Original subtitles

Same time again next week?

Yeah.

John.

Hardy.

Howdy boys.

- Thank you, Sheriff. - How you doing?

Good, good.

You boys better take the Carrollton Road.

State Alcohol's got their eyes on the Newnan Pass.

I'll see you boys later.

Okay, Sheriff, thank you.

I need a ride to services.

Well, now John, I got this nigger out there in the car.

He's the one that's been siphoning gas on the farm tanks.

Told me when I caught him to bring him to you.

Take him out of there.

Get out of there, boy.

Take the cuffs off of him.

Put your thievin' hands up against that door jamb.

Mr. Wallace, I didn't do it.

Put 'em up there.

Please, Mr. Wallace.

* Onward Christian soldiers, marching as to war

* With the cross of Jesus going on before *

Well, good mornin' everybody.

John Wallace.

Missed your voice in choir this morning.

My apologies, Reverend, but the ox was in the ditch.

However, I heard that you'd be making an appeal

for the new pews this morning,

and I, I didn't wanna neglect my Christian duty,

so I'll send over some of my field hands to do the labor.

John, I can't say there's a more charitable man

in all of Meriwether.

Thank you, Reverend, thank you.

Service was good this morning, I bet, wasn't it?

Hi there, hi there.

Federal agents! Hands in the air!

Robert Lee, I swear you 'bout half rabbit.

I am, and you, you 'bout half crazy.

Crazy? Oh yeah, I'm crazy alright.

Looky here, see how crazy I am.

Where'd you get that?

Running my share of this shine, all 20 gallons.

Mr. Wallace said not to run no shine for a while.

Sheriff Collier told him that the revenuers

was laying for us.

Oh, they was, they was.

Had that highway all staked out.

I just did me a little heel and toe on the floorboards,

got my new truck to kickin' dust.

Had them laws fishtailin' every which a way.

Mr. Wallace said not to run no shine.

Mr. Wallace ain't got no sick baby,

and no pregnant wife neither.

Well...

See you made yourself a little money, Wilson.

I heard you did some fancy drivin'.

Yes sir, I believe I did.

Yeah, I guess so.

I seen that Revenuer car this mornin',

belly up in that drainage ditch, wheels still a spinnin'.

Hand it over, son.

Mr. Wallace, that was my share I run.

No, your share is setting right there.

Seem like you took the wrong bottles.

That's what happens when you don't check with me first.

Give it on up.

I need this money.

Got bold, boy.

You got greedy.

New truck, store bought clothes for your wife,

runnin' to the doctor every time

your baby gets a little bit sick.

You startin' to act like you was somebody.

I don't need that around here.

I want you off my land.

But I got crops in the field.

The crops are in MY field.

Now get.

John Wallace owes me.

Well, Mr. Wallace, your prized Guernsey just got stole.

Let's see you swallow that.

What are you gonna do?

Little pasture over in Carrollton, way back in the woods.

Keep her there until I find me a buyer.

Wilson, I helped you 'cause you're my sister's husband

and you need the money, but messing like this with John Wallace,

I don't think I wanna be around you for awhile.

Easy there, girl.

Got a man who's gonna pay cash money for you.

You busted, son.

Sheriff Threadgill.

Uh, you're not taking me back to Meriwether are ya?

You're not handing me over to Sheriff Collier are ya?

You're in my custody, cow thief,

and you ain't going nowhere but Carrollton jail.

Yes sir, Sheriff.

Yes sir.

Turner, get up.

You're being transferred to Meriwether.

What for?

'Cause that's where you stole the cow and they've got jurisdiction.

Sheriff Collier brought the warrant.

No, Sheriff, you can't let them take me!

That's John Wallace, Collier's one of his boys!

Wallace'll kill me! Collier'll let him!

Please God, don't let 'em take me!

Wallace'll kill me!

Thank you, Sheriff.

Supper.

I don't want my supper, I want my phone call.

Ain't had one since I been arrested.

Sheriff says you don't get no phone call.

Look, my wife don't know I'm here.

Nobody knows I'm here.

Let me just send a note or somethin', please.

You don't eat that supper, it's gonna

sit right there and be your breakfast.

Hey! Hey, lady!

My name is Wilson Turner.

I've got relatives in Carrollton.

Uh, Tommy Windham, Millard Rigsby.

Tell 'em I'm here, have 'em get my wife.

No, wait, they'll pay ya.

Tell 'em I said they'll pay ya.

Please, lady!

Tell somebody about me!

What are you doing?

Turnin' you loose.

How come?

Somethin' about lack of evidence.

Sheriff said to let you out at straight up 12.

How come 12 o'clock?

Where is the Sheriff?

Are you goin' or stayin'?

I got errands.

Your truck's out front.

Hey, I had a full tank of gas in here.

Y'all been joyridin' or what?

Afternoon, Mr. Wallace.

Guess Sheriff Collier told ya, been released.

No, boy, you wrong again.

You ain't been released.

You escapin'.

Stupid Collier, was supposed to empty that tank.

Too excited, you can't hit nothin'.

You don't catch him, I'll shoot you.

We been seen.

Keep goin'.

We just entered Coweta County.

Keep goin'.

