The Bennet Matter Ep 4

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From Hollywood.
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It's time now for Johnny Dollar Andrew Court.
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Johnny, do you have an I tripped back here to Frisco.
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I slept most of the way. How's it going?
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Good and bad? Johnny. Good that we've got George Fully
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on trial for setting fire to the building. Bad that
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we haven't connected him to Bennett yet, and Bennett's the
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guy we want.
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Now. Once you get a conviction on Folly, you can
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go after Bennett.
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A lot of expert testimony has been thrown around here,
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and the jury's been sleeping through most of it. Besides that,
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Foley's got one of the best defensemen in the business,
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Jake Eggleston.
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Yeah, I've heard of him. He's pretty slick.
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He's going to make us lose this case, Johnny, Not if.
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I can help him?
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Tonight and every weekday night, Bob Bailey in the Transcribed
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Adventures of the Man with the Action Packed Expensive Out
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America's Fabulous Freelance Insurance Investigator US.
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Truly Johnny Dollar expense account submitted by Special Investigator Johnny
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Dollar to the for State Fire Insurance Corporation, forty sixty
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five Spear Boulevard, Hartford, Connecticut. The following is an accounting
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of expenditures during my investigation of the Bennett matter. Expense
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account item nine one hundred and twenty four dollars air
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transportation Hartford back to San Francisco again and the Bennett case,
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which I thought was finished with. I was at the
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whole of justice by nine thirty I met Andrew Court
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outside of the Superior Court. This may be the last
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day of the trial, jelling anything news since I talked
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to you on the phone, and well.
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I may be worrying for nothing, since Finley's handled it
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all pretty well for the state. He's one of the
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assistant Dyeay's. But Foley's still holding on to a not
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guilty plate.
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Wasn't that just coaching?
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Oh?
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Maybe you remember Foley didn't make any statement when we
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took him, and the police got nothing out of him
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at all.
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Foley had some like twenty eight arrests besides two convictions, you.
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Know the ropes.
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Yeah, well that's okay, Yeah, sure, just in time. Yeah,
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it seems to be the clerk now.
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Yeah, called his nonsession as Honor Judge William J.
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Bainbridge presiding. Everybody's sad, saying b se then John Dalla Hey, oh,
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I didn't think they'd call you first.
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No page right, Anne, it was almost where the testimony.
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You're about to give us the truth, the whole truth.
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Nothing about the truth to help you. God, I do
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see it.
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As you know. I am Charles Finley with the District
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Attorney's Office. Stay check name, please, Johnny Dollar. State your
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occupation please, I'm an insurance investigator. How long have you
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been engaged in your profession as an insurance investigator?
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Ten years or more? Tell us please, prior to that,
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what kind of work did you do? I was in
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the United States Marine Corps for four years. Before that,
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I was detective sergeant's second grade with the New York
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Police Department.
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Do you have any papers or letters in your possession
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that verify your professional status, mister.
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Dolla, Yes, I do. I have letters of reliability from
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thirteen insurance companies and adjustment bureaus I've been associated with,
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and my record is police officer. Thank you.
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Will the court please hand these papers to Council for
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the Defense so he may examine them, Yes, sir.
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Thank you.
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Now tell us what your connection with this case is,
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mister Dolla.
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I was employed by the Force State Fire Insurance Corporation
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of Hartford, Connecticut, to conduct an investigation in regard to
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one of their policy holders, Arnold Bennett. Yes, Arnold Bennett,
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Will you please tell.
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The court what the results of that investigation were.
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The Bennett Building was destroyed by fire. I worked with
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arson experts for my own organization and with the police
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here to determine the cause of the fire.
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Go on, please.
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At the scene of the fire, are expert William Underwood
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located certain items which we recognized as part of the
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paraphernalia generally used by professional arsonists.
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Will you please state what those items were?
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A scrap of celluloid and a paraffin wick, anything else
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samples of the ashes which were later analyzed and proved
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to be celluloid ashes.
