All language subtitles for Perry Mason S06E24 The Case of the Elusive Element.DVDRip.NonHI.en.CBS

♪♪

Come on, come on. What
are you worrying about?

Nobody will find out,
and nobody will know.

The contract's in the
bag, I guarantee you.

If anybody's got
trouble, it's me.

This partnership thing is like
trying to ride a dying horse.

I need that money.

You, my friend, owe me $50,000.

I never guarantee who
would get the contract.

I only said our report would
fix it so that Universal wouldn't.

Well, now you're talking sense.

Suppose I meet
you at... Yes, Terri.

Universal Aviation, Mr. Pearce.

What?

Right outside and mad.

Wait till I buzz and
then send him in.

Did you hear that?

Well, we knew we'd have
to face some of the music,

but he can't know, and it
won't make any difference.

Just stay on the line.
I'll get back to you.

- Mr. Pearce...
- Sit down.

- Oh, but, Mr. Pearce...
- Sit down, Lloyd, and listen.

Universal Aviation is company with net
assets of more than a 100 million dollars.

On behalf of the board of directors
and stockholders, I run that company.

You, Lloyd, may know
the right time of day.

More than that, I
wouldn't swear to.

Mr. Pearce, I protest.

Sit down.

You're a fast-talking promoter

who latched on to a
bright young scientist

and formed a two-bit
independent reliability testing outfit.

Whatever that is.

Why, I don't know.

But my engineering department
saw fit to employ your company

to test some designs
for the DIMOS project.

A project with a total potential value
in excess of one half a billion dollars.

Less than a day before the bid is
due, we discover by some strange fluke

that our bid is
going to be so high,

we haven't a chance
to win that contract.

Mr. Pearce, that's the way
things happen. The fortunes of war.

I'm terribly sorry that
you lost that contract.

But I haven't lost it.

Well, you just said...

I asked for and was given a one week's
extension in which to submit our bid.

But that means...

An investigation, Mr. Lloyd.

Mr. Pearce, are you accusing me?

Yes, I am.

If one of my departments
is found to be at fault,

I'll fire the whole kit
and caboodle of them.

But if, as I'm led to believe,
it's this outfit of yours...

Look out.

Now, start that genius partner of yours
double-checking the report he wrote.

He may have to
explain it in court.

Universal's held up their
bid and gotten an extension.

How do I know why?
It could be anything.

Some fluke, Pearce said.

Maybe somebody smelled
something in the report.

If they question too
closely and double-check,

you and I may go to jail.

Don't give me that, friend. If I
go to jail, you're going with me.

Over here, Mr. Lloyd.
I'm almost finished.

All right, thank you, Joe.

That'll be $5.38, sir.

Personal check for $25. Cash it.

May I see your
driver's license, please?

Everything all right, Mr. Lloyd?

You're looking a little peaked.

I feel it.

Don't think I've ever seen
you buy a bottle before.

What are you gonna
do, drown the trouble?

- Why not?
- Here you are.

Thank you.

Station 3706, cash back King...

213769.

Brown 14.

That's right.

Yeah, sure, I'll hold on.

Sir, would you be good enough

to fill out this credit
application for me, please?

What for?

Oh, just routine for our records.
Your name and your address.

- You stalling me?
- Excuse me?

Who are you talking to?

Look, Telecredit
is just a routine...

Oh, forget it.

That's him, Officer!

That's the guy with the phony
license and the bad check... him!

Terrific, isn't it?

You spot a phony license or
a bad check in five seconds.

Yeah.

Can I help you with
your problem, Mr. Lloyd?

Thanks, Joe. You already have.

Miss Clover.

Oh, yes. Yes, Mr. Garrett,
I'll tell him right away.

And that's how it works.

Well, that's wonderful.

- Excuse me, Mr. Lloyd.
- Yes, Terri.

Mr. Garrett would like to see you in his
office. I think he has his lawyer with him.

He said it was important.

Of course. Well,
thank you, Mr. Fordney.

Thanks for your time and
trouble. I'll be seeing you soon.

- Thank you, Mr. Lloyd.
- Right.

What's electronic check
approval? And who is Mr. Fordney?

Oh, he's a fellow I met at the
club. He's selling something.

I guess, I'll see Dwight.

Austin, after you see him,

will I still be working here?

Everybody's wondering, huh?

Well, we haven't been
setting the world on fire.

Our boy Dwight is a walking
brain. Real smart, sure.

But he's not the only one around
here who can figure things out.

Don't ever sell
Austin Lloyd short.

Hello, Dwight.

Well.

Our private little war seems to
be turning into a public exposition.