But John, this is Lamar Potts' county. - Keep goin'!

Help me! Help!

Don't let him kill me!

Stop it! Don't kill him! Stop it!

What are you boys doin'?

Escaped criminal, wanted for murder.

Wait, stop! Help me!

Why don't you just handcuff him?

Why don't you mind your own damn business?

What we gonna do?

I'm gonna call Sheriff Potts.

Irene, you do make a world beatin' cheeseburger.

Glad you like it, J.H.

Want some of these?

Hey, J.H., I've been noticin' Berryman Brown.

His britches are gettin' tight and his pride is sufferin'.

I want you to buy him a new pair. Take 'em out to his mama.

Don't tell her where they came from.

Size 12?

14, he's still growin'.

Lamar.

Hey, Otwell.

We just got a call from the Sunset Tourist Camp.

They think they seen a killin'.

Where you goin'?

Well, we might have ourselves a murder.

No, no, need you around the office.

Stay on the phone, might be somethin' comin' in.

And I'd like you to try to get those britches

for that boy today.

I'll drive.

He was just a little fella, Sheriff.

No more than 130 pounds.

And the way they kept beatin' on him.

One of 'em had a fancy pearl handle gun.

I never saw nobody so mean and hateful in all my life.

And then the gun went off.

Was he shot?

No, he hit him on the head with the barrel.

Cracked him in the skull.

And then he fell and didn't move.

He was dead, Sheriff, he had to be dead.

I'm sorry Mr. Wilson, it's all over now.

Would you see Mr. Wilson home?

I'll be glad to.

I got half a license number on that tan four-door

and description of the assailants,

and the witnesses are inside whenever you wanna talk to 'em.

How 'bout the truck?

Well, license frame said Lagrange Motor Company

so I called 'em up and it's registered to a Wilson Turner.

He's a tenant farmer over on John Wallace's place.

And Lamar, the feller who did the killin',

well, he sounds an awful lot like John Wallace.

He got as far as he was goin'.

Run those chase car numbers through Atlanta,

crosscheck 'em against the local registries.

Send some of your boys by Turner's house, ask around,

see if maybe he shows up somewhere.

He might still be alive.

Lamar, John Wallace... he just about owns Meriwether County.

This ain't Meriwether.

Lamar, them license numbers came back from Atlanta.

They belong to Herring Sivell.

Wasn't he indicted on murder a while back?

Killed a man over a poker game, shot him in the back.

Five witnesses, Wallace got him off.

Any sign of Turner?

No, but guess where he was right before Wallace got ahold of him.

Where?

How 'bout Sheriff Hardy Collier's jail?

Let's go.

Lamar, can I drive this time?

Wilson Turner was released at 12 noon yesterday.

Guilty as sin. Didn't have enough evidence to hold him.

Release paper's right here.

The assailant said somethin' about an escaped criminal.

Well, that's nonsense as you can see right there.

Accused of stealing one of Wallace's cows.

Well, we got the cow back.

There really wasn't no harm done.

I'd like to talk to Wallace and Sivell.

Now, John Wallace didn't have nothin' to do with no killin'.

We're not sure anybody's dead yet.

Well, whatever.

John was here with me yesterday eatin' lunch.

Matter of fact, we had my favorite.

Hamsteak and okra.

That right?

Yes sir.

We talked about livestock, price of feed.

John must have stayed, yeah... the radio said it was 2:30.

I walked him out to his car, he got in it,

and headed west, went on home.

You know where Wallace might be right now?

Yes, sir, he's out of town on business.

Now let me make something clear to you, Collier.

I have jurisdiction on this case

and I didn't come here out of law,

I came here out of manners.

Now, I want John Wallace and Herring Sivell

brought to my office, and I want you to bring 'em.

You want 'em so bad, why don't you get 'em?

That's your job, Sheriff.

Now you got until 9 AM tomorrow mornin'.

"Release papers" my hind end.

Turner was set up.

Well, let's ask around.

Maybe we can find somebody who saw what happened.

Miss Baker?

Mrs. Baker, I'm Sheriff Lamar Potts

from over in Coweta County. This is my brother J.H.

and we were wondering if maybe you saw anything unusual yesterday

out there on the square, sometime around noon.

This about that Sunset killin'?

Possible killin', yes ma'am.

I didn't see anything.

You didn't see John Wallace anywhere?

John Wallace is a fine man, a Christian man.

He bought all new pews for Reverend Wainwright's church.

Gave Widow Thompson a milkin' cow when her old one died.

Built a new barn for Jake Henley when his burnt down.

And I have to say, I don't particularly appreciate outsiders

comin' around here meddlin' in Mr. John Wallace's affairs.

Yes ma'am, thank you for your time.

Seems that John Wallace is a real generous soul.

John Wallace didn't buy any pews or barns.

He bought people.

Alright, let her go.

Pull her out, Kay.

Come on, come on Kay, take it up.

Come on, Kay come on here.

Come on here, Kay, come on here.

Pull it Kay, pull it Kay.

Come on, like a Missouri mule, Kay,

not a little cotton field mule. Come up here, come up here Kay.

Don't back off. C'mon.

Hello, Hardy.

