Original subtitles

Whenever the laws of any state are broken,

the duly authorized organization swings into action.

It may be called the state police, state troopers,

militia, the rangers, or the highway patrol.

These are the stories of the men whose training,

skill, and courage have enforced and preserved our state laws.

The law enforcement officer's problem is not always the hardened criminal.

Frequently it is the good element of society

that forces him to spend long hours in toil and grief,

especially when that element is guided by fear.

Joseph Bradshaw was one such man,

who, by making the wrong decision,

triggered a series of events which led to serious complications.

I'll finish the lawn later, honey. I've got to rush.

You bowling today?

Ha, it's Sunday, isn't it?

With the Fowler brothers, I suppose.

They'll be picking me up any minute.

Oh, Grace, you're not going to start that again,

just because they were in trouble a few years back.

They were in prison.

Honor farm. It's not the same thing.

Besides, they've straightened out, honey.

[tires screech, car horn beeps twice]

Yeah, that must be them now.

They'll get you in trouble. I just know they will.

What kind of trouble could they get me into?

Charlie, put that away, you jerk.

You want to mess up the whole plan?

Okay, Tom, okay.

What do we need this character for anyway, huh?

So no one suspects us.

We're the Fowler boys, remember?

We need Bradshaw for an alibi.

I'll be home early.

See that you are.

I have a nice rump roast for supper.

Here, you'll need this, Joe.

Hiya, Mrs. Bradshaw.

Hiya, Tom.

Out of cigarettes. Won't be a minute.

I got an extra pack, Tom. Not my brand.

I'll, I'll come with you. I just remembered I got to make a phone call.

Hey, it's late. We don't want to hold up the other team.

We'll make it, Joe.

?

[2 gunshots]

[engine revs, tires squeal]

[gunshots]

[4 gunshots]

[painful exclamations]

Where ya hit kid?

In the back.

Like it's on fire.

Think ya can stand?

I'll try Tom.

[groan]

Crummy rat.

I took care of him.

Not him.

Joe for ditching us.

I'll take care of him, too.

Got to get you home first.

How I can't walk.

Not that far.

You won't have to.

We'll use Benson's jalopy. It's parked out around back.

He's got no more use for it.

Hang on now. I'll get his keys.

[groans]

[phone jingles as coin goes in]

[phone rings]

[phone rings]

[phone rings]

Hello?

Grace?

Listen, Grace, I'm in a jam.

No, no, nothing like that.

Real trouble.

Tell me, how much money we got in the house?

That's all?

What about your sister?

[frightened voice] Grace, don't ask questions.

Do like I say.

Meet me just as soon as you can.

And bring every cent you can lay your hands ...

Where?

You know Summit Park? The old picnic ground?

Well, I'll be there.

And Grace, hurry.

Take it easy, kid. Easy now.

This isn't very much.

Well, it's the best I could do. You didn't give me much time.

Look, when the bank opens tomorrow, I can...

Tomorrow?

I'll be a long way from here by then.

Why, Joe?

Why should you run? You weren't in on that holdup.

I was there when it happened.

Well, an innocent bystander.

You didn't know what they were going to do.

Think anybody believed that? Especially now? [sigh]

Well, if you'd just kept your head, reported it to the police instead of running.

And get myself killed?

They shot at me, Grace. Don't you understand?

Tom and Charlie tried to kill me.

You see, Grace, there's nothing I can do.

Weren't any witnesses.

How, how could the police believe me?

They're on one side, the Fowlers are on the other.

If one doesn't get me, the other will.

I got no choice.

I gotta keep running.

Like a squirrel on a treadmill.

But to throw away your job, our home, everything you've worked for.

It's not fair, Joe. It's just not fair.

Did I say it was fair?

Don't fight me, honey, please.

Don't make things any tougher than they are already.

Well, surely the police would believe you.

If you just went to them and explained it,

they'd protect you from the Fowlers.

Sure. What kind of protection?

Sanctity of a prison cell?

5 to 10 as an accessory to a holdup?

Maybe not.

You don't know what would happen.

Maybe isn't good enough.

I'm not going to gamble on a prison stretch.

