Anatomy of a Murder Page #13

It seemed like just a few seconds,

but it must've been longer.

I must've gone to sleep.

When he came back in, he sat on the bed

and he had a gun in his hand.

And I said, "What are you going to do?"

He said, "I think I've already done it.

I think I've killed Barney Quill."

Are you sure he didn't say,

"I've killed Barney Quill"?

No. I remember distinctly:

"I think I've killed Barney Quill."

Then what did you do?

I put my arms around him

and began to cry.

I said, "You'd better go to Mr. Lemon."

My husband said, "I forgot about that."

What did he mean? Forgot about what?

He meant he'd forgotten

Mr. Lemon was a deputy sheriff.

And he said,

"Yes, I'll go turn myself in to Mr. Lemon."

I have no other direct questions

at this time.

But, since I'm sure it's difficult

to visualise the part...

...a little dog played on this night...

...I should like to show the court

this remarkable little animal.

Do the People object?

I'm sure if we did...

...Mr. Biegler would declare

that we're haters of small, furry animals.

A creature that cannot talk

will be a welcome relief.

Bring in the dog.

Thank you, sir.

Will the deputy bring in the dog, please?

Now, you can put him right there.

Come on.

That's a boy!

Now, I'll ask Mrs. Manion

to bring a flashlight for the dog.

I'll ask the court to notice

that the dog turned on the light.

It's easy to see that Muff doesn't know

who his enemies are.

Remove the dog, please.

Witness will resume the stand.

There we go, Muff.

Mrs. Manion, may I congratulate you

on your well-trained pet.

May I also say that I'm pleased to see...

...you are not hiding your lovely hair

under a hat.

Is the assistant attorney general

from Lansing pitching woo...

...or is he going to cross-examine?

Let's get on with it.

What was your occupation

before you were married?

Housewife.

You were married before?

Yes, once.

I suppose your first husband died?

No.

Did you divorce your first husband

to marry Lt. Manion?

If counsel wants to know the grounds

for her divorce, let him ask that question.

- What were they?

- Mental cruelty.

Naturally. How long after your divorce

did you marry Lt. Manion?

I'm not sure.

May I refresh the witness' memory

for Mr. Dancer?

By all means.

I believe she told me that they were

married three days after the divorce.

- Is that correct, Mrs. Manion?

- Yes.

Then unless yours was

a whirlwind courtship...

...you must've known Lt. Manion

before your divorce.

Yes.

Mrs. Manion,

what is your religious affiliation?

I'm a Catholic.

A Catholic in good standing?

No, the divorce, you know.

You were ex-communicated

because of the divorce?

Yes.

Wouldn't you say that a Catholic...

...who can blithely ignore

one of the cardinal rules of her Church...

...could also easily ignore

an oath taken on one of its artefacts?

Say, an oath taken on a rosary?

I don't think that's true.

Wouldn't there be some doubt

about the integrity of such a person?

I don't know. All I know is

the rosary means something to me.

I see.

I'll pass on to something else.

You testified that your husband came

home late on the night of the shooting.

Were you a little angry

about his being late?

I guess I was a little put out.

- Did you have an argument?

- Not much. A little.

When you left to go to the inn,

did your husband know you were going?

He was asleep.

Was part of your reason for going without

his knowledge because you were vexed?

I'd been ironing all day...

Yes, I guess that's true.

Counsel has deliberately cut off my view

of the witness.

I'm sorry, Mr. Biegler. I wouldn't interfere

with your signals to Mrs. Manion.

I object to the implication I was signalling.

This is the shabbiest courtroom trick

I've ever seen.

You haven't lived, Mr. Biegler.

I ask the court to rule on my objection.

Will you be careful not to place yourself

between Mr. Biegler and his witness?

Of course, Your Honour.

Anything else, Mr. Biegler?

You do it again, I'll punt you all the way

out into the middle of Lake Superior.

Gentlemen, this rowing has got to stop.

The next one of you that speaks out of turn

will have me to deal with.

Now, get on with your cross-examination.

Would you have gone to the inn

if your husband had been awake?

He would have gone with me.

Would you have gone alone?

- Not if he didn't want me to.

- Would he have not wanted you to?

I'm not sure.

I don't know how to answer that.

Had you ever gone

to the Thunder Bay Inn...

...or elsewhere in Thunder Bay,

alone at night?

Yes. Sometimes.

Did your husband know you were going?

Not always. He goes to sleep early

and sometimes I'm restless.

Where did you go on these occasions?

I'd take a walk by the lake,

or to the bingo place, maybe to the inn.

Did you ever go to meet another man?

No, I didn't. I never did that.

You mean to say a lovely woman

like yourself, attractive to men...

...lonely, restless, that you never...

Objection, the witness has answered

the question about other men.

Counsel is now making

a veiled suggestion to the jury.

I withdraw the question.

On these occasional excursions into the

night, did you always return home alone?

Of course.

You testified that the reason

you got into Barney Quill's car...

...was that you were afraid

to go home alone.

Why were you so frightened

on this particular night?

I said that it was because he told me

bears had been seen around.

Was this the first time you'd heard

that bears came around Thunder Bay...

...to pick up scraps?

Had you seen the bears before?

Yes.

This was just the first time

you were afraid of them?

No. I was always afraid of them.

This was just the first time

you were enough afraid to allow a man...

...to take you home after an evening prowl?

Objection. The use of the word "prowl"

is meant to mislead the jury.

- Sustained.

- I apologise, Mrs. Manion.

I didn't mean to imply

that you were a huntress.

Was this the first time

you were enough afraid...

...to allow a man to take you home

from one of your evening walks?

It wasn't just that. It was...

You should be able

to answer that straight off.

That's a simple enough question.

How can the witness answer straight off,

if counsel keeps interrupting the answer?

The witness seemed a little slow to me,

Mr. Biegler.

However, let her complete her answers

before you interrupt.

In any case, Mr. Biegler's objection

has given Mrs. Manion sufficient time...

...to think of an answer.

You've thought of one, haven't you?

What I was going to say was that...

...I didn't want to offend Mr. Quill

by making him think I didn't like him.

He'd been very pleasant to my husband

and me when we'd been in his bar.

That's very good. Very good indeed.

Your Honour, please.

The attorney for the People will reserve

his comments for the arguments.

I will ask you this question, Mrs. Manion:

Was this the first time you had been

in Barney Quill's car at night?

Mrs. Manion, did you hear the question?

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