
You people have a lot of ready cash.
Somebody around here could've been misguided into wanting to help Mr.
O'Hara.
Do you know much about computers, Mr.
Matlock? I try to avoid machines that talk back.
Well, what we have here is state of the art.
All union funds go directly to trustee accounts at the bank.
After that, they're on computer.
You never see real money? Not a cent.
Double safeguards to remove money from an account.
There's absolutely no way anyone, not even O'Hara as president, could get money out.
Sorry about your theory.
Well, thanks anyway.
I appreciate it.
You better keep an eye on these things.
One of them could turn on you someday.
The damn union is putting me under.
I can barely make payroll, forget profits.
Mr.
O'Hara is a tough negotiator, is he? He and his demands are pushing me right into bankruptcy.
No love lost, huh? Oh, if I had the cash, I might bribe a juror to convict him.
You know, that's interesting.
I think that's what happened.
How's that? I think whoever got to Harry Craven wants Gerald O'Hara convicted.
Kind of a double-reverse bank shot.
Waste of money, then.
Everybody knows O'Hara killed that kid.
He was about to lose the softest job in Georgia, and believe me, O'Hara doesn't give anything away.
Hey.
Hey.
Hey, you guys.
What are you doing? This isn't a break.
Get to work.
And you.
- Hi.
- Hi.
I don't guess you got a hot dog? - Well, I got tuna or I got tuna.
- Fine.
And a half-pint of milk.
That'll be 4 and a quarter.
Four and a quarter? That's highway robbery.
I can get a whole meal for that.
Nearest diner's ten minutes away.
Take your choice.
Who owns this truck? Mister, I just drive and collect the cash.
Well, if you ever meet the owner, tell him I didn't wanna buy his truck, I just wanted a sandwich and a half-pint of milk.
Lulu's back in town, yeah Lulu's back in town, yeah Lulu's back in town Ray, it's good to have you back.
I've always liked it here, but it's so much better with you.
Yeah, it's good to be here.
I am sick of the road.
- Oh, Fort Lauderdale.
- Biloxi.
- Panama City.
- Pascagoula.
- Ray, this is Julie March.
- Hi.
Hi.
- She's a looker, isn't she? - All right.
Ben.
- Ray Templin.
- Hi, Ray.
Ray, when does Shelly get in? Any minute.
- Mr.
Matlock.
- Oh, hi, Shelly.
Meet Julie March.
- Nice to meet you.
- Hi, Shelly.
- What looks good today? - A meat loaf.
- Both of us.
- Good choice.
- Now, you stick around.
- I'm sticking like flypaper.
- How about a little ''Sweet Georgia''? - Sweet Georgia's walking in.
Oh, yeah.
Sweet Georgia Brown.
- Shelly? - Yes? We know that Dan Keaton and Mr.
O'Hara had an argument in here.
And we know that this is the last place that Dan Keaton was seen alive.
I'd like you to put your thinking cap on and see if you can remember anything they were arguing about.
Oh, I couldn't hear anything.
- Because Ray was playing the piano? - Right.
Well, Ray's playing the piano today.
They were sitting at this table, you were waiting on them.
You had to have heard something.
Mr.
Matlock, please.
I know you're fond of Mr.
O'Hara, but the truth won't hurt.
All right.
Mr.
Keaton said that Mr.
O'Hara was taking bribes from Mr.
Delroy.
Anything else? That's all I heard.
Honest.
- Thank you, Shelly.
- Okay.
- Two-- Yeah.
- Meat loaf.
Meat loaf.
I'm sorry, but O'Hara's as big a crook as I thought he was.
And he killed Dan Keaton to cover his tracks.
- Hello? - Harry.
How's it going, old pal? Who--? Who is this? You haven't forgotten your new best friend, Tyler Hudson, have you? Your ever-present investigator.
Your constant companion.
Leave me alone.
Harry, you sound a little tense.
You know, it's bad for the blood pressure, this felony business.
Very, very bad.
If you don't leave me alone, I'm gonna go to the police.
Oh, smart move, Harry.
Very smart move.
You just let me know when, because I wanna be right there with you.
Hey, hey, look, look.
I just-- Just wanna take a look at it.
No.
No.
- Wait! - Come here! Come back! - No.
- No, no! - Wait! - Come here! Come back! I just wanted to take a look at it.
How you doing? You don't know how glad I am to see you.
Man, I'm telling you, my life, my entire future, depends on you.
Hey, sir, could you slow down for a second? I've been waiting for you for three hours.
Make it fast.
Last night, my girlfriend, Cecily, and I, we had a little falling-out.
Actually, we had an enormous fight.
And I wrote her this furious letter ending it all.
And now you want it back.
See? A man who's been in love.
You can recognise that right away.
And you can also recognise the package.
There it is.
It's got red masking tape on it.
Some love letter.
Yeah.
Well, I got a lot to apologise for.
Well, if you want it, you gotta fill out a form with the postmaster.
Couldn't I just write a little note on the front of it telling her it's all a mistake? Just fill out a form and it's yours.