Well, you won't have to.

I could go to the police, it's no risk to me.

Look, I could go in and explain it and talk

to them and tell them exactly how it happened.

I wouldn't have to use your name.

And, well, if I could get them to guarantee that they wouldn't prosecute you...

Yeah, if.

Well, it's worth a try.

Joe, it's better than standing by and watching our lives go smash.

Sure, I suppose so.

Well, there's a Highway Patrol station about, about two miles up the road.

I'll go up there.

Okay, we'll try it your way.

But if it doesn't work, I'm leaving tonight. That's understood?

Yes, Joe.

It's understood.

?

? [Narrator] Grace Bradshaw was determined to prevent her husband

from making the grim decision.

Joe waited.

I'm sorry, you're not giving me very much to go on, Mrs., uh...

Well, there's nothing more I can give you.

Like I told the officer out there, the one who told me I better speak to you,

my question's purely hypothetical.

Mm-hm.

Let me see if I have everything straight.

You want to know if a person who happened to be in the

company of two men when they committed a robbery...

But wasn't involved himself.

Yes.

And he left the scene of the crime without notifying

the police, what would his status be, is that it?

Yes.

In other words, would the law prosecute him?

Well, without knowing more details, I can't say that any law

enforcement officer could truthfully say that he wouldn't be prosecuted.

Even if you knew he was innocent?

If he's innocent, he has nothing to be afraid of.

I see.

No, I don't think you do.

You'd expect him to surrender with no better guarantee than that?

Look...

I don't know this person's current position

in regard to the law, but this much I do know.

Unless he turns himself in to the police immediately, he

can be prosecuted for being an accessory after the fact.

Now believe me, I'd like to help you.

In order to do that, you're going to have to tell me the truth.

Dan, can you come out here a minute?

Yeah, sure.

Excuse me, won't you?

What's the matter?

I thought you ought to know, the report just came in.

Hold up at Benson's Cafe about three miles up the highway.

They lifted the cash box and shot Mike Benson, the proprietor.

How is he?

He's dead.

What have you got so far?

Nothing yet. Cabot just radioed in. You want to take a run up?

I've got some business to finish in the office.

Laraby,

You know that woman who's in here?

Yeah.

She's disappeared. Take a look around for her. She can't have gone very far.

Don't try to get up, kid. Just lie back. Take it easy.

Tom, I've got to have a doctor. Tom, I'm burning up inside.

I can't get a doctor, kid. You know that. Not with a bullet wound.

What? You're just going to let me die?

Of course not.

Remember Ernie Glass?

He was with the medical corps during the war. He's got a lot of surgical stuff home.

What are you waiting for? Get him.

You think I haven't tried?

I had to ditch the car, but I've been calling this place every ten minutes.

He's not home yet.

I've got to have help soon. I've gotta.

My, my back is on fire. [groan]

I feel I just, I was just slipping away,

and going.

I don't want to die, Tom.

Stop talking like that. You're not going to die.

[breathing heavy, half crying]

If it wasn't for Joe ditching us... [grunt, groan]

He'll get his. That's a promise.

You found the body?

I saw the closed sign on the door and figured something was wrong.

In the eight years I've been patrolling this stretch,

Mac's never been shut on a Sunday.

What makes you think there was more than one?

I found some pretty good footprint indentations around back by the garage.

More blood.

It looks like they stole Mac's jalopy to make their getaway.

You mean they didn't have a car of their own?

Looks that way.

Somebody took off here like a jet.

Look at these tire tracks spin-out.

Knocked this over. Here's the paint smear where he side-swiped it.

Might as well have left his calling card.

Oh, what color was Benson's car?

Mac's car was a dark gray coupe, almost gun metal.

This is blue.

Whata you thinking?

I'm thinkin' about a lady who came to my office and the story she told me.

Now the car that knocked this over might have been connected with the murder,

then again it might not be.

If it is, a lot of things are starting to add up.

Look,

we better check this out to play safe.

You think there was a third person involved in the robbery?

There's a great possibility.

There must be another way.

You haven't pointed it out to me.

You said yourself he refused to guarantee immunity.

But he couldn't, Joe.