I'm sorry, Austin.

You gave him no
choice, Mr. Lloyd.

Oh, Mason. I know you called,

but you'll have to understand
the press of business.

Dodging is the word.

You deliberately
avoided my calls.

Assume the offensive,
it's a good legal tactic.

Well, even the
reinforcements are here.

Mr. Baker of Baker Avionics.

Mr. Ned Chase, his
chief reliability engineer.

I don't know how this concerns you
gentlemen, but welcome to the battle.

Austin, I... I've been offered a
vice presidency at Baker Avionics.

Genius recognized.
Genius rewarded.

Good for you, Dwight.

Look, I want out, Austin.

I'll dissolve our partnership.

You want to dissolve
my marriage, too.

Accusations like that are one reason
your partnership needs dissolution.

A Solomon come
to render judgment.

Tell me, Mason, do you
know all the answers?

Let's say enough of them
to recognize lack of equity.

Dwight's contribution to
this joint venture of yours

has become increasingly
disproportionate.

Bitter antagonism is grounds for
dissolution of a partnership by the courts.

Oh, now we're gonna wave
subpoenas at one another.

The company has assets.

Dwight agrees
they're yours to keep.

Oh, fine. Just enough
money in the bank

to meet the payroll and
the current bills, period.

Dwight Garrett isn't the only
reliability engineer in the field.

No? Well, one even half as good
wouldn't dream of associating with me

unless I could offer
him a substantial bonus.

The kind of money I don't
have, Dwight doesn't have,

and the company doesn't have.

Oh, come off it, Austin.

There must be somebody
you can associate with.

Tell me, Mr. Myron Baker, with just
a somebody, not a Dwight Garrett,

would your company use us?

Well, I... I don't handle
that end of the business.

Isn't that beautifully evasive?

Mr. Ned Chase, as Mr. Baker's
chief reliability engineer,

and under those
circumstances, would you use us?

No.

Well, look, Perry, maybe I...

No, Dwight.

You made him your partner
out of misguided sympathy.

Don't repeat the mistake.

All right, Mr. Lloyd,

in regard to the
dissolution of partnership

and as a matter of
record, I'd like your answer.

As a matter of record,
you'll have it in 24 hours.

Oh, Dwight, minds like
yours sometimes frighten me.

You punch magic holes
into a piece of cardboard,

and you feed it into a computer,

and out comes an answer
telling you how to fly to the stars.

I wish life's problems were
as easily solved as that.

Dwight, I'm Austin's wife.

I'm not a chattel. You can't
trade him half a partnership for me.

Oh, we both made a mistake.

You when you married him and
me when I made him my partner.

He's no good, Bonnie.

Look, I know he's been lying and
cheating and stealing from the company.

Well, then you should have
asked him to leave a long time ago.

Just as I know he's
been lying and cheating

and he's stolen every chance
for happiness you'll ever have.

Have I ever led you
to believe that I thought

you and I were anything
but just good friends?

I'm letting him go.

You, Bonnie. You let him go.

My kind of
partnership is different.

I'm in my for life.

You love Austin?

Look at me.

Can't lie can you?

Oh, Bonnie.

I love you.

Deny... Deny you love me.

Dwight.

Oh, Dwight.

Dwight, we're both grown men.
Can't we talk our troubles out?

There's nothing we can say
that's gonna change the facts.

The partnership has to end.

Well, I thought a lot about it, and
I think I know way out for both us.

If Aerospace Reliability was
something more than just an empty name,

a new contract,

time and money enough to get
somebody in here in your place.

What kind of a contract?

Well, there's a Mexican company, a
top Latin American outfit in electronics.

They're expanding.

They're looking for a
United States company

to do their reliability
and test design work.

You think you can
land the contract?

Well, if you'll meet their top man and
look over the specs on the project, yes.

And, uh, if I do?

I'll sign any papers
that Mason prepares.

When and where
do I see this man?

Well, I'm expecting a telephone
call at my house at 4:00.

You go home and pack a
bag, say, for a two-day trip.

Come over to my house after
4:00, and I'll make all arrangements.

Where do I go to see him?

Mexico, Acapulco.

All right.

I'll go home and pack.

To Mexico?

That's right, honey.
Just think of this.

Just the two of us,
one week in Acapulco.

All things are looking up,
Bonnie. Money's coming in.

It'll be a second honeymoon.

A second chance to prove to
you, that I can be a good husband.

That I love you.

To leave today... Well,
I don't have any clothes.

We'll get them
when you get there.

Anything you want,
another trousseau.

Don't say no, honey.
Please, I beg of you.

Oh, Austin, I...

