Original subtitles

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Evening, Judge Franklin.

Mayor Barelli is expecting you.

Evening, Mr. Brennert.

The mayor is waiting for you.

Why do I have to fight so hard

to get a little bit of cooperation around here?

These...

Think you can handle this.

Welcome, Judge.

It's good to have you here.

Please take a seat.

Thanks for coming by. Take a seat.

Gentlemen, I'll see you later.

You betrayed me! Betrayed what?

Betrayed what?

Look, you stand up like a man!

Hey, don't talk to me like that!

Hey, you!

Get him off of me! Get him off!

All right, O'Neill, time to come out.

Hi, guys.

Hey, let's not get cute.

Book him.

Come on, let's go.

I heard you spent the weekend in jail.

You heard right,

because nobody showed to make my bail.

I did nine days once.

'60s, Alabama.

Never occurred to me that the paper would post bail.

And I was on assignment.

You weren't.

You think I'd go to the mayor's mansion for fun?

I had a tip.

Heard Mayor Barelli was having an emergency meeting.

I thought it might have something to do

with the senate seat he's been eyeing.

So, did it?

Well, Judge Franklin and Jack Brennert

were the only ones there.

Well, you've been baptized, kid.

Never knew a reporter worth his byline hasn't been busted

chasing a story.

Here's looking at you.

Well, those three may go way back,

but it was far from a reunion.

The mayor almost put his fist down Brennert's throat.

Brennert almost put the mayor through the French doors.

Franklin looked like he wanted to strangle both of them.

Oh, what were they fighting about?

I couldn't follow up.

I was in jail.

Get any pictures?

Cops got your camera.

Is the mayor having a press conference today?

Yeah, in the rotunda.

Couple of minutes.

Read that.

Hi. This is Paul O'Neill, The Chicago Daily Examiner.

I need to speak to the mayor.

It's urgent that I speak to him!

Oh, my God.

They already left.

You call the police.

I'm on my way.

Yeah, hello, Sergeant.

This is Jim Milburn.

Hey, we just got a tip.

Some guy says he's gonna kill the mayor.

Um, ladies and gentlemen.

Ladies and gentlemen, may I have your attention, please?

The mayor will make a brief statement.

He'll answer your questions when he's through.

Thank you.

Thank you and welcome.

In a little less than a year,

the people of this state must decide

who will represent them in the United States Senate.

They will either

decide for six more years of the same thing,

of if they agree with me,

they'll decide that it's time for a change.

Time for a new agenda.

Time for a new voice to be heard.

Time for a new generation to be heard.

I stand before you today as I start down that long road,

confident that it will end...

Everybody, get down! With a seat in the United...

Look, there he is!

Hey! Hey...!

After him!

Come on, let's go!

There he is up there!

There he goes!

Get around the other end.

Hold it right there!

Get out of the way!

Clear the area.

Halt!

He's in here.

Watch out!

Go to the other staircase.

Surround the second floor.

Try to get around the east end there.

All right, stand back.

Stand back. Let him through!

Go get those people back there... Coming through.

Hey, get out of the way.

Look, we got to have some room here.

You got to transport him as soon as possible.

Hold it right there. Hold it right there.

There's something I want you to see.

Hey, take him out. Let's go!

Come on. Keep 'em back.

We got some tape on the shooter.

I want you to look at it.

Go ahead.

Freeze it.

What do you think?

Wait a minute.

I know him.

That's the guy from the nuclear demonstrations.

Paul, didn't you write a piece on the guy

that led those demonstrations?

Yeah.

Weren't you getting letters from him?

Yeah, I was. All right.

Some reporter called the police.

Now, how did he know

there was gonna be an attempt on the mayor?

Was there a call?

Another letter?

A letter.

Let's have it.

There's no name.

What's his name?

Lou, I can't do that.

Let's take a walk.

Look, Paul,

I know some day you're gonna want to grow up

and win a Pulitzer Prize,

but this isn't just some two-bit snitch

you're protecting.