You look a little peaked here. C'mon Kay!

That angina kicking back up on you again?

Need to talk to you, John.

Keep workin' with her, boys, keep workin' with her.

Sheriff Potts paid me a visit this mornin'.

Yeah? What'd he want?

What he wants is the man who killed Wilson Turner.

Is that's what got you so bothered?

Real bothered.

Well, Turner was nothin' but thievin', weasely white trash.

What kind of man is gonna go breakin' a sweat over the likes of him?

Lamar Potts.

The man was insolent, stole from me.

I let him get away and every dirt farmer I got's gonna

wanna start helpin' himself to my possessions.

I had to kill Turner. It's business.

Potts ought to understand that.

He don't see things that way, John.

Now, if you don't walk right, Potts'll come at ya,

and he keeps comin'.

Hey, you remember that field hand

that killed his wife and chopped her legs off?

Now, Potts tracked him all the way to Kansas

and yanked him out of a wheat field.

That was a nigger.

It don't make no difference to him, John.

I don't believe you know who you talkin' to.

This is the Kingdom, this is Meriwether.

Nobody around here gonna say a word against me.

Except you didn't kill him in Meriwether,

you killed him across the line,

with eight Coweta witnesses and a Sheriff that won't quit.

Now, I'm tellin' you John, if Potts can find a nigger

in Kansas, he can sure find white trash in a swamp.

Now I don't know, and I don't wanna know where you dumped the body,

but wherever it is,

better be hid good.

I ain't goin' in there.

Miss Mayhayley.

Who is it?

John Wallace.

Dogs, git!

Evenin', Miss Mayhayley.

Well, you went ahead and killed him, didn't ya?

Who told you that?

I have seen the wicked,

spreading himself like a green bay tree.

Evenin', Miss Sally.

I'd like a readin'.

What do you see?

Deep in the well. Deep in the woods.

A body is lost. But not for good.

What else do you see?

A man who is strong. A man who is true.

A man who is just as determined as you.

Will he find the body?

The steps of a righteous man are ordered by the Lord,

and the evil shall go down into the mire.

Will he find the body?

You encourage yourself in an evil thing.

You accomplish an evil thing.

God's arrows shall bring you down.

Answer me, will he find the body?

You shall be brought to the pit of destruction.

Damn you, you old witch!

And damnation be unto you, John Wallace.

What'd she say?

Gibberish.

So what we gonna do now?

State of Georgia calls for a "corpus delicti".

They ain't no body, they ain't no murder.

Potts is a tracker, now he just might find it.

He can't find a body if they ain't no body.

Get me out of here.

Yes, ma'am, and when do you think he might be back?

Uh huh, would you tell him we called?

Thank you, ma'am.

Well, Collier's out, housekeeper doesn't know

where, for how long, it's already 11:30.

He's duckin' us, Lamar.

Have Otwell meet us here as soon as he can.

Jim Hillin too. I want the GBI in on this.

I'm going to see Judge Boykin,

get a search warrant for Wallace's place.

We're through waiting.

That's Wallace's house?

I thought he'd have a big ol' mansion.

Wallace don't care about looking powerful,

just bein' powerful.

Good afternoon.

Mrs. Wallace?

Yes.

Good afternoon, Mrs. Wallace.

I'm Sheriff Lamar Potts. This is J.C. Otwell,

Georgia State Police, my brother J.H.,

and Jim Hillin, Georgia Bureau of Investigation.

Gentlemen.

Mrs. Wallace, I apologize for any intrusion,

but I'd like to speak with your husband.

Oh, I'm afraid he's not in, Sheriff.

He hasn't been home since day before yesterday.

Do you know where he is?

I have heard that he has another who suits him better.

Do you like flowers, Sheriff?

Yes ma'am, my wife raises some.

She'd envy your talent there.

I'm especially proud of my geraniums.

They're such a brave flower, don't you think?

Yes ma'am.

Mrs. Wallace, I know it might be an inconvenience,

but I have a warrant to search your house.

Search the house?

We'll be as careful as we can.

Of course, Sheriff.

Somewhere around here.

I remember the clearing, I remember these briar bushes.

What is it we supposed to be lookin' for, Mr. Wallace?

An old abandoned well.

What's in the well, Mr. Wallace?

Package.

What kind of package?

There's an old well over there, Mr. Wallace.

Yeah, that's it.

That's it. Get those boards off of there.

Hold it, hold it, hold it.

I don't see nothin' down there.

Drop that grappling hook on down there, go ahead.

Go ahead, yeah.

Alright, fish around.

See if you can catch ahold of anything.

Yeah...

Alright.

Give him a hand, give him a hand.

Pull it on out of there.

Come on pull, everybody pull. Pull.

Come on.

His skull, it's bust open.

Cut a pole. We're movin' him.

Mr. Wallace, I don't think I want to do that.

Somebody around here asked you what you want?

Hey, Sheriff. - Yeah.

Look here.

Hey... hold 'em up like this.

Yeah, the blood line runs from his shoulder,

down his back, across his hip, even down the leg.

Evidently, he carried Turner's body somewhere.

Slung over his right shoulder.

Well, one thing's for certain.

No man's gonna bleed that much and live.