I don't know. I just...

Things will change,
honey. You won't be sorry.

Do you have the
airplane tickets?

Oh, that reminds me. I'm gonna
be tied up right to flight time.

But, honey, you can run
some errands for me, huh?

Go to the Beverly Hills airline
office and pick up the tickets.

Pay with this check for
both of them. One way.

One way?

We're coming back by boat.

Our own boat. Two weeks of
easy sailing up the coast to L.A.

You're going to buy a boat?

A fantastic buy. $7,500 for a thing
of beauty worth three times that.

The owner's in
trouble, he needs cash.

$10,000. Go and
cash this at the bank.

Get $100 bills. He insists
on being paid that way.

We'll need the rest for
expenses up the coast.

Oh, that's... That's so
much money to carry.

Oh, put in your
purse and forget it.

Oh, one more thing. A
radio receiver for the boat.

I ordered one at Hillman's.
Will you pick it up for me?

Where will I meet you?

At the airport. I'll pick up my ticket if
I'm late and you've already boarded.

This is happening so fast, I...

Not fast enough if you don't
get to the bank before it closes.

See you in a couple of hours.

Uh...

Thank you.

Yes, we can cash this company
check for you, Mrs. Lloyd.

Just a matter of confirming
your identification, that's all.

Oh, here's my driver's license.

Thank you. Here, you
can be endorsing it.

All right.

Station 77425.

Zebra, 359653.

Brown 3.

That's a company check for $400.

Your tickets are $290.

There'll be cash back to you, so I
have to get clearance, but that's all.

Take just a minute.

Uh, Station 261587.

Cash back. Zebra, 359...

653.

Brown, 3.

Mr. Rodriguez will be
waiting for you when you land.

Now, these papers are for him,

some confidential material
on financing he wanted.

What about my ticket?

You can pick it
up at the airport.

Rodriguez will have your
hotel accommodations all set.

You'll be thoroughly
briefed when you get there.

Well, I guess that's it.

I hope I can swing it for you.

Oh, Dwight, before you go, will
you get me that glass of water

and bottle of pills from
the table there, please?

Thank you.

Will you be all right?

Oh, don't worry. I've had
these ulcer attacks before.

Bonnie will be back
from shopping soon.

I'll give her your regards.

Operator, this is an emergency.
Get me the police fast.

This is Austin Lloyd.

3506 Vista Haven.

Send the ambulance fast.

He poisoned me.

Dwight Garrett poisoned me.

Station 4673872.

Uh, cash back.

Zebra, 359653.

Uh, Brown.

I'm in such a hurry.
Couldn't I just...

It's a regular routine.

Uh, yes.

That was Brown 3.

Aerospace
Reliability Associates.

Station 4673872,

stand by for Code 2.

Yes. Yes, I'm
standing by. I'll wait.

Um, look, I'll pay you in
cash. I'm... I'm already late.

Um, just one
moment, ma'am. I'll...

This is Sergeant
Parnell, Special Agent.

No.

I'm sorry.

Madam?

Flight 41 1 now
arriving at Gate 2.

Thank you.

Passengers for Flight 330,
please board immediately at Gate 5.

Bonnie.

Dwight, what are you doing here?

I'm going to Acapulco, but...

One-way tickets? What the...

Dwight Garrett? Lieutenant
Anderson, Los Angeles Police.

Are you Mrs. Austin Lloyd?

Well, yes I am. What's wrong?

I'll have to ask both of you
to come downtown with me.

Well, if it's about this money,
don't ask me, ask Austin Lloyd.

Well, that's
impossible, Mr. Garrett.

Austin Lloyd has been murdered.

Austin called the police
and said I tried to poison him?

He identified you
specifically by name.

And then the police
called your office.

They were told you were
on your way flying to Mexico.

Andy... Lieutenant Anderson
just happened to be at the airport.

When the squad car
boys found Lloyd's body,

the police radioed Andy,
and he picked you up.

Well, this Mr. Anderson,
he was looking for me, too.

Well, what's amazing.

The way the bunco squad picked you
up is almost as if they knew in advance

exactly where to find you and the
fact you'd have all that money on you.

It's more than amazing, Paul.

It's as though it had
been carefully planned.

However, regardless
of how or why,

the fact remains you're both
being held on suspicion of murder.

Well, all right, me.

Maybe they think they have some sort
of a case against me, but why Bonnie?

10,000 in cash in
her purse. His wife.

7,000 in cash in an
envelope in your pocket.

His partner.

Plus reservations for two

and a flight out of the country.

Your computer mind
should be able to add that up.

To one answer for both of
you, premeditated murder.