That doesn't mean he won't give you every chance the law allows.

Chintz curtains to dress up the bars of my cell?

No, thanks.

The only break I'll get is the break I give myself.

Mm-hm Running away.

All your life, dodging the law.

You call that giving yourself a break?

Well, it might work.

You read about it in the papers all the time.

Guys wanted by the police who

changed their names, moved to a strange town, that

built whole new lives for themselves.

You read about it when they're caught.

Okay, at least they've had a few years of freedom.

I'm young, I'll buy those years.

Grace, try to see the spot I'm in.

It's not robbery now, it's murder.

I know, I know.

If the Fowlers find me, I'm a dead man.

If the police pick me up, I'm dead anyway.

You don't have to stop breathing to be dead.

Prison to me is just the same as a grave.

You wouldn't wish that on me.

No, Joe, no.

I couldn't stand being separated from you.

Without you, I'm just nothing.

I'd be dead too.

And you'd do like I say?

Yes.

All right, we'll clear out tonight.

You go home now and pack and,

see if you can scare up some more money.

I'll phone later, tell you where to meet me.

?

?

[Narrator & siren] At 4:20 that afternoon,

a blue convertible was found abandoned on the side of the highway.

There was a fresh scrape on the left rear fender.

And the tires were 710 heavy duty,

with a tread identical to the tracks found in front of the diner.

All right, Dan.

This is like the car, all right. Check that paint scratch on the fender.

Back tires are 710, same in the front.

Now, if that's not enough, this ought to cinch it.

38s, same caliber they dug out of Benson.

Registered owner of the car is Charles Fowler, which is kind of interesting.

A Charles Fowler and his brother got mixed up

with a gang of hijackers a couple of years back, did time together.

Get the address.

2150.

2150.

2150. I want a report from latent prints on their findings at the Twin Oaks diner.

And I suggest you check their findings against

the MOs on the Fowler brother, Charles and, what's the other guy's name?

Tom.

Tom.

Get an APP out on both of them.

Then send a team out here to the quarry cutoff to check out this vehicle.

How long do you think the car's been here?

I've, uh, already quizzed the station attendant across the road.

He's been tied up with an overhaul job half the day.

Can't, tell us the thing.

We'll get our answer from the Fowler brothers. Come on.

?

They're in #1 bungalow. Thanks. Let's go.

You two cover the back.

Come with me.

[knocking]

[knocking]

Who is it?

Who's there?

Open the door, Fowler. It's the police. We want to talk to you.

Come on, Fowler. Open up or we'll break it down.

[crash]

[gasping]

Phone for an ambulance. This man's critical.

Another minute and I've had the gun.

Another lousy minute. [groan]

Where's your brother? Where is he?

So Joe squealed, huh?

The rat squealed.

He'll get his.

Tom will take care of him.

Who's Joe? Who is he?

Get lost, copper.

[heavy breathing]

I'm not going to get any more out of him.

Get out another APB. This time on Tom Fowler alone.

Warn he's armed and dangerous.

Better post a stakeout. He just may come back.

[rattle on ground of the tossed metal box]

What's new?

Hospital reports no change. Fowler's still unconscious.

What about the bullet?

Lab says it was fired from Mac Benson's gun, all right.

Cabot, the stuff that was in the car, bring it here. I want to go over it.

Right.

I'd give a lot to know where Fowler is right now.

According to Charlie, he's out looking for a guy named Joe.

Yeah, sure, so are we. It's no help.

It is to Tom. He knows Joe's identity.

We don't.

If we don't get to Joe before Fowler does, we'll have another homicide in our hands.

Let's see what we do know.

Joe is married.

I've talked to his wife. I'm sure of that.

I can describe her from the mole on her neck to the run on her stockings,

but that description would fit a hundred gals in this area.

I couldn't find her.

We haven't time to personally interview a hundred gals.

Yeah, that's right.

Let's take Joe. Let's see what we know about him now.

This the stuff you wanted?

Yeah, thanks.

Well, comic book,

suntan oil,

lubricant,

38 cartridges,

three pair of bowling shoes.

Think ya got something?

I don't know.