We got ourselves a definite murder here.

We're all finished now, Mrs. Wallace,

and I wanna thank you for your cooperation.

I have freshly baked tea cakes, Sheriff.

Perhaps you and your men would care for some refreshments.

No, thank you ma'am.

We'll just be on our way.

Goodbye, Sheriff.

Goodbye, Mrs. Wallace.

Albert, Albert, why don't we just quit?

Why don't we just lay it down, go home?

Mr. Wallace killed this white man over 50 dollars and a cow.

You still wanna lay your burden down?

Who's out there?

This is Sheriff Lamar Potts from over in Coweta.

I'm looking for Mrs. Wilson Turner.

Did you say Coweta?

Yes sir.

That's Julia over there, Sheriff.

You weren't easy to find, Mrs. Turner.

Sheriff Threadgill said you might be here

at your uncle's place.

Well, Sheriff, now, we ain't hidin' from the law.

We just feel somethin' awful might've happened to Wilson,

and we're afraid whoever done it just

might not be finished yet.

Yes sir, I realize that.

Wilson didn't mean to steal that cow, Sheriff.

He tried to find honest work.

Mr. Wallace put out the word, nobody'd hire him.

Mrs. Turner, I'm not here to arrest anybody.

I ain't seen Wilson for five days now.

I'm scared, Sheriff, I'm real scared.

You ain't found him, have ya?

No ma'am, but I'm trying to.

Mrs. Turner, I wonder if I could have a piece

of your husband's clothing?

What for?

Our bloodhounds.

Lamar.

Hmm?

Are you alright?

Mm hmm.

I want him, J.H.

Wallace?

He ain't walkin' away from this.

Lord... have mercy on me.

Alright, Sheriff Lamar Potts.

Come get me now.

You boys do a good job.

Scrape it clean, right down to the dirt.

When you're finished, get back to the fields.

I got business in Coweta.

- Yes sir, Mr. Wallace. - Yes sir, Mr. Wallace.

You fellas are here kinda early this mornin' aren't ya?

Yeah, didn't want to miss nothin', Sheriff,

not with this Wallace case on hand.

Me neither.

Good mornin'.

Thank you, Sheriff.

Hey, Luther, don't you be cheatin' Woody.

Thank you, Sheriff.

Lamar, Wallace's attorney just called

from Meriwether. They're bringin' him in.

Here they come.

You ain't gonna believe this, they drove over

in the chase car.

I wish you boys would lighten it up a little.

I've seen brighter faces at a train wreck.

Look at old Hardy, man's about to pop a vein.

Now, John, do me a favor.

Don't get brassy in there, not with Sheriff Potts.

Just relax, counselor. Everything's under control.

Sheriff Potts, this is a real pleasure.

I've been wantin' to meet you for quite a while.

Are these your clothes?

That's right.

Wanna explain the bloodstains on 'em?

Sure, I was out ridin',

and I cut myself on a briar.

See?

Otwell, bring in Steve Smith.

Steve, is this the man you saw beating Wilson Turner?

Yes sir.

That one too. He drove the car.

Wallace, you are under arrest

for the kidnapping and murder of Wilson Turner.

Now just a minute.

Murder? What murder?

Where's the body?

Man, do you realize who it is you're handcuffin'?

I realize who might be next.

Are you Herring Sivell?

Yes sir.

Is that your car?

Yes sir.

Same charges.

Where's the body?

Now John, don't worry. I'll see a judge, arrange bail.

Ain't gonna be no bail.

That's not for you to say.

There ain't gonna be no bail.

Otwell, take 'em to county jail.

Sheriff, you're gonna be very embarrassed about this.

I'm impounding Sivell's car for evidence.

If you men would like a ride home,

I'll have one of my men take you back to Meriwether.

We can arrange our own transportation, thank you.

If I might use your phone?

Help yourself.

Do the license numbers check out?

It's the one that ran Turner down.

Drove it right up under our noses.

Blood all over.

You can see where they tried to wash it out.

Not very hard, I might add.

That's not all.

Look what Wallace brought with him.

Still traces of blood left on the cylinder.

We got enough blood already,

what we need is the body it came from.

Without that, Wallace goes free.

Now, I want you to organize a search posse

and ask any citizens to help you with 'em.

And ask them to do it as a personal favor to me.

If that's not enough, tell 'em there's a 500 dollar reward.

Lamar.

Okay, I got 'em broke down into teams.

Location captain for each, command center in the field.

Everyone of them's here 'cause you asked for it.

Good.

Hello fellas.

There's a man who thinks he's above the law.

Killed a fella in our county.

Thinks he's gonna get away with it.

We're gonna see that he don't, alright?

Let's do it.

Lamar.

Elzie!

How you doin'?

Elzie Hancock. What's an old revenuer

like you doin' out here today?

You wanna foot race around the block?

Fact is I called for Elzie myself,

made a special request to the Governor for him.

He ain't nothing but the best tracker

in the state of Georgia.

Hey, Elzie, ain't you the one

gunned down Wallace's uncle, old man Strickland?

Yeah, I laid for him by that hundred horse still of his,

he went down firing, took a piece out of my elbow.

I see you got your raidin' clothes on there.

