Witness for the Prosecution Page #12

Sir Wilfrid, will you now read the letter

in question so that the jury may hear it?

"My beloved Max,

an extraordinary thing has happened."

"All our difficulties may soon be solved."

"Leonard is suspected of murdering

the old lady I told you about."

"His only hope of an alibi

depends on me and me alone."

"Suppose I testify that he was not at home

with me at the time of the murder,

that he came home

with blood on his sleeves,

and that he even admitted to me

that he'd killed her?"

"Strange that he always said

he would never let me leave him."

"But now, if this succeeds,

he will be leaving me

because they will take him away forever

and I shall be free and yours,

my beloved."

"I count the hours until

we are together. Christine."

Mrs Helm?

Will you go back to the witness box?

I now ask you again, Christine Helm,

did you write this letter?

Christine, tell him you didn't write it.

I know you didn't.

Please answer my question.

Did you write this letter?

Before answering, Mrs Helm,

I wish to warn you that the law regarding

perjury in this country is very severe.

If you have already

committed perjury in this courtroom,

I strongly advise you

not to add to your crime.

But, if this letter

has not been written by you,

then now is the time to state this fact.

I wrote the letter.

(muttering)

And that, my lord,

is the case for the defence.

I keep asking which is harder,

your head or your arteries?

Stop pressing your luck, you're overdue.

We're all packed and ready.

I hope the jury won't take all afternoon.

I concede.

- Congratulations, here are your cigars.

- Not yet.

Come on, it's all over,

wrapped up neat and tidy.

- What's wrong?

- It's a little too neat, too tidy,

and altogether too symmetrical,

that's what's wrong with it.

- The jury is back.

- You're not worried about the verdict?

It's not their judgment

that worries me, it's mine.

Come along.

Where's my wig?

The prisoner will stand up.

Members of the jury,

are you all agreed upon your verdict?

We are.

Do you find the prisoner at the bar,

Leonard Stephen Vole,

guilty or not guilty

of the murder of Emily Jane French?

Not guilty, m'lord.

(shouting / gasping)

Silence!

Silence!

Leonard Stephen Vole,

you have been found not guilty

of the murder

of Emily Jane French on October 14.

You are hereby discharged

and are free to leave the court.

Persons with anything more to do

before the queen's justices

of oyer and terminer and jail delivery

for the jurisdiction of the Central

Criminal Court may depart the area.

Thank you. Yes, we'll talk later.

Thank you, Mr Mayhew.

Thank you, Mr Brogan-Moore. Carter.

Thank you, Sir Wilfrid, for everything.

You were wonderful.

- I'd say we were lucky all around.

- Yeah.

I have your belongings. Sign the receipt,

Mr Vole, and we can release you.

"Mr Vole." They didn't call me Mr

when they charged me.

- I'll go with you, I have your hat and coat.

- Let's go before they change their mind!

Chipper, isn't he? An hour ago,

he had one foot on the gallows

and the other on a banana peel.

You ought to be very proud, Wilfrid.

Aren't you?

Not yet. We've disposed of the gallows,

but there's still that banana peel

somewhere, under somebody's foot.

(commotion)

- (woman) Every word you said was a lie!

- (man) You ought to be locked up! Liar!

You'd better wait here

until we get rid of that crowd, madam.

Thank you.

Ready, sir? Miss Plimsoll will be waiting.

Let me finish the last of the cocoa

while I'm still beyond her jurisdiction.

Would you excuse me,

Brogan-Moore, Carter? Thank you.

I never thought you British could get

so emotional. Especially in public.

- I apologise for my compatriots.

- It's all right.

I don't mind being called names or

pushed around or even kicked in the shin.

But I have a ladder

in my last pair of nylons.

In case you are not familiar with

our prison regulations, no silk stockings.

Prison? Will I go to prison?

You heard the judge.

You will certainly be charged with perjury,

- tried for it, and to prison you shall go.

- Well, it won't be for life, will it?

If I were appearing

for the prosecution, it would be.

You loathe me, don't you?

Like the people outside.

What a wicked woman I am,

and how brilliantly you exposed me

and saved Leonard's life.

The great Sir Wilfrid Robarts did it again.

Well, let me tell you something.

You didn't do it alone. You had help.

What are you driving at?

I'm not driving at anything.

Leonard is free and we did it.

- We?

- Remember?

When you said that no jury would

believe an alibi given by a loving wife,

no matter how much she swore

he was innocent? That gave me the idea.

What idea?

The idea that I should be a witness, not

for my husband, but for the prosecution.

That I should swear Leonard was guilty

and that you should expose me as a liar

because only then would they believe

Leonard was innocent.

So now you know

the whole story, Sir Wilfrid.

I'll give yer something

to dream about, mister.

Want to kiss me, ducky?

I suspected something, but not that.

- Never that!

- Thank you for the compliment.

It's been a long time since I acted

and I never played such a vital role.

All those blue letters!

It took me hours to write them,

to invent Max. There never was a Max.

There's never been anyone but Leonard.

My dear, could you not have trusted me,

worked with me truthfully

and honourably? We would have won.

I could not run that risk.

You thought he was innocent.

And you knew he was innocent.

I understand.

No, Sir Wilfrid,

you do not understand at all.

I knew he was guilty.

That can't be true! No!

Listen to me, once and for all.

He came home after ten,

he had blood on his sleeves,

he said he had killed the woman,

only I could save him. He pleaded.

And you saved him? A murderer?

Again, you don't understand.

I love him.

I told you she was an actress.

And a good one.

Leonard!

I knew she'd do something,

but I just didn't know what or how.

Leonard, Leonard.

- Fooled you completely, didn't she?

- It was you, Vole, who fooled me.

Oh, easy. Easy. We both got

out of this alive, let's stay this way.

- Where are your pills?

- You've made a mockery of English law.

Who did? You got me off

and I can't be tried again for this.

- That's English law too, isn't it?

- You can't touch him now. Nobody can.

The scales of justice

may tip one way or another,

but ultimately they balance out.

You'll pay for this.

Ultimately's a long way off. I'd rather

pay for it as soon as possible and in cash.

Suppose we double your fee? There'll be

lots of money once the will goes through.

I'm not cheap, I want everybody

to get something out of it.

There's Janet McKenzie.

We'll get her that new hearing aid.

And we'll get you a new one of these.

And when they try you for perjury

there'll be? 5,000 for the defence.

I don't care, just so we'll be together.

You don't know what I've been through.

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