His wife said something about an innocent party in the company of two men

that he had no idea they were going to pull a stick-up on the way.

Now, where would three guys be going on a Sunday afternoon?

Only two or three alleys in the neighborhood. Let's check them out. It's worth a try.

?

Good evening, Mrs. Bradshaw.

The man of the house about?

What are you doing here?

You didn't answer my question.

Joe. Where is he?

Well, he isn't here. I don't know where he is.

You don't, huh?

And I suppose you're just packing a few things to put them in storage for the summer.

I want Joe.

Where is he?

Okay.

We'll play it your way then. I got no place to go. I can wait.

Sit down.

[phone rings]

[phone rings] Go on, answer it.

[phone rings]

Hello.

Tell him to come here. Now.

Joe, don't come 'round. Tom Fowler...

Sure, Joe.

You do, though, and your little wife gets killed.

Don't get any cute ideas about tipping off the cops either.

Takes exactly one second to squeeze a trigger.

Ain't nobody in the world can bust a door down that fast.

?

Yeah, sure, we keep a roster of the men on the various teams in the bowling leagues.

We'd like to know if two fellows with the name of

Charlie and Tom Fowler bowl on any of the teams here.

Sure, the Fowlers, I know them.

They bowl with a team calls itself the Corsairs.

And Joe.

A guy named Joe, does he bowl with them?

Joe. Just a second, I'll check the roster. It's all there.

[bowling pins get hit]

Not bad.

? Joe.

Where is he?

Behind you, kid.

Easy does it. Hold it just like that.

Tom.

Uh-uh. Save your breath.

You got nothing to tell me I don't already know.

It's thanks to you my brother Charlie's

maybe dying in the hospital this very minute.

It's no thanks to you I wasn't at the motel when the cops came swinging out.

I had nothing to do with the cops.

Sure, I ran out on you, but I was scared.

I didn't know you were going to pull any stick up.

But I didn't go to the police.

Pedal it somewhere else.

Oh give me a break, Tom. All we want to do is get out of here.

You'll get out all right. Feet first.

No! Come on, get out of the way. I'll have ta shoot you.

[gunshot] ?

I was a witness. I'll testify it was an accident.

You're my wife, who's going to believe you?

But what are you going to do?

Oh, I got to think. I'm in so deep now.

[siren]

[siren] [tires screech]

Shall I get the tear gas?

Not yet.

Stop right there.

I'm warning you. Don't come any closer. I have a gun.

You Joe Bradshaw?

Yes, and I told you don't come any closer.

Joe, listen to me, you're making a sucker play.

The house is surrounded. Throw out your gun and surrender.

Go to prison?

That's another sucker play.

If you're innocent, you won't go to prison.

I'm warning you. One more step and I start shooting.

I'm coming in, Joe.

I swear to you, another step and I'll shoot.

I'm coming in.

I'm warning you.

I'm going to start shooting.

I'm coming in, Joe.

Have you gone crazy?

You'll never get out of here. You just can't make it.

Well, I could try.

It's better than going to prison or the chair.

Joe.

Get out of the way.

You'll be killed.

I'm coming in.

Did you hear what I said? Did you hear me say I'd shoot?

Yeah, I heard you.

But I don't believe you.

I don't think your wife does either, Joe.

I met her.

She loves you.

She doesn't strike me as the kind of a woman who'd marry a killer.

You're forcin' me.

You're forcing yourself and it goes against the grain, doesn't it?

You see where the petty crime leads to? A bigger one.

It's like a snowball going downhill. Finally, you can't stop it.

You should have come to us in the first place.

But you wouldn't gamble on the law, would you, Joe?

Well, the law's not afraid to gamble on you.

I'm coming in. ?

All right, let me have the gun.

It's nothing serious. It's only a flesh wound.

I'm sorry, honey.

Did I hurt you?

No. No, you didn't hurt me.

[yelling] All right, boys.

You're gonna have to come with me, Joe.

But he's not a criminal, Mr. Matthews.

Yeah, I know.

He's a very lucky guy.

He'll be coming back to you, Mrs. Bradshaw. Let's go.

See the Highway Patrol in action again next week.