Well, how do I plead you?

Guilty or not guilty.

Dwight?

He was smarter and a lot more
devious than I ever suspected,

but he won't get
away with it, Perry.

Who won't get away with what?

Austin. He planned all
this. Every step of the way.

The money, the trip to Mexico,

tying Bonnie and me together.

And his death?

He planned that, too.

Don't you see? He deliberately had me hand
him the poison he took to kill himself,

and then he called the police.

All right.

I'll have Paul start
checking out your stories.

But there's one thing I
think you ought to know.

According to the
preliminary autopsy

report, Austin Lloyd
was strangled to death.

I still don't see the point
of comparing these, Mason.

I have experts
working on this report.

But now the district
attorney's asking about it, too.

But Dwight Garrett said there was
some sort of mix-up on the report.

Mix-up? Ha.

Well, I just want every
answer I can get, that's all.

Now, exactly what is the
DIMOS project, Mr. Pearce?

Delta Interplanetary
Manned Orbiting Satellite.

A 10-year-long
range space project.

See, look here, Mason. This is my
copy of the DIMOS report, all right.

But are you sure this is
Garrett's own file copy?

Well, he gave me the
combination to his safe.

Miss Clover was right here with me when
I removed it a few moments ago. Why?

They're not the same.

Look, I... I think this one small
paragraph here is different.

Same reference
paragraph on three pages.

Summary, the detail, and
the conclusion sections.

Does those paragraphs
effect the amount

of your recommended bid?

Well, that's for
the experts to say.

I'm willing to bet that those paragraphs
would keep us from getting that contract.

Wonder how those pages
could've been substituted.

Who typed this
report, Miss Clover?

Mr. Mason, absolutely
no one was permitted

to so much as touch
those final reliability reports

except Mr. Garrett himself.

He even did the typing?

Right here in this office
on his own typewriter.

I noticed technical symbols
there. Did he also put those in?

Oh, yes, sir.

He had a special
printing element for that.

See the symbols are on it.

Mr. Mason,

these three substitute
pages were typed

on the same machine as
the original pages. Look.

On both, the n's are chipped.

Miss Clover,

would you type a few lines for
me on Mr. Garrett's machine?

Certainly.

Now, there it is.

No doubt of it, the "n".

Well?

Well, what?

You've sure got
your answer, all right.

So have I.

Dwight Garrett originally worked out
those DIMOS reliability factors properly.

His copy of the
report proves that.

This typewriter also proves that
it was the same Dwight Garrett

who added those
three substitute pages.

He deliberately
altered those factors.

I'm sorry, Mr. Drake, but I
have it right here on this memo.

The man who called in
for the two reservations,

side by side, on
the flight to Acapulco

identified himself
as... As Dwight Garrett.

A lot of nerve she
had, I'll tell you that.

In the middle of getting her check
approved, she ups and vamooses out of here,

leaving me with the
radio all wrapped up.

I know. But the man who phone
earlier and ordered the radio.

That was the woman's husband,
wasn't it? Mr. Austin Lloyd?

Oh, no. The guy who called me
was named Garrett... Dwight Garrett.

Money, whatever it takes,
you just name it, Perry.

We'll do anything we
can to help Dwight Garrett.

You've heard both reports.
What do you think, Myron?

Oh, doesn't matter
much what I think.

I'm not an engineer,
just an administrator.

That report could be
Greek for all I know.

Ned?

I just can't believe it.

Can't believe that it was done
or that Dwight Garrett did it?

Both.

Universal Aviation was almost
fooled into basing their bid on it.

Almost.

But the substitution
was not good enough.

Is that why you can't believe
that Dwight was responsible for it?

I'd be willing to swear he
had nothing to do with it.

Why not?

Dwight Garrett, as an
engineer, a mathematician,

as a scientist, he's
tops in his field.

In a class by himself.

Oh, maybe his socks don't
always match, but that brain of his...

He's done work for you?

On six different projects.

And each report was a thing
of beauty, not a single error.

Dwight just doesn't
make mistakes.

Not even deliberately?

What could he
possible hope to gain?

According to the district attorney,
he's partner's wife for one thing.

By altering a report?

By profiting by the altering of that
report as Baker Avionics did to profit.

But not Dwight?

Yes, Dwight.

What?

Baker Avionics needed Dwight
Garrett's brain desperately.

He agreed to accept the job of
vice-president in charge of planning.

As a bonus, the deal included
5,000 shares of Baker stock.

Worth about $10 a share now.

Yes.

If your company instead of
Universal received the DIMOS contract,

how much would that
Baker stock be worth?

