The Wrong Man Page #7

to bring one verdict...

...and that will be 'guilty as charged.'

Thank you.

May it please the court...

...Mr. Foreman, ladies and gentlemen

of the jury.

You have heard in considerable detail

the indictment on this case.

As the district attorney has told you...

...an indictment is only an accusation.

I would much prefer

that the proof in this case...

...come from the witnesses...

...that we will bring during the trial.

Because, in the last analysis,

what I say to you now or hereafter...

...or what Mr. Tomasini has said

or may say to you later on...

...is of little or no significance in the case.

You must decide the case

upon the testimony...

...from the lips of the witnesses

as they appear before you.

A defendant, under the

American system of justice...

...is obliged to prove nothing.

He can sit here mute and say not a word.

The burden of proof lies upon the people.

We are going to bring into the court

during the course of this trial...

...a series of substantial,

reputable citizens.

And I invite you to scrutinize them closely...

...and to determine,

in the light of their testimony...

...the guilt or innocence

of Christopher Emanuel Balestrero.

Because from the lips of these witnesses...

...it will be established

to your complete satisfaction...

...that this defendant who stands here

today accused of these crimes...

...did not, in fact,

commit any one of them.

I'm going to ask you to consider the...

...probabilities of this case.

And I'm going to ask you that

when the proof is all in...

...to see if you don't say

to yourself that this is a tragic case...

...of a mistaken identity.

Because on July the 9th, 1952...

Was that the entire extent of your

conversation with this man?

As far as I can remember, yes.

He said, 'Don't call anyone

or ring any bells.'

I gave him the money.

You gave him $200?

- Yes.

What did he do then?

He left the office.

And what did you do?

I went in to the district manager

and told him about it.

Mrs. James, would you look

around this courtroom...

...and tell us if you see

the man who was in your office...

...on July the 9th in this courtroom.

Yes, I do.

Would you step down

and point him out to us?

Right there.

Will you step down and

put your hand on his shoulder?

Let the record show

that the witness stepped down...

...and walked to a place

alongside the defendant...

...and put her hand on his shoulder.

Did something else happen

after you gave him the money?

Yes. Ann was asked to go to her...

By 'Ann,' you mean Mrs. Ann James?

Yes, sir.

Mrs. James went to her cash drawer...

...and also gave him cash from...

Before she went to her cash drawer...

...did you hear this man say something?

Yes. After I gave him

the cash from my drawer...

...he told her to get cash from her drawer.

And did she get some cash?

- Yes, she did.

Did she give it to this man?

- Yes.

Do you see this man in this courtroom?

Yes, sir.

- Will you step down...

...and put your hand on his shoulder?

- Not necessary.

Will you point him out to us?

- Which man is it?

The gentleman standing with the red tie.

Standing?

- Sitting there.

How is he dressed?

Navy-blue suit,

a red tie, white shirt.

Now, Miss Willis...

...is it not a fact that they had

a lineup at the 110th Precinct?

That's right.

- And how many men were in the lineup?

Six, I'd say, seven men.

And Christopher Emanuel Balestrero

was one of them?

That's right.

What did he wear?

He wore a coat and a hat,

I believe.

Were there any men in that alleged lineup...

...you knew before that night?

I object to the words 'alleged lineup.'

- Whatever you wanna call it.

No, I will allow it.

That's his choice of words.

How many of the men did you know?

- One.

And who was that?

- Mrs. James' husband.

What did Mrs. James' husband

have on that night?

A brown overcoat and a brown hat.

Now, Miss Willis, will you please tell

the jury how this thing worked?

What were you told to do, with regard

to picking the defendant out of a lineup?

We were told to count and then

tell them what number he was.

What number did Mr. Balestrero have?

If you remember.

If you don't, just say so.

No, I'm afraid I don't recall.

Do you recall what number Mr. James had?

No, he moved around too much.

Did the number one man

have an overcoat on?

As far as I can remember,

they were all dressed the same.

Did he have an overcoat or not,

the number one man?

She said, as far as she knows,

they were all dressed alike.

Can you remember how tall he was,

approximately, the number one man?

If you know.

If you do not know...

...say so.

- I don't know.

How much did he weigh?

- If you know, say so.

If you do not, say so.

- No, I do not know.

Your Honor, do we have to sit here

and listen to this?

The court will rule on what

is proper evidence, Mr. Juror.

The court is a sober judge

of what is proper evidence.

When the case is submitted to you,

you will be the sole judges of the facts.

Your Honor, may counsel

approach the bench?

Yes, sir.

If Your Honor pleases,

in view of all the circumstances...

...connected with the incident

that has just occurred...

...at this time, I move for a mistrial.

Your motion is granted.

Foreman and ladies

and gentlemen of the jury...

...it's the right of defense

counsel to make the motion...

...for a mistrial,

which the court has just granted.

We had to ask for a mistrial.

There was nothing else to do.

What does that mean, Mr. O'Connor?

It means we have to go through

the whole thing again.

Everything?

- Everything.

Wait for days on the calendar,

choose another jury...

...examine the witnesses.

Can't we just go ahead?

Not after what that juror said, no.

We have to start all over.

We've just as good a case

as we had before, though.

Nothing's lost.

We just have to face up to it all over again.

Can you take it, Manny?

I'll try, Mr. O'Connor.

Thanks.

I think I could have stood it better

if they'd found me guilty.

It's like being put through a meat grinder.

Once isn't enough.

They've gotta do it to you again.

I brought it all on myself, though.

I've been such an idiot.

You'd all be better off without me.

None of it is your fault, Manny.

You've just had a lot of bad breaks

that can happen to anybody.

Yeah, what can I do?

Have you prayed?

Yes.

What did you pray for?

I prayed for help.

Pray for strength, Manny.

I don't see how anything can help

if I don't get some luck.

Somebody committed those holdups.

Where is he?

Maybe in jail already for some other crime...

...in some other state. Maybe we'll...

He'll never be suspected for anything

he committed in our neighborhood.

My son, I beg you to pray.

I gotta go to work.

A pound of ham, please.

What's that?

This is a gun.

Give me the money from the cash drawer.

What money?

Temper, lady, temper.

That won't do you any good.

Don't you come near me.

Keep back.

I never did this before.

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