There's a witness who says that Dan Keaton accused you of taking money from Abe Delroy.
- So? - Did you do it? Get her out of here.
Possibly Mr.
O'Hara has done something illegal.
You don't have to worry, Mr.
O'Hara.
I'm not a DA anymore.
- I resigned.
So tell us.
- You resigned? Could we talk about--? I knew you couldn't just take a leave of absence.
I knew it.
Julie, how could you--? Would you let Mr.
O'Hara tell us why he and Dan Keaton were fighting? Go ahead.
Okay.
You know those lunch trucks at all the construction sites around town? Yeah, I know them.
I know their prices too, damn thieves.
That's because there's no competition.
Are you saying Abe Delroy owns those lunch trucks and has a monopoly, thanks to you? She's very smart.
How much did he pay you? In a good year, 200 K.
Two hundred thousand dollars.
And Keaton knew.
That's what you were fighting about, wasn't it? Yes.
And if he went public, he'd probably become president of the union while you went to jail.
Now, look, I took some money under the table.
That doesn't make me a killer.
Ben, you gotta believe me, I didn't shoot Keaton.
I'll talk to you later.
What do you think? I think you shouldn't have quit your job without talking it over.
Ben, this is a matter of principle for me.
Besides, what would you have said? I would've said, ''No, absolutely not.
'' I rest my case.
This is 233.
- What are you doing? - Oh, just checking.
Please, don't let me interfere with your work.
Just pretend I'm not even here.
Go ahead, then.
Take it away.
Okay, buddy.
What do you want? A supervisor would do.
And did Mr.
Matlock say anything else before he gave you the $50,000? Yes.
He told me if I had second thoughts about voting to acquit, I should remember that Mr.
O'Hara had some very tough friends who'd be very upset.
Thank you, Mr.
Craven.
Your witness.
Well, Mr.
Craven, you've told us a fascinating story.
Unfortunately, I find it lacking in details.
Perhaps you can fill us in.
Now, you say Mr.
Matlock talked to you several times before he offered you money.
That's right.
But you and all the jurors were sequestered at the Alexander Hotel, weren't you? Yes, we were.
Under strict court order not to speak to anyone about the trial.
Yes.
Then how could Mr.
Matlock reach you? - He phoned me.
- What if I told you the hotel has no records of any calls at all to your room? There's a payphone at the end of the hall on my floor.
He slipped me a note and told me he'd call me there.
So despite the court order, you say you took this call.
Yes.
- Did anyone see you take this call? - No.
Did anyone see Mr.
Matlock give you the $50,000? No.
It was in my room one day when I came home from court.
So aside from your accusations, there's absolutely no evidence against Mr.
Matlock, is there, Mr.
Craven? Objection.
Argumentative.
Withdraw the question.
No further questions at this time.
- Recross? - Just one question.
Mr.
Craven, is there a reason why nobody saw you talking to Mr.
Matlock? Yes.
He told me not to answer the phone if there was anyone in the hall.
- That's all.
Thank you, Your Honour.
- It's a damn lie! - Order! - It is, Your Honour! It's a damn lie! Mr.
Matlock! This jackass got ahold of $50,000 somewhere, and somebody's trying to railroad me in on it, and it's a damn lie! Mr.
Matlock, you will sit down immediately, or I'll cite you for contempt.
I can't believe it.
I can't believe it, losing control like that.
- If I was my lawyer, I'd fire me.
- I would too, but I can't fire you.
You're the only client I have.
I'll see you in court after lunch.
Hey, Ben.
What are you doing here? Harry Craven just left.
- You're supposed to be following him.
- Ben, I think by the end of the day, I could have some very good news for us, but in order for me to get it, I'm gonna need your influence.
Thank you, gents.
Well, we've got Mr.
Lindford for paying off Craven.
Great.
Great.
Now, we're gonna get him for murder.
Let's see, let's see.
Computer room.
Mr.
O'Hara's office.
Mr.
Lindford's office.
I'll be right back.
Are we making progress? Maybe.
Maybe.
Okay? We may be getting there.
Julie? I think we got him.
Ben, I've been thinking.
- About what? - About the case.
Me too.
And what I've been thinking is, well, maybe you should represent yourself in there.
Why? Because you figured it out.
How Lindford murdered Keaton.
And nobody can present that to the jury more clearly than you can.
You can.
And there's another reason why you should take over the case.
Because you're an honest man and you're passionate about your defence.
The jury's entitled to see that.
Last time I got up in there, they saw a damn fool.
You haven't forgotten that little display, have you? No, I've got the toughest, wildest lawyer in Atlanta.
I'm in good hands.
- Are you sure? - You betcha.
Mr.
Lindford, these photographs were taken by Tyler Hudson, a private investigator.
They were taken at the post office on 9th Street the day before yesterday.
Now, would you tell the court who the man in the pictures is? I'm the man in the pictures.
And what are you doing there? Picking up my mail.
But just one piece of mail, isn't that right, Mr.
Lindford? A large envelope sealed with red masking tape? It appears to be.
And what was in the envelope? I don't remember.