Five times its present
value. At least $50 a share.

Well, that's ridiculous.

I never even considered what that
stock would or wouldn't be worth to me.

The district attorney
will claim otherwise.

But let's get back
to those checks.

Well, I told you.

Austin called me to make
sure I'd leave the house

in time to get to the
bank before it closed.

I'm trying to remember
from the notes I took.

Was it then he told you the name
of the man who would meet you,

the man who wanted
to sell you his boat?

Yes. Rudolpho Aragon.

There was no Rudolpho Aragon.
There was no boat for sale.

- And?
- You guessed it.

No Rodriguez to meet you

and no Mexican electronics
company to confer with.

The checks that Bonnie
cashed, did you sign them?

Well, I suppose so.

You don't know?

Sometimes Miss Clover handed
me a stack papers and checks to sign,

and sometimes Austin
gave me checks to sign.

They took both our signatures.
I usually just signed them.

The checks that Bonnie
cashed, Austin Lloyd did not sign.

Well, that's impossible.

Austin Lloyd signature on
those checks was a forgery.

You mean my signature
was valid, and his was forged.

Oh, come on, that
doesn't make sense.

Yes, it does if you
consider the district attorney.

I suppose he'll try
to pin that on me, too.

Don't you understand?

Forging those checks will be added
proof that you altered the report,

the basis for your
alleged motive.

He'll do more than try.

An altered report
that could bring you

a personal profit of a
quarter of a million dollars.

Death was the result of asphyxia

brought on, unquestionably,
by manual strangulation.

With the victim dazed, as
decedent was in this case,

from the ingestion of a
massive dose of barbiturates,

the murderer must have pressed against
the victim's larynx until he was dead.

A massive dose of
barbiturates, Doctor.

Was the dose large enough to have caused
death if no strangulation had occurred?

I would say so, yes.

Now, let's suppose, then,

that the murderer discovered
his victim attempting to call for help

and tried to subdue
him physically.

What effect would such a
struggle have had on the victim?

If the murderer's arm was
across the victim's throat,

it would cut off the oxygen.

The retention of carbon dioxide
in the respiratory system would,

strangely enough, act
as a powerful stimulant.

And murderer would have
had to use still more force?

That's right.

And causing him
to strangle the victim

he had intended to kill
with the overdose of drugs.

Thank you,
Doctor. That'll be all.

Cross-examine.

This ingestion of barbiturates
to which you referred, Doctor.

Was it any one
particular barbiturate?

Yes. Barbital.

Barbital is a slow-acting barbiturate
causing in what is known as toxic dosage,

dizziness, headache, nausea,
ataxia, inarticulate speech,

mental confusion,
and finally coma.

A fatal coma, doctor?

Generally, where there is death, it
occurs in from two to seven days.

Obviously, much can
happen in that time.

Obviously. Thank you, Doctor.

No further questions.

I have no re-direct, Your Honor.

Then witness is excused.

I call Roscoe Pearce
to the stand, please.

Yes, I warned Austin Lloyd

that I was having that report
carefully double-checked.

I told him that if sabotage was
determined, I'd personally file charges.

Did you see Dwight
Garrett in his office that day?

No, not in the office,

but I did see him the
next night in a restaurant.

Alone, sir?

No he was... He
was with Mrs. Lloyd.

The co-defendants were together.

Was Mr. Lloyd there?

No.

Nobody asked or suggested

that Dwight Garrett alter
that report on DIMOS, nobody!

I didn't suggest
anybody had, Mr. Baker.

Now as to that working agreement
between Dwight Garrett and your company.

Though later committed to
paper, at the time it was agreed to,

it consisted essentially
of an oral agreement

between you and Mr. Garrett,
bound by a handshake,

- right?
- That's right.

And it was arrived, that of course,
while he was still working on that DIMOS...

No, Mr. Burger. Not while he
was still working on the report.

It was a day, maybe
two days afterwards.

But surely the terms you
ultimately shook hands on

must at least been discussed

while he was
working on the report?

That's possible. I'm not sure.

Well, then let's
move on to something

you can be sure
about, Mr. Baker.

Now, assuming that your company
received that DIMOS contract,

would you estimate for the court
what the 5,000 shares of stock

Dwight Garrett was to have
receive would have been worth

at the end six months?

About a quarter
of a million dollars.

Yes. Mr. Lloyd, the decedent,
asked Dwight, Mr. Garrett,

if was Mr. Garrett's intention
to dissolve their partnership.

And what did the
co-defendant answer?

Yes.

What happened then, Mr. Chase?

Well, then the decedent, Mr. Lloyd,
asked Dwight another question.