This is a stone-cold killer

who shot down the mayor of this city in broad daylight.

Lou... Now, listen to me, man.

You cannot hold out on me.

Not now, not this time.

All right, but I'm in on the bust.

Deal.

I met this guy about six months ago.

He's an activist, but he's strictly non-violent.

I mean, none of this weird stuff...

Uh, politics, the environment.

He's involved. He's committed.

Paul, what's his name?!

I like this guy.

So what?!

His name is Chris Reardon.

He always wears pretty much the same thing...

Cubs baseball cap, army jacket, sunglasses.

Bingo.

All right, look around.

I told you to wait outside.

Typefaces match.

What the hell is going on here? Freeze!

Hey... get your hands off of me!

Do I have you to thank for this,

O'Neill? Will you let me talk to him?

Forget it.

We have a warrant for your arrest.

For what? Attempted murder.

What the hell are you talking about?

Somebody just shot the mayor.

Well, it wasn't me!

But whoever did it succeeded.

He just died on the operating table.

Cuff him.

Let's go.

O'Neill, do something.

Come on, move it.

O'Neill!

You know I wouldn't do something like this.

O'Neill!

Excuse me.

Uh... Excuse me.

Uh... Uh, excuse me.

Uh, excuse me.

I'll call you back.

Mr. Matlock? Yeah.

Paul O'Neill, Chicago Daily Examiner.

Uh-huh. Well, let me take this for you.

Oh, thank you.

Good, you came straight from the airport.

Yeah.

The wire I got from Harry sounded pretty urgent.

Uh, how is Harry?

Working hard? Yes, sir.

Uh, Harry Eubanks

is the hardest-working publisher I know.

That's why we're number one.

Yeah, yeah.

Well, uh... tell me about this Chris, uh...

uh, Weir... Reardon.

Reardon, yeah.

Well, around here, everybody loved Brian Barelli,

which means nobody likes Chris Reardon.

It's a miracle he hasn't been lynched.

Lynched? Mr. Matlock, I was right there.

I saw the guy who shot Mayor Barelli.

He looked like Chris Reardon... He even dressed like him...

But I don't think it was him.

I'm almost sure it wasn't him.

You know this fellow? Yeah.

I know him.

They got him right up here.

Huh.

You believe

in the system of justice, don't you, Mr. Matlock?

Of course.

Now, the first thing we have to establish

is where you were at the time of the murder.

You realize that the entire legal process

was created by the rich,

for the rich, so...

there's no real justice.

Uh, Mr. Reardon, I can't defend you

unless you answer my questions.

Now, I need to know where you were

at the time of the murder,

who could have gotten into your home,

used your typewriter.

If you won't cooperate with me,

you could wind up in Joliet for the rest of your life.

Mr. Matlock, I'm going to jail.

And not even you can change that.

Because I'm poor.

Because I protest society's corruption.

Because the rich and powerful want to silence my voice.

That's where it's at.

Fine.

Mr. Reardon,

you're a bright man, I suppose,

but when your next lawyer visits,

I'd get off my soapbox and talk about the case.

Guard!

All right.

Not that I think it will help much...

but I'll tell you.

Gonna take the case?

Yeah.

Only because,

in all the years I've known Harry Eubanks,

he's never asked a favor,

so I got to assume my defending

some aging, bigmouthed hippie

is damned important to him.

Harry Eubanks didn't send that telegram.

I did.

The fact is, Harry Eubanks thinks Chris Reardon did it,

but when I heard that you two

are old friends, I...

I had to send that telegram.

Chris doesn't have a prayer without a good attorney.

You could still back out.

It would prejudice his case.

You got me up here to get a story.

No, I didn't.

Well, then, why? Because I had to.

Why? Because I don't think he's guilty.

You don't?

I saw the killer tear his jacket

when he left the scene of the crime.

Chris Reardon's jacket wasn't torn.

And unlike practically everybody else

around here, Chris Reardon never sold out.

He's still fighting the good fight.