You want an assignment?

Nah, I got some ideas of my own.

Okay, well boys, we best hit it.

Lamar, I know a thing or two about the Kingdom.

Those kin of Wallace don't mind shootin',

they don't care who they shoot.

You stay sharp out there.

Yes sir, you do likewise.

That is some big territory out there.

Any help from Collier and his men?

No, deputies are all busy.

Collier's in bed, heart problems.

Meanin' he ain't got the heart for it.

What else?

Well, there is this one thing.

It seems that there's this fortune teller

over in Heard County. Her name is Mayhayley Lancaster.

Now, rumor has it that Wallace sets a good deal

of store in her, pays her an occasional visit.

Well, at least we know he's superstitious.

Lamar Potts, come in, Jim Hillin.

Yeah, Jim.

I got a gang of road workers here.

They were out here workin' last Tuesday,

almost got run over by the chase.

Thing is, they said they saw two cars

in pursuit and only one car comin' back.

Sivell's tan four door, it was the only one on the return.

Any ID on the second car?

Not much, only that it was an older dark model.

These boys were hittin' the dirt when it flew by.

Ask around, see if you can find out

who was driving it, Jim.

I'll try.

Folks around here ain't real easy to converse with.

Well, do the best you can.

Otwell, did you get directions

on how to find that Mayhayley Lancaster woman?

Well, yeah.

J.H., you're in charge here.

Keep it going as long as there's daylight.

Right.

Let's go.

Mayhayley Lancaster.

Who is it?

The law.

Who's law? God's law?

I'm Sheriff Lamar Potts, Coweta County.

Sergeant J.C. Otwell.

I can't be too careful these days,

there's just too much badness about.

I've been robbed 22 times.

Dogs, get!

This is my sister, Sally Lancaster.

Miss Mayhayley, I understand John Wallace

sometimes visits you.

He killed Wilson Turner.

Did he tell you that?

Well, he didn't have to.

I am an oracle of the ages.

So was I born and so do I live.

Yes ma'am.

Well, we're looking for Wilson Turner's body

and if there's any information that you could give us...

Well, it's a dollar and a dime.

A dollar and a dime? What for?

Well, it's a dollar for me, and then

it's a dime for my dogs.

Yes ma'am.

Okay, alright, over here.

Right here?

Right here.

I see four men,

three alive,

one not.

I see them moving.

Let destruction come upon the evil one

and into his own pit let him fall.

I see fire... and water,

and fire... and water.

I've told you all I can.

Yes ma'am. I appreciate it.

Hey Sheriff...

Blessed is the man who pities the poor.

The Lord will deliver him in his time of trouble.

How'd it go with Mayhayley?

Oh, nothin' definite.

Any word on that second car?

Well, if anybody's seen it, they ain't talkin'.

What about the posse?

Well, we pulled two bicycles

and a box spring mattress out of Greenville Lake.

Euger Simpson got bit reachin' in a hollow log.

Aside from that...

Well, get the men back out tomorrow, as many as will go.

And tell Euger to watch where he's reachin'.

Sheriff's Office.

Tom Strickland.

Uh oh, we got the whole family.

That ain't no reunion picnic.

I don't want a bloodbath now.

Take off your guns and leave 'em in the car.

Has he gone crazy?

The first one that touches

one of my deputies, I'm gonna kill him.

Now, I want Tom Strickland.

You can bring him out, or I'll go in after him.

We're all Strickland's.

If you wanna take him, you're gonna have to take us.

Well, that's just fine with me.

All you gotta do is stand in my way.

You ain't takin' me.

Ya ain't takin' me.

You ain't takin' me anyplace.

Ya ain't takin' me to no jail.

I told ya, I ain't goin'.

You in the Kingdom now, Sheriff.

You know somethin', Strickland?

I don't care about your Kingdom.

You ain't takin' me to no jail.

Stop him! Stop him!

Don't let him take me out of the Kingdom.

Stop him! John won't like this.

Jody, stop him!

Don't let him take me to jail, stop him.

John! John, they're gonna lock me up!

You gotta do somethin', John!

Don't tell 'em nothin'! Just keep your mouth shut!

You hear me?

Where're you takin' me?

There's cells back there.

No, we got a special place for you.

I don't need no special place.

Put me in with John.

What're you gonna do to me?

Let me out!

Well, we've only covered a third of the territory.

And that's if he hid it in the Kingdom.

We gotta keep goin'.

I can't hold Wallace forever without evidence.

Well, we got enough to prosecute kidnapping and assault.

He killed a man. That's what he's gonna pay for.

Sheriff... that was County. Tom Strickland broke.

He wants to talk.

Your cousin talked.

Gave us all the details about him

and Henry Mobley in that second car.

That right?

Uh-huh.

About how you waved him off at Sunset,

how you come back by with Turner's body,

transferred it to Mobley's car,

took the back road to your place,

stopped at your pasture gap, slung Wilson Turner

over your shoulder and walked off in the woods.

Well...

You have to understand, Sheriff,

Tom Strickland's kind of the family fool.

Little pressure and he's liable to say anything.

I wouldn't get to carried away with it.

What'd he say about me?

Everything.