And what was
that other question?

Whether Dwight was also trying
to break up Lloyd's marriage.

Miss Clover, who had keys
to Dwight Garrett's office?

Only Mr. Garrett himself. That was
part of the security arrangements.

What about the safe
in Mr. Garrett's office?

The same thing. Only
Mr. Garrett himself could open it.

And, now, referring to the
typewriter in Mr. Garrett's office,

did anyone other than
Mr. Garrett ever use that machine?

No, sir.

In his office once, I started
to type something on it.

He shouted at me.

He told me he never have and never would
allow anyone else to touch that machine.

About a week before
Austin Lloyd was murdered,

did you inadvertently
witness to an

altercation in which
Austin Lloyd was involved?

Oh, yes.

I was in my office,

and the door to his must have
accidentally been left open.

Anyway, Mrs. Lloyd
was in there with him.

They got into an argument...

A pretty nasty one from
the tone of their voices.

Anyway, Mrs. Lloyd
finally said to her husband,

"I just don't love you. I
don't even respect you."

And what did the
decedent answer to that?

Well, he got pretty upset.

He shouted at her, "Sure. But I
bet you respect Dwight Garrett

and love him, too!"

Well, just at that moment,

Mr. Garrett himself came in the room.
He was on his way to see Mr. Lloyd.

That was just when Mrs. Lloyd
was answering her husband?

Yes. She said,

"I do respect Dwight
Garrett, as a matter of fact.

"And what's more, I never thought
about it before, but maybe you're right.

Maybe I love him, too!"

Well, there we
were, the two of us,

Mr. Garrett and me, seeing and
hearing everything through that open door.

Just when Mr. Lloyd
reached across the desk

and slapped his wife
hard across the face.

The electronic computer
has already recorded on it

information from every
driver's license in the state.

Now, where a license
is used to cash a check,

electronic check
approval can establish

whether a check is good
or bad before it is cashed.

An especially built computer can generate
an electronic answer in just four seconds.

So it was your company that
notified the police about Mrs. Lloyd?

Oh, yes. For a
$10,000 check is cashed

and immediately after two more had
call for cash back over the purchase price,

bells start ringing,
so to speak.

And our security department
lost no time in notifying the police.

What a frame-up.

Lloyd deliberately sent his wife
out with a batch of phony checks,

each one made out to a
place using your system,

and each one with cash back.

Especially knowing that one
of them was for an airline ticket

which would tell the police she was going
to be at the airport at a particular time.

He wanted her
stopped and arrested.

Mm-hmm. Also Dwight, both
of them loaded with money.

The secret lovers waiting for a phony
report to earn themselves a fortune,

robbing the company,
poisoning the husband,

making it look like
accidental death or suicide,

and then taking off together.

That sounds like a
pretty grim picture to me,

unless you can prove
that it was Austin Lloyd

and not Dwight Garrett
who forged the checks.

Oh, Mr. Mason can prove that.

Can't you, Perry?

Maybe I can, Della.

It's a long shot,
but maybe I can.

"I am a little world made
cunningly of elements."

I gather you've found
a cunning element?

An elusive element.

Now, Lieutenant, setting aside for
a moment the matter of fingerprints,

of airline seats, of
hotel reservations,

I show you this exhibit...

which is an authenticated
blow-up of two checks...

The first, the top one,

is the check for $10,000 which
was cashed on the day of the murder

by Mrs. Bonnie Lloyd,
the co-defendant.

The second check,
the bottom one,

is a routine business check of
Aerospace Reliability Associates.

Now, Lieutenant,
can you tell this court

if the signatures on these
two checks are genuine?

Objection, Your Honor. The question
calls for the opinion of a witness

who has not been qualified to
testify as an expert on handwriting.

If it please the court, I'm trying
to establish a prima-facie case.

I realize that for a
trial or before a jury,

it might be necessary to
produce a handwriting expert,

but I think for our purposes

this witness is perfectly competent
to answer those questions.

Two lives are at
stake, Mr. Burger.

I'm in no hurry to short-cut the fullest
measure of justice for their protection.

Neither am I, Mr. Mason, and I
resent your implication that I am.

If the district attorney
assures this court

that Lieutenant Anderson
is a competent expert

in the whole field of
homicide investigation,

we will stipulate for the
purposes of this hearing only,

and subject to
cross-examination,

that such are
his qualifications.

I so assure the court.

So stipulated.
Objection withdrawn.

Well, Lieutenant?

On the routine business check,
both signatures are genuine.

The $10,000 check has Dwight
Garret's authentic signature,

but the name of
Austin Lloyd is forged.