I... I like that.

And because somebody used me to frame him.

I don't like that.

You own your own house?

Such as it is.

Get ready to transfer the title.

Somebody's going to pay my fee.

In view of the heinous nature of this crime

and the substantial possibility of flight,

bail is set in the amount

of $1 million. Who the hell

has $1 million? Chris, please, please. Uh, Your Honor...

$1 million, sir.

What the hell... Chris, Chris, I'll talk to him.

I'll talk to him.

I understand I have you to thank for, uh, him.

Yeah.

I feel badly about this. Good.

You ought to.

Uh, Mr. Matlock? Hmm?

Before you talk to that judge,

there are a few things you should know.

Come in.

You got a minute, Your Honor?

One minute is about all I have, counselor.

Thank you.

And if it is about the case,

we should call the assistant state's attorney.

Oh, that's up to you.

I'm here because it's come to my attention

that you and the late Mayor Barelli were old friends.

You're concerned about conflict of interest.

As a matter of fact, I am.

Don't be.

I won't be sitting on Reardon's trial.

I only sat on his, uh, bail hearing

because Judge Powell was ill.

You can appeal the amount, but you won't do any better.

Brian Barelli had many old friends.

I'm due in court, uh, Mr. Matlock,

so you'll excuse me.

Excuse me.

Here's the stuff you wanted.

Oh, thanks. It's the pictures.

And-and that's where the killer was standing?

Yeah, it was right up there.

Come on down, Michelle.

You know her? Yeah.

That's Michelle Thomas, my associate.

Is she married?

No. Engaged?

No.

Living with anybody?

No.

Damn.

Oh, here we go.

So, you think the killer

was hired by one of these people.

Well, the press conference

wasn't called until the last minute.

According to my source in the mayor's office,

these people were the only ones who knew

when and where it was going to be called.

Hmm. Well, that's Judge Stuart Franklin.

Ex-cop, ex-city councilman.

Good friend of Mayor Barelli.

I don't recognize this guy.

That's Jack Brennert.

He owns a couple of factories.

Good friend? Supposedly.

Why supposedly?

Because a couple of days before the murder,

Brennert, Franklin and Barelli

got into a serious shoving match.

What about?

I don't know.

Is that Mrs. Barelli?

Mm-hmm.

That's Joseph Chan, Barelli's right-hand man.

What about this girl press aide?

Melissa Landis.

She's my source.

Ah.

Well, I guess we can start with these four.

Yeah.

I'll get Tyler.

Maybe we got a problem underneath.

Montero, look at pump number one.

Got it.

I'll check up here.

Check number two pump!

Mr. Brennert?

Yeah! I'm Ben Matlock,

Chris Reardon's lawyer.

I'd like to ask you a couple questions.

Come on.

That's a hard hat area out there.

I didn't have one.

Right, I need this.

Some hotshot lawyer gets hurt outside

and sues me out of business.

What's your problem, huh?

Defending a lunatic

like Reardon doesn't keep you busy enough?

What do you want with me?

I understand you and the mayor had quite a tussle

over at his place last week.

Says who?

Paul O'Neill.

He was right outside the window.

He heard the mayor accuse you and Judge Franklin

of betraying him.

What did he mean by that?

Judge Franklin and I were there

to talk about a run for the Senate.

There wasn't any fight.

Paul said there was.

Paul O'Neill was trespassing, all right?

Maybe he, uh, made up the story to justify what he did.

Now, you're going to have to leave.

I'm busy. Really?

I heard your business is way off.

Here... wear this.

Leave it by the front door on your way out.

♪ ♪

Hey, Mr. Chan.

I'm, uh... I'm Ben Matlock,

uh, Chris Reardon's lawyer.

I saw your picture in the paper.

Yes, well, I, uh, suppose

you really have your work cut out for you now,

don't you, Mr. Matlock?

How is that?

You haven't heard.

Well, the, uh, prosecution...

they have an eyewitness, Melissa Landis.

Mayor Barelli's press aide?