He didn't say I killed nobody, did he?

I just done the drivin'. I didn't kill nobody.

Shut up, you stupid fool.

You 'member that poker shootin'!

You 'member who got you off?

You owe me.

But I didn't kill Turner, you did that.

I'm not gonna hang for you.

Shut up I said!

I don't know, John.

Looks like the Kingdom is beginnin' to crumble.

It don't make no difference what they say.

You still don't have a body.

Sheriff, Elzie just checked in.

He thinks he found somethin'.

You remember Elzie Hancock, don't you, John?

He's the one that got your uncle.

Now, there's two sets of shoe prints here

dug in rather deep.

You can even see their nail marks

on the sole, trade marks on the heel.

Now, either they was two big men, or...

Or they was carrying something heavy.

Probably carrying it between 'em.

This second set follows almost right on top of the first.

Now, look what happens when the second man does swing out.

Brush between 'em snapped off

about four feet from the ground.

Whatever they was carryin' was hangin' on a pole.

Two poachers haulin' out a deer?

Would you bother to wrap a deer in a burlap blanket?

Now, correct me if I'm wrong, but that is burlap, isn't it?

There's also a set of mule tracks up in the road

runnin' parallel to the stream.

Somebody up there's watchin' out.

Where's it all lead?

Well, trail starts about a mile back,

ends just a little ways ahead comin' out on the road.

Traffic's wiped out the tracks from there.

That road leads straight back to Wallace territory.

My guess is they brought the body here, got rid of it,

went up on the road, and walked back home.

Got rid of it where?

There. Weighted it down, dumped it.

One of those deep holes.

That Mayhayley woman did say somethin' about water.

You're not gettin' superstitious?

No, just eager.

Get some drag teams.

Lamar, we're comin' up empty.

We might be cuttin' ourselves short here.

Suppose they didn't just dump it and go home.

Suppose they crossed over and kept goin'.

Well, then we're in a mess of trouble.

Ain't nothing over there but mud and swamp,

suck a man up, never give him back.

I think I'm gonna take a little walk.

Well, you best take some men with you.

No, keep 'em on the stream.

Drag it every foot of that trail.

Is it true what they said about that 500 dollars?

It's true.

I've been wantin' to talk to you.

First time you've been out here by yourself.

I'm the one that called you and gave you Strickland's name.

I appreciate that. But the reward is for Turner's body.

You know who I am?

But you wouldn't go tell nobody, would you?

Not if you didn't want, no.

Now, you understand if I'm seen anywhere near you...

I'll have somebody else deliver the money.

Not to me. Not in Meriwether.

To my folks over there across the line.

You have my word.

Well, Wallace burned the body.

Throwed it in a liquor still pit, and

doused it with shine and set it off.

Had two colored field hands a helpin' him.

Albert Brooks and a feller named Robert Lee Gates.

You could see them flames for miles.

Albert and Robert Lee?

They's back there in the fields, workin'.

Thank you.

Now, Sheriff, I want you to understand right now,

I just put my life in your hands.

Come on.

Are you Robert Lee Gates?

Yes sir.

You ready to talk about burnin' that body?

Yes sir, I am.

We stacked the wood three layers high.

Another'n on top. Soaked it down with every drop we had.

Then Mr. Wallace put the torch to it.

He had us come back the next mornin'

with sugar sacks and shovels.

Said make sure and scrape it clean.

Yeah, well, you sure done that.

What'd you do with the ashes?

Took 'em down to the stream, spilled 'em in.

Show me exactly where, walk the same way.

You boys don't move, don't disturb anything.

Elzie.

Right along here, down by that tree.

Stood right here, spilled 'em in.

Fire and water. Whew...

He beat us. He's just gonna up and walk away.

Lamar...

Yeah.

Look.

Bone chips.

Would you men be willin' to testify that these

are the final remains of the body of Wilson Turner?

Yes sir.

Yes sir.

Hey, boys!

We got him!

We got serious problems, John.

Those field hands of yours

took Sheriff Potts on a grand tour.

The pasture, the well, the liquor pit,

the entire trail of crime.

Potts snatched up every piece of linking evidence.

They even lowered a man into the well.

Found a piece of brain you left behind,

together with those bone chips.

Pig bones, cow brains.

They sent 'em to Atlanta, the crime lab

confirmed they're human.

What human?

Albert and Robert Lee are gonna testify it was Turner.

In all of Georgia, not one white man

has ever gone to the chair on a nigger's word,

and they're gonna testify against me?

How long you think they're gonna be around to do that?

Just got confirmation from Columbus.

Albert and Robert Lee arrived safely at Muskogee Prison.

They're in protective custody,

registered under assumed names.

They won't be moved till you call for 'em.

You found homes for the families?

Oh yeah, a couple of farms in Coweta.

Good people, know how to keep a secret.

Move 'em over there as soon as they're loaded up

and make sure you're not followed.

Right.

We got one more trip.

Ma'am, tell Sheriff Collier I've come for him.

Tell him yourself. He's taken to his sick bed again.

Don't even breathe.

Otwell, pull the blanket off of him real slow.

Kind of a warm day to be all covered up, ain't it, Sheriff?