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I wish to remind the ladies and gentlemen of the
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jury that the public fire adjuster, the gentlemen from the
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Skyline Laboratories, and the two gentlemen from the Fire Inspection Department,
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have previously testified as to the identity and uses of
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these items. Will you continue, mister Dolla.
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Well, these particular items suggested that the fire was of
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an incendiary origin. The next problem was to establish the
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exact method used in starting the fire.
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Were you able to determine that method?
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Yes, sir.
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In order to refresh the minds of the jury, would
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you mind describing what was established A heavy woolen wick,
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This one, mister Dollar, that one or one like it
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exhibit see please continue.
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This wick had been soaked in paraffin and then stuffed
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into a paper sack that was filled with celluloid. It's
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a simple method. The wick is lit and takes anywhere
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from three to ten minutes to burn down to the celluloid. Now,
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once that happens, the celluloid flares up and fires anything
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combustible in the vicinity.
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And that is the method you determined cause the fire
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on the Bennett Building.
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Yes, and I'd like to qualify that by saying the
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arson experts from my own company and the gentleman from
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the police and fire departments here in San Francisco determined
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it definitely.
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Mister Dolla, by this means you connected the defendant, George Foley,
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with the fire you were investigating.
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Yes, we did. Oh, George Foley improvised the method I
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have just described.
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Improvised you mean it is his method? I object, your honor.
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The prosecution is putting words into the mouth of the witness.
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I'll rephrase for mister Eggleston. Is this method identifiable with
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the defendant? Yes, sir, Will you explain the identification.
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The police files here show that Foley has been convicted
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of setting two other fires in this state. On both occasions,
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he employed that method of fire.
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Your honor, I object the career of the defendant as
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a professional arsonist. As a matter of public record, the
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defendant's previous record has no bearing on this case. I
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have just a dollar. Will you rephrase and delete any
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reference to the defendant's criminal history.
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The procedure in locating an arsonist is to first establish
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the method of operation. In this case, where the Wick
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celluloid method was used, the defendant's name came up immediately.
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The defendant made an attempt to call on Arnold Bennett
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in the hospital. The defendant was positively identified by three
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witnesses as the man they had seen near the Bennett
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building prior to the fire.
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I remind the jury of the testimony of those witnesses.
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Go on, mister Dolla.
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The police crime laboratory examined all of the clothing Foley
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was wearing at the time of his arrest and all
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of the clothing in his room. There was definite evidence
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that he had been in the Bennett building.
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Will you tell us what sort of evidence please?
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Oh, paint smudges on the soles of his shoes, and
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metal filings and cups of his trousers compared with samples
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who were still available in the building where certain painting
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and metal work had been in progress.
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You connected him with the improvised method of firing. You
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proved that paint smudges and metal filings came from the
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Bennett Building. The defendant attempted to contact Arnold Bennett. What else?
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Arnold Bennett's niece, Elizabeth Bennett informed me that her uncle,
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Arnold Bennett hired the defendant to fire the building to
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collect insurance. What I was on the stand all the
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rest of the morning. When Finley andered his questioning, he
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turned me over to defense Council Eggleston. Eggleston contested every
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bit of established testimony and recommended that my remarks be
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stricken from the trial records. The summations came right after that,
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and then the case went to the jury. Expense account
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had him ten three dollars lunch for Andrew Court and myself.
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Only has to be convicted or will be on the
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defense when Bennet's insurance claim comes to court and we'll
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probably get stuck with it.
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And while the jury's out, why don't I go over
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to the jail and talk with Fully? What good would
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that do? Fully must know they'll give him the works
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if he admits something. He would admit nothing.
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He sits there in court like they were talking about
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someone else.
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Oh, Johnny, it's too late. Yeah, But if he did,
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you could go ahead and file criminal charges against Bennett,
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beat him to the punch. I'd like that. Oh, we
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get Fully and we've beaten Bennett, and I like that.