She was standing right beside the mayor when he was shot.

Saw the killer very clearly

and, uh, she says it was Chris Reardon.

Huh.

She say why she was so long in coming forward?

From what I understand,

she was at Janet Barelli's side

all the way up until this morning.

Well, if you'll excuse me, Mr. Matlock, I am quite late.

Uh, it was a pleasure meeting you.

Uh, Mr. Chan?

Um, are you and, uh, Jack Brennert good friends?

We're, uh... we're planning a, uh,

memorial service for the mayor, yes.

Then, uh, you weren't worried that, uh...

I might see you here.

Must have been my imagination.

Hi. I'm here to see Mrs. Barelli.

I'm Michelle Thomas.

I'm an attorney with Ben Matlock's office.

I don't care who you are.

Mrs. Barelli is not ready to talk to anyone yet.

Melissa.

It's all right.

I'll talk with her.

But I've got to go back downtown.

Well, go ahead, I'll be fine.

Well, all right.

But just let the phone ring, because I left the machine on.

Thank you, Melissa.

Good-bye.

I'm Michelle Thomas.

It's nice to meet you.

Shall we go in here?

I appreciate your seeing me.

Well, I'm only doing what I believe

my husband would've wanted.

Please, have a seat.

Thank you.

Mrs. Barelli, I understand your husband met with

Stuart Franklin and Jack Brennert last Friday night.

That's correct.

Can you tell me what the meeting was about?

Oh, I'm sorry.

I just said hello and then I left.

Well, I-I understand that they got into a violent argument.

No, I don't think so.

I was in the den reading.

It's right next door; I would've heard.

Mrs. Barelli?

May I see you for a moment?

Yes, of course.

Will you excuse us?

Sure.

Hello. No one is available

to take your call right now.

Please leave your name and number

at the sound of the beep

and your call will be returned. Thank you.

Janice, this is Nicole Carlton.

I got your message.

If you really think we should talk,

let's do it over lunch tomorrow.

The Señor, 1:00.

Oh, there he is.

The security guard said we can go right up.

Great. Tyler Hudson, Paul O'Neill.

Nice to meet you, Paul. Hey.

Uh, Nicole Carlton called Janice Barelli today.

Who is Nicole Carlton?

A model.

The talk is she and Mayor Barelli

were very, very good friends.

Oh, and the decanter you said got broken

during the fight in the mayor's library...

Yeah?

It's not broken anymore.

It's not crystal anymore either.

Mrs. Barelli replaced it.

Maybe she knows more than she's saying.

Somebody's coming.

What do you suppose they were fighting about?

I don't know.

Maybe we'll find out in the mayor's office.

It's O'Neill and this is the only way out.

It's no problem.

Oh!

It's Joseph Chan. Call the paramedics.

Oh, whoa!

Hey!

I'll go this way. All right.

I, uh...

came in to get some names and addresses I needed

out of the mayor's files for the memorial service.

As, uh... soon as I unlocked the door,

somebody came up from behind me,

shoved me in and, uh, hit me over the head.

Did you get a look at him?

No... no, I didn't.

I did.

He was a little under six feet.

Looked exactly like the guy who shot the mayor.

Any idea why someone would want to steal files from the mayor?

Now, wait a minute.

That implies that the mayor had something to hide.

It's not an unreasonable assumption.

Yes.

Well, that is simply not the case.

Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm going home.

I'm very tired, and my head is throbbing.

Good night.

You know, I'll be the first to admit

I don't like Joseph Chan.

But if the mayor had something to hide in his files,

Joseph Chan would know exactly what and where.

Hmm.

Now, maybe he and his friend

came in here to get it.

Maybe they heard us coming,

and he had the other guy knock him out.

That devious?

Oh, yeah.

He does keep showing up.

Mm-hmm.

You want to get something to eat?

Uh, no, thanks.

I'm planning on having a big lunch tomorrow.

Thank you for joining me for lunch.

Yeah, give me some more. Come on, come on.

Give me some more.