I see. Now, Lieutenant, did you
also examine the other two checks

that Bonnie Lloyd
tried to cash that day?

Yes, sir. Austin Lloyd's
name is also forged on them.

Still referring to the three
checks that Bonnie Lloyd had,

was there anything else
distinctive about them?

Yes, sir. They're different
from the routine business checks

Miss Clover always
typed on her typewriter.

That's this typewriter.

Yes, sir, Miss
Clover's typewriter.

The routine business checks,
like this lower check in the blow-up

were typed on Miss
Clover's typewriter?

Yes, sir.

Now what about
the other checks...

The upper check in the blow-up

and the two checks
that Bonnie Lloyd had?

They were typed on
Dwight Garrett's machine.

That's this machine?

Yes, sir.

Now you're sure, Lieutenant?

This is Dwight
Garrett's machine?

Yes, sir.

And now what are
the specific differences

between checks typed on
Dwight Garrett's typewriter

and checks typed on
Terri Clover's typewriter?

There are many areas
of identifiable difference

between the two typewriters,

but notice in particular

the chipped letter "n" on
Dwight Garrett's machine.

It's this typewriter,
this check, the letter "n".

All right, Lieutenant, now let's
move along to this second exhibit.

This side is a blow-up of a page
from the so-called DIMOS report.

This page was taken from the personal
file copy in the safe of Dwight Garrett.

This side is a blow-up of the
same page from the same report,

only this one was taken from the copy
which went to Universal Aeronautics.

These two pages are supposed
to be identical, but they are not.

Now, Lieutenant, what can you
tell us about these two pages?

Both the original page
and the substituted page

were typed on the
same typewriter.

Again, notice particularly
the chipped n's.

That's Dwight Garrett's machine.

Dwight Garrett's typewriter.

So, Lieutenant, we can say that the
substitute page of the DIMOS report

and the three forged checks
were all typed on a typewriter

to which only one
person had access.

Yes, sir... the defendant
Dwight Garrett.

Thank you very much, Lieutenant.

You may cross-examine,
Mr. Mason.

Lieutenant Anderson, in all
your homicide experience,

have you ever encountered a case

where the drug Barbital
was used to kill a person?

No, I don't remember any.

Were there any other
barbiturates in the house?

Why, yes, almost a
full bottle of Seconal.

You heard the
autopsy surgeon testify

Barbital in fatal doses
takes from two to seven days.

How fast does a lethal dose
of Seconal work, do you know?

Oh, about a half an hour.

Assuming Dwight Garrett
wanted to kill Austin Lloyd,

with bottles of both Barbital
and Seconal available,

which would he have used?

Now wait a minute, Your Honor.

I object to that as calling for a
conclusion and an opinion of the witness.

As I understand
the laws of evidence,

an expert may be asked to
interpret facts and express opinions

for the enlightenment
of the court.

May I remind you, Mr. Mason,
this witness is a police officer?

He's not qualified as an expert
toxicologist or psychologist.

And may I remind you, Mr. Burger,
that by your own stipulation,

he has been
qualified to this court

as an expert in the field... the entire
field... of homicide investigation?

- Now wait a minute...
- Gentlemen.

I agree the question
calls for a conclusion.

Inasmuch as this man has
been called as an expert,

I'd like to hear his answer.

- But, Your Honor...
- Just be seated, Mr. Burger.

All right, Lieutenant,
answer the question.

Assuming Dwight Garrett
knew the difference,

no, it wouldn't make sense for him
to use Barbital instead of Seconal.

All right. Now let's
reverse the coin.

Assuming Austin Lloyd wanted to
make believe he was being poisoned

and was deliberately trying
to entrap Dwight Garrett

knew he could take the drug

and right after that call
the police to play it safe,

which drug would Austin Lloyd
have tricked Garrett into giving him?

The Barbital.

If the police were late, or for
some reason he couldn't get help,

he'd still have plenty of time.

With the Seconal, with such a
massive dose, he couldn't be sure.

If it's possible that Austin Lloyd
was responsible for the poisoning,

why would he have set
up so elaborate a scheme?

I don't know, unless, for some reason,
he wanted to frame Dwight Garrett.

Suppose Lloyd was in trouble

and wanted to make it
appear that it was his partner

who was responsible
for the trouble.

Couldn't this have been
part of such an attempt?

Oh, sure,

but if you're trying to
say it was Austin Lloyd

who altered that
report, you're out of line.

That had to be Garrett.

Only he could have
used that typewriter.

And whoever forged the
report forged those checks?

That's right.

Suppose I prove to you, Lieutenant,
that is not right but is wrong.