You ain't haulin' me off like no dirt dog criminal.

I'm an elected official of this county.

I'm a Sheriff.

You sold that badge. The same badge I stand behind.

I oughta end that heart problem for you right here and now.

Have a warrant for your arrest. Accessory to murder.

I can't leave. I gotta stay in bed. I gotta take pills.

That's where you better stay.

You run, and I promise you, there ain't a place

on God's green earth that I won't track you down.

Alright, go ahead in there.

Thank you, thank you, thank you.

Sir, could I just check you real quick.

Thank you very much.

How do, ma'am.

Sir, could you have the deputy check you just real quick, please?

Sir, can I just check you real quick?

Miss Mayhayley. Miss Sally.

I appreciate you comin' to testify this mornin'.

Well, I's just doin' my duty, Sheriff.

You know, justice must be served.

Miss Mayhayley, I notice

you have a different hat on today.

Well, the other one's from World War I.

Belonged to my brother. He got killed in action.

Oh, I'm sorry.

Well, that's alright. We still talk.

Miss Mayhayley, I just bet a hundred dollars

he's gonna get off.

I got a hundred dollars says Wallace's guilty.

How's that gonna go?

Well, I ain't sayin'.

I don't wanna influence this trial

by telling what's gonna happen.

J.H., let's get these ladies some proper seats.

She said I'm right, didn't you hear her?

She didn't say nothin'. Your ear is pinned on backwards.

Did you boys hear Wallace hired A.L. Henson

to his defense team?

He's a slick dude out of Atlanta.

Folks say he could get Sherman's March

reduced to trespassin'.

Don't mean nothin'.

It does mean somethin'.

Superior Court of Coweta County,

Case Number 446, The State versus John Wallace.

The Honorable Samuel J. Boykin presiding.

Court is now in session.

Gentlemen of the jury, what the state

is about to contend, is that the defendant, John Wallace,

on April 20th, 1948,

did willfully, feloniously,

and with malice aforethought,

kill and murder Wilson Turner.

Now, we will present to you 38 sworn witnesses.

We will corroborate their testimony

with 43 pieces of physical evidence.

We will detail every step of this

most heinous and barbarous act.

I am certain you gentlemen will, in all good conscience,

have no choice but to find John Wallace

guilty as charged and sentence him to death.

They had a fallin' out over 20 gallons of liquor.

Wilson said Mr. Wallace threatened him.

Mr. Wallace told Wilson to get off his land

and if he ever seen him again, he'd...

he'd kill him.

You say you saw a body in the well. How'd you see?

Crawfish's eyes are in his tail. Mine are in my head.

You can tell what's gonna happen in the future, can't you?

Well, I'd like for you to tell what's gonna happen to me.

Well, you look-a-here. You might just get what Turner got.

They drug that fella out to the car door

and tried to force him inside...

that's when Wallace brought it down against

that fella's head so hard that the gun went off.

That fella never hollered no more.

Well...

I'm afraid I must agree with the state prosecutor.

Your Sheriff, Lamar Potts, has amassed a remarkable,

almost incontrovertible chain of evidence.

Yet one question remains to be answered.

Where exactly did Wilson Turner die?

We've heard testimony he was hit on the head

in Coweta, then driven to Meriwether.

Which county did he actually die in?

If he died in Meriwether,

then I submit that Sheriff Potts had no jurisdiction,

that, in fact, he made an unlawful arrest,

and I will move that this trial be transferred

to Meriwether or dismissed altogether.

Who can answer the question of Turner's death?

Only those men who drove him out of Coweta.

With their testimony, I will prove that Turner died

in Meriwether, and I will move for dismissal.

Your Honor, as my first witness,

I call to the stand Mr. Henry Mobley.

Your Honor, my client refuses to testify

on the grounds that it might tend to incriminate him.

In that case, Your Honor, I call on Mr. Herring Sivell.

Your Honor, my client refuses to testify

on the grounds it might tend to incriminate him.

Mr. Thomas Strickland.

Your Honor, my client refuses to testify on the grounds...

Your Honor, at no time has the state absolutely proved

that the blow administered at the Sunset Tourist Camp

did indeed kill Turner.

They don't have to, it's up to you

to prove that it did not kill him.

Now get on with this trial.

Hey, hey, you can't believe it.

Ain't nobody wants to testify for Wallace.

Mr. Wallace, you have the right

to make an unsworn statement on your own behalf.

Neither the defense, nor the prosecution, may interrupt you.

You will not be placed under oath,

but your testimony will be a matter of record.

Do you wish to make such a statement?

There's no reason for you to go up there.

The less said about this incident, the better.

That's where you're wrong, counselor.

You don't understand the power of my word.

These people'll believe what I tell 'em to.

As your attorney, I'm advising you to stay off that stand.

You Honor, I do wish to testify.

Wallace's gonna take the stand.

He's gonna save my hundred dollars.

I believe I should begin

with how I met Wilson Turner.

Was in 1945. He came to me lookin' for work.

At first I was against it.

I don't believe in mixin' white and colored help.

Promotes social equality, and causes serious problems.

But he was a young man needin' a start. I hired him.

And the first few years, he proved to be a good worker.

I was... I was very happy with our association.