Yeah, yeah.

Like that, yeah.

Yeah!

Terrific.

That's a wrap.

Thanks, Nicole.

Thank you.

Ms. Carlton, hi.

I'm Michelle Thomas.

What's the ad for?

Perfume. Oh.

Do I know you? No.

I'm an attorney.

I'd like to talk to you about the lunch

you had today with Mrs. Barelli.

First, she tries to pay me off,

and now she sics her attorneys on me.

Is that it?

Tell her this for me, lady.

Tell her I have no intention of telling anyone

about my relationship with her husband.

Not because of her.

Because of him.

What Brian and I shared was special.

You think I want to see the news media get hold of it?

Watch them drag his name through the mud?

So, tell her to leave me alone.

I don't work for Mrs. Barelli.

I represent the man accused of killing the mayor.

So, uh, Mrs. Barelli

had money in that envelope at lunch.

I think I've told you enough.

I don't think so.

Brian Barelli and I were in love.

As soon as he became senator,

he was going to divorce Janice and marry me.

I don't know whether he told her that or not,

but if he did,

you ought to be talking to her.

You sure this is the place you brought him?

Positive.

Thanks.

He gave me a 20.

Lucky for you.

Hey, give me a beer.

Looking for somebody?

Yeah, actually, I am.

Big guy.

Long hair... wears it kind of long in back.

Fancy boots. You mean Eddie.

Yeah. Too bad.

You just missed him.

- Any idea where he went? - We pretty much

keep our mouths shut around here, know what I mean?

What do I look like, a cop?

Yeah.

I owe Eddie some money from a card game.

He said he hung out here,

so I thought I'd drop by and pay him off.

Leave the money with me... I'll give it to him.

Tell you what.

Here's my name and phone number.

You have Eddie call me.

You're all mouth and no brain, know that?

What are you talking about?

That guy didn't know Eddie.

He didn't even know his name

till you started flapping your jaw.

Take this over to Eddie's hotel.

Tell him this guy is looking for him.

Do it now.

♪ ♪

I'm due in court in five minutes, Mr. Matlock.

You should've made an appointment.

I know and-and I tried,

but you're a very busy man.

If you're not in court,

you're meeting with civic leaders

or organizing charity events.

I've always served my community, always.

Well.

Uh, you and Brian Barelli were...

pretty close friends, right?

He was like a brother to me.

Uh, I gather he helped secure,

uh, your appointment to the bench.

Though the way I hear it,

a lot of people were surprised you took it.

You were a popular councilman

with a large constituency on the South Side.

They kind of expected you to become mayor one day.

Being a judge is more stable.

And, evidently, a lot safer.

Well.

An odd coincidence, though, wasn't it?

What?

Less than a month after your appointment,

the man who was mayor resigned for reasons of health,

then, uh, Brian Barelli became mayor and not you.

What are you getting at?

Well, maybe your old friend sandbagged you.

Maybe he knew the man was ill.

Got you appointed judge just to kind of, you know,

get you out of the way.

That is ridiculous.

Yeah, I guess, sure.

I mean, if you felt you had a score to settle

with Mr. Barelli, why wait around for three years

to do anything about it?

Of course, it could explain that...

terrible argument.

Oh, here, let me help you.

What argument? Yeah.

Oh, the one out at his house.

He said you betrayed him, remember?

That's funny. Imagine.

Accusing you of betraying him.

Golly, look at the time.

I'm due in court myself.

Maybe I'll see you there.

You never can tell.

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

Hear you're looking for me, huh?

Not anymore. So, you carry a piece.

You a cop?

No, just paranoid.

Lots of senators get divorced.

Not if they want to become president.

Oh.

Still, people might think you were trying

to buy Miss Carlton off as a way of...

covering up the fact that you had a motive for killing him.

That's not true!

That's how it could look.

You don't intend

to make these accusations public, do you?

Chris Reardon is innocent, Mrs. Barelli.

Ben Matlock and I intend prove that.