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The job of getting to a prisoner who was standing
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trial isn't an easy one, especially when he's under the
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surveillance of a smart defense attorney like Eggleston. I talked
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to Judge Brainberg and his chambers and told him what
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I had in mind. I broke down the case against
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Folly as the insurance company saw it, and the possible
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case against Arnold Bennett if Foley was found guilty. Judge
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Brainbridge arranged for me to see Folly. He was sitting
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in his cut Eggleston was standing nearby. Hello Dollar, Hello Eggleston, Hi,
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what do you want? Well, I thought we ought to
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talk about this thing while there's still time. If it's
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okay with you, mister e it's okay with me Dollar,
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I'll be right here some time for what to get
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your point of a break?
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Fully? Oh that's a real good one. You sit on
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a witness chair.
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All morning, you tell him what a bad boy I am,
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and you walk in here and tell him you want
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to give me a break?
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I do go away. Now, wait a minute, George, it
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won't hurt to listen to him.
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Well, you're a great when you I'm a guy who's
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sitting in this cell. Both of you can walk out
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of here, have a good stake for dinner. And I
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already George listened to him. This isn't the courtroom. When
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you were first hauled in folly. You could have made
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a statement telling us Bennett hired you to fire that building,
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waived a jury trial, and thrown yourself on the mercy
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of the court. But you didn't do that. You made
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everybody work hard to give it to you. And that's
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exactly what they're going to do. That jury will come
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out pretty soon and throw the book at you.
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Is that true? I'm not so sure of that. Dollar,
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tell us precisely why you're here.
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You both know my companies after Ronald Bennett. He's filed
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claim against us for not paying off his fire policy. Fully,
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we know he hired you to fire that building. Yeah,
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and if you're smart, you'll send for the guard and
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make a request for the court to come back in session.
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Before the jury returns. You can tell them Bennett hired you.
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You can change your plea of guilty and throw yourself
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at the mercy of the court. It'll probably save you
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five years on your sentence. So I turn hero and
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make everything nice for you to go after Bennett. If
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you do that, his claim will be thrown out to
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the insurance Commission and will prefer charges against him.
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And he'd be right up there with me, making little
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ones out of paper. That's right, you're overstepping your province here, Dollar.
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Look, there isn't much time. Fully, this man can advise
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you to wait until the jury comes in and that
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won't be very long, but then it'll be too late
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for you to help yourself.
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I don't like this high pressure stuff.
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I don't care what you like or dislike. Mister Eggleston.
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I listen fully, they've got an eight point case against
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you in there is he right, Eggleston?
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It doesn't make any difference.
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The jury is saying, save me five years, Yes, George,
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what do you think?
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Up to you? George, I've told you what I think
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A swell spots.
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Well, oh come on, come on, what is it?
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I'll risk you you're crazy.
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There's a chance those twelve plunk heads will walk out
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un till everybody. I'm not guilty, Come on, get a
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Those last five years will be pretty hard wins.
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God, God, thank you for the offer, just the same dollar.
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You don't use your head much. Fully, it hadn't been
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for you, I wouldn't be in here, So don't worry
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too much about what happens to me for one, For
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guys like you, I wouldn't be in business and I'm
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not working Salah, Yeah.
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Yeah, I hope they let me loosen this one to USA.
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Don't plan on it, and I kind of I'd like
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to kill you or something.
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Now here's our star to tell you about the final
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intriguing episode of this week's story tomorrow.
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A verdict in and out of a courtroom, the wind
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up join us. Won't you Yours Truly Johnny Dollar?
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Yours Truly, Johnny Dollar starrying Bob Bailey is transcribed in Hollywood.
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Written by John Dawson, it is produced and directed by
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Jack Johnstone. Be sure to join us tomorrow night, same
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time and station for the next exciting episode of Yours Truly,
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Johnny Dollar.
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This is Roy Rowan speaking
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And