But then word came to me that Turner

was makin' liquor on my land.

Well, naturally, I was distressed.

What if someone should think I was involved

in this illegal trade?

I asked him to discontinue his liquor makin',

to get back on the straight and narrow.

He ignored me, made threats against my person.

Finally, with grave fear for my life and reputation,

I requested he leave my property.

He did, but not before taking

my prized Guernsey cow with him.

Now, many of you men are workin' farmers

such as myself, and you know what a loss this can be.

Well, not long after that, I received a call

from my Sheriff, Hardy Collier,

sayin' that Turner had been arrested and transferred,

legally and properly, to the Meriwether Jail.

I told him that I would come down

and decide what should be done with Turner.

I drove in the next day with my kinsman Tom Strickland

and friends, Henry Mobley and Herring Sivell,

who are under some obligation to me.

I wanted to talk to Turner,

but not in jail, somewhere's else.

That's not the first time a man

has been taken out of jail and talked to.

As we arrived, I noticed Turner

in his new truck headin' for Coweta.

We took pursuit, I meant to catch him

and bring him back to jail.

I never consented for Sheriff Collier to release him.

Your Honor, I think it's obvious my client

is under a good deal of stress and beginning to tire.

If we might take a short recess?

Seems energetic enough to me.

Go on.

I'm... I'm not gonna lie to you gentlemen.

I had a gun in my hand when we caught Turner.

But not for the intention of hurting anyone.

I'm a churchgoing man.

I believe in my God as you believe in yours.

Now, these... these witnesses have testified

that I struck Turner with that gun

and that is not what happened.

As I went to put him in that car,

he grabbed the doors and pushed back,

hitting his head on the gun, causin' it to go off.

It made a small cut on his right ear, a little bleeding.

I put him in the car, ordered him to sit on the floor.

At that time, he was as alive as you and me.

I know this because

as we drove away,

he commented on the poor fitting

of the door panels and how the dust blew in.

We drove him to the pasture where the cow was stolen.

I meant to get a confession out of him.

and as... as we walked through the gate,

I heard a noise.

I turned to look, and as I turned to look...

the gun went off.

When I... when I looked back,

Turner was lying on the ground with...

with his scalp torn off.

It was... it was horrible,

it was a horrible thing.

The death of Wilson Turner

was an accident.

I, uh...

I do not remember how he got in that well

or what happened to him afterwards.

I've been under considerable strain

and I just... do not remember.

I've asked my God to guide me through this presentation.

And I ask you to commune with Him,

let Him guide you to your decision.

Let me go home to my wife and family.

I thank you.

Your Honor, I wonder if you could direct the defendant

as to where the accident took place?

You know the rules on unsworn statements.

There is to be no suggestion from counsel.

Your Honor... may I continue?

You may.

The well and pasture, where all this took place,

are in Meriwether County.

How'd I do?

John, you just buried yourself.

Sheriff, I understand you raise fox hounds.

Now, I'm a fancier of that breed myself.

Maybe when this whole thing's over, you and me...

Miss Turner, I'm glad I got a chance to see you.

I want you to know, I don't hold a grudge

against you for your husband's actions.

In fact, you're more than welcome

to pick out any place you want on my land

and stay there as long as you like.

I like to take care of my own.

Aw, is this little William?

Was that really necessary?

The jury is in.

Has the jury reached a decision?

We have, Your Honor.

Will the defendant please rise?

I caution this courtroom,

I will tolerate no expression of opinion

on this decision, be it favor or disfavor.

Mr. Foreman, what is your verdict?

We, the jury, find the defendant,

John Wallace, guilty as charged.

John Wallace,

you have been duly tried and found guilty as charged.

Would you please step forward.

On the 30th day of July, between the hours

of 10:00 AM and 2:00 PM,

you will be put to death by means of electrocution.

Mornin', boys.

Looks like we're gonna have another pretty day, doesn't it?

Okay, this one?

Hello, John.

I'm about ready to leave.

Thought I'd drop by and see

if there's anything you might need.

You mean like a fancy last meal?

No, I wouldn't want you to go huntin' fried chicken

and strawberry pie today, and then tomorrow

I wind up eatin' supper at my own house.

It ain't gonna happen, they ain't gonna kill me.

There'll be a phone call. Always has been.

You know, Lamar, we're a lot alike.

Each runnin' his own county, havin' power over other men.

Best feelin' in the world. Make you do anything...

'cept give it up.

How powerful is a man who can't control himself?

You're still down on me for my murderin' ways.

I've only killed four men in my whole life.

And each one of 'em had it comin'.

Those lives didn't mean anything to you?

I'm the head of the Kingdom. I was raised for that.

My mama always told me, "Do what you have to do."

"Never let your conscience get in your way."

I'm gonna pray for you, John.

Goodbye, Sheriff.

Bye, John.

Sheriff, you got 20 minutes.

No, I'm going back to Coweta County.

You're not stayin' for the execution?

We saved you a seat.

No thanks. I don't think so.

Sir?

Is this line still open? - Yes, sir.

Good.

Is there anything you'd like to say?

Yes.

Almighty God, you alone know my heart.

Stand by to receive me into Your House.