If we have to make all this public, we will.

Is that a threat?

It's a strong suggestion

that you be honest with us.

I have been honest.

The argument your husband had in here

with Franklin and Brennert,

what was it about?

I don't know.

I think you do.

I'd like you to leave now.

If you really

believed in justice, Mrs. Barelli,

you'd help us find the man who killed him.

Mr. Matlock.

Where have you been?

I caught up with the guy we were chasing last night.

Actually, he caught up with me.

Knocked me out with my own gun,

which he then stole.

You were carrying a gun?

I thought I might run into trouble.

You suckered me into taking this case,

but now it's my case.

I'll tell you when, where and if you're gonna get in trouble.

I'm already in trouble.

I don't have a permit for the gun.

You've got to go find that gun.

I can't.

I've been subpoenaed.

What was the man who pointed the gun at you wearing, Mr. O'Neill?

Jeans, an army jacket, sunglasses,

and a Chicago Cubs baseball cap.

Now you accompanied Sgt. Marshall

to the defendant's apartment about an hour later,

correct? Yes.

When the defendant arrived home,

what was he wearing?

Jeans, an army jacket, sunglasses,

and a Chicago Cubs baseball cap.

But... That's all, Mr. O'Neill.

Defense wish to cross? Please.

Uh, the man who pointed the gun at you,

when you were chasing him... Was it Chris Reardon?

No, it was not.

Melissa Landis said it was Chris Reardon.

It was a guy dressed up to look like Chris Reardon.

What makes you so sure?

Well, for one thing, the man who shot

Mayor Barelli tore his sleeve making his getaway.

The jacket Chris Reardon was wearing an hour later

was not torn.

And for another thing,

the letter I got tipping me off

to the assassination was not written by Chris Reardon.

An expert said it was typed on his typewriter.

It was.

But whenever Chris wrote to me about Mayor Barelli,

he always misspelled his name.

Instead of two "L's" and one "R",

he always used two "R's" and one "L".

Hmm.

Is there any other reason you think

the assassin was someone other than Chris Reardon?

Yeah.

To a lot of people Chris Reardon is a royal pain in the...

I understand.

He protests.

He demonstrates.

He makes noise.

But that's because he believes this can be a better place.

He sees what's wrong, he doesn't give up.

But he doesn't kill people.

He's loud.

He bothers people.

So there's a lot of people

that'd like to believe that he did it.

But I've talked with him,

I've written about him, I know him.

Chris Reardon couldn't commit murder.

Thank you.

Having heard

the testimony presented by the prosecution,

this court finds reason to believe the crime

of murder in the first degree has been committed.

The defendant shall be bound over for trial

on June 7, in district court two at 9:00 AM.

Court adjourned.

Round one for the bad guys.

But you put up a pretty good fight.

- Uh, Ben... - Hmm?

Oh.

Janice Barelli, Ben Matlock.

Hello. Hello.

There was an argument that night,

and Brian was very upset.

And you were right, Miss Thomas.

Whatever upset Brian,

I don't think he would have wanted it swept under the rug.

You didn't hear anything?

Ask Joseph Chan.

He arranged that meeting.

He had to have known what was going on.

It was nice to meet you.

Bye.

I've known Joseph Chan a long time.

Let me check this out.

♪ ♪

Chan?

♪ ♪

Ben Matlock, please.

Ben, it's Paul.

Chan's been killed.

Shot through the chest.

Looks like it happened just before I got here.

Okay.

Yeah, reporting a murder at 2733 Woodman Avenue.

♪ ♪

What?

Hold it!

Freeze!

Oh, uh, Sergeant.

Matlock, right? Yes.

Reardon's lawyer? Yes.

Uh, is Paul O'Neill around?

Not anymore.

Where'd he go?

That's what we'd like to know.

A couple of my men saw him leaving the scene

just as they arrived.

Had a gun on him.

What?

I'm putting a warrant out for his arrest.

Too bad you're taken.

'Cause he's gonna need one hell of a good lawyer.