Junk mail, possibly.
Junk mail.
Well, I sure wish I got junk mail like that every day, because it was $50,000 cash in that envelope, wasn't it? No, it wasn't.
Is there a Mr.
Mark Carter here today? And would you please stand, sir? Mr.
Carter is a postal inspector.
Pursuant to federal search-warrant procedures, he opened that envelope before it was delivered to you, and these pictures were taken.
Now, Mr.
Lindford, does that help to refresh your recollection? All right.
I opened the envelope.
The money was there.
I don't know who it came from.
But I can help you with that.
It came from Harry Craven, sitting right over there, and I wouldn't be a bit surprised if Mr.
Craven will admit the whole thing.
How you bribed him to lie and accuse Ben Matlock of jury tampering.
- That's not true.
- Oh, yes, it is.
You framed your friend for murder, Mr.
Lindford.
And then when he hired a lawyer you couldn't control, you bribed a juror to knock him off the case.
You wanted to bring in your own man.
You wanted to make sure Gerald O'Hara went to jail so that you could take over the union.
Your Honour, this is pure speculation and irrelevant to the case at hand.
Your Honour, the defence has always contended that whoever framed Mr.
Matlock also murdered Daniel Keaton.
And we ask the opportunity to prove that.
The court would be most interested in this theory if it can be substantiated.
Can it? With Your Honour's permission, the defence requests that the court and the jury be permitted to view the scene of the crime at the offices of the American Brotherhood of Builders.
And we also ask that Gerald O'Hara be present at that time.
Mr.
Lindford, I remind you, you are still under oath.
Proceed, Miss March.
Mr.
Lindford May I have a moment, Your Honour, to confer with my client? - Of course.
- Thank you.
Can you behave yourself? What are you talking about? You know what I mean.
He did it.
We know he did it.
We know how he did it.
So go get him.
Just remember, you're not 1 2 years old.
Your Honour, with the court's permission, Mr.
Matlock will be representing himself for the duration of the trial.
Do you agree to this substitution, Mr.
Matlock? Yes, sir, Your Honour.
I'll remain as co-counsel, Your Honour.
So ordered.
Proceed, Mr.
Matlock.
Mr.
Lindford, you remember the other day when I was over here and you explained in careful detail how union money goes right to the bank, and how that money can't be taken out of those accounts, except by committee decision.
Is that correct? - That's correct.
- Well, I think there's another step.
You know what I think? I think if you could get your hands on $50,000 for this bribe, and say another 50,000 for Harry Craven, you could get your hands on a lot more.
I did no such thing.
Remember we were talking about your computers? Well, I had a computer expert in here and he went through your system.
You know what he discovered? - That it's foolproof.
- That's right.
Once the money's in the bank.
But before it gets there, a person could take that money and put it in an interest-bearing account, just overnight.
Imagine.
Millions of dollars in union funds earning interest for just one night.
A lot of money.
- Adds up, doesn't it? - I wouldn't know.
Yes, you would.
Because you're the one who designed the system.
Dan Keaton found out about it, and what was at stake wasn't some little penny-ante bribe on lunch waggons.
It was millions and millions of dollars.
Talking about major finance here.
And it was all slipping away from you, wasn't it? So you killed him.
There is no evidence that I killed Keaton.
- Tell that to the judge.
- Your Honour, prosecution agrees.
This is all circumstantial.
Where's the link between Mr.
Lindford and the murder? Here it comes.
The chair.
Remember the executive chair? This chair will straighten this whole thing out right now.
You remember this chair? Where Dan Keaton was sitting when you shot him? Mr.
O'Hara, would you please sit in the chair? It's okay.
It's been in police custody since the murder.
Nobody's touched it.
It should be exactly the way it was the last time you sat in it.
So There you go.
A little low, isn't it? - It's not my chair.
- That's right.
This chair was set for somebody a lot taller.
Thank you, Mr.
O'Hara.
You see, what we couldn't figure out is if Dan Keaton was trying to get evidence against John Lindford, would he be going through your desk, Gerald? And then it came.
Dan Keaton was in John Lindford's office going through his desk.
And John Lindford caught him and shot him in his office in that chair, then wheeled the body down to this office and took your chair, Gerald, and put it in his office.
And all of that was to frame Gerald O'Hara.
Then he took the body to the construction site, as if Mr.
O'Hara were covering up for himself.
The one thing he forgot to do was change the height of the chair.
He didn't adjust the chair.
So, Mr.
Lindford, have a seat.
Looks like a perfect fit.
Has the jury reached a verdict? We have, Your Honour.
Will the defendant please stand? May we have the verdict? We find the defendant, Benjamin Matlock, not guilty.
This court is adjourned.
- Everybody's looking.
- They got good taste in dancers.
You know, for a lawyer and a lady and everything, you're it.
- So are you.
- Oh, well, I am sometimes.
But you're it all the time.
Thank you for getting my job back at the DA's office.
Well, I'm glad I'm not totally without influence.
You know, we're gonna be on opposite sides again.
You know what? You're still it.
Go get them, Lulu.