Now, this according to
your testimony, and not this,

was the typewriter used
for regular business checks?

No, no, it's the
other way around.

Then this and not this was
used for the forged documents?

No, Mr. Mason,
you've reversed it again.

Oh? This, then, and not this?

This what?

Don't you know?

But, Mr. Mason, you...

I didn't testify, you did.

Don't you really
know which is which?

Your Honor, I object!

Mr. Mason is making a farce of judicial
procedure, and he knows better than that.

The question has been asked,
and this witness answered it.

Now what else in the name of
justice can Mr. Mason possibly want?

Only to be sure,
absolutely sure,

that our procedure is in the
name of justice, Mr. Burger.

And what, Mr. Mason, you name it,
please, can we do to make you sure, sir?

Permit Lieutenant
Anderson to type a few

samples from each
typewriter for comparison.

By all means. Here,
Mr. Mason, play your little games.

Lieutenant, would you
be good enough, please,

to type a few lines on
Mr. Garrett's typewriter?

Something wrong, Lieutenant?

I don't understand it.

The "n," it isn't chipped.

Try the other machine.
Try Miss Clover's typewriter.

The "n" is chipped
on this machine.

These machines were carefully checked
out before they were brought into court.

It's obvious they've
been tampered with.

Of course they have.
I tampered with them.

While you conveniently
diverted the court's attention,

I exchanged the elements
in the typewriter, like this.

Watch.

Now they're right.

Mr. Mason, what's
the purpose of all this?

It wasn't necessary, Your Honor,

to use the defendant's
typewriter in or out of his office.

The element, not the
typewriter, has the chipped "n".

With the defendant's attention
diverted, as the court's just was,

anyone could have
exchanged elements

and have used the marked
element in any similar typewriter.

Tell me, Lieutenant, who
else, beside Mr. Garrett,

had regular access to that
office and that typewriter?

Well, the dead
man, of course, and...

And Terri Clover.

I did not forge those checks.

What about the substitute
pages in the reliability report?

No, I never did any reports.

Not ever, at any time or place?

Why, I...

Where did you work before you came
to Aerospace Reliability Associates?

I worked for... Myron Baker.

See, I'm not a technical
man, an engineer.

I just run a company.

- For profit?
- Naturally.

But your company lost
money the last two years.

Well, it's this space age.
See, things change fast.

You need new ideas, new people.

That's why I contracted
with Dwight Garrett.

These numbers with the "c" and
the "b," they refer to types of material?

I believe so.

And each material type is found in
specifications sent by the government?

Yes.

Had there been a recent project,

one where your company and not Universal
had received a "C" Spec amendment?

Yes, I believe there was.

Whoever forged the substitution
pages in the report was not aware

that the "C" Spec which he
chose in a desperate hurry

was one that
Universal didn't have

and one that Aerospace
Reliability didn't have.

That forger could
be only one person.

All right, all right!

I gave the wrong Spec to Austin.

He did the actual
forging, not me.

Just as he forged the checks,
changing his own signature

after using the element
from Garrett's typewriter.

Why did you conspire with
Austin to alter that report?

I knew Mr. Baker was
going to replace me.

I couldn't let that happen.

I thought everything would be all right
if I got the company the DIMOS project.

But Universal wasn't fooled.

Austin was in trouble.
He threatened you.

Yes.

I went along with the idea to
frame Dwight and Austin's wife,

make it look like Dwight had altered
the report, stolen from the company,

and was running
away with Austin's wife.

You gave him the
50,000, then what?

Did you hide in the next room?

Did you hear him
send Dwight away?

Did you see him take the pills?
Did you hear him call the police?

I knew I'd never be safe...

never have one
moment free from fear.

It was all arranged,
all ready for you,

including someone
to take the blame.

He was getting...
weak... and dizzy.

And I just leaned over him...

and put my arm
against his throat,

and pushed and pushed and pushed

and pushed...

Austin Lloyd was desperate.

He needed time, a chance
to get out from under.

He faced prison all by himself.

Your partnership
was on the rocks.

He knew how you
felt about his wife.

He also knew that without your
slide rule and your drafting board,

you were a classic example
of the absent-minded professor.

Oh, come on, not that bad.

Oh, the check for Mr. Mason, I
assume you've given it to him?

Oh.

Mr. Mason, I don't know how
we can ever really thank you.

I do. A nice fat fee
for representing us.

You deserve it,
and I can afford it.

Here you are, Miss Street.

And I don't think you'll have to telephone
the electronic check-approval company.

I'm afraid that isn't so.

What's the matter?

You forgot to sign it.