The Electric Chair (1976) - full transcript
The murder of an innocent, happy couple leads to a courtroom trial that would sentence the killer to death, but who really did it?
(deep intense music)
(building music)
(siren alarming)
(screaming)
(loud eerie music)
(intense thumping music)
(sirens ringing)
- Sam, what you got?
(mumbles)
What happened?
- Somebody shot them.
- Shot them?
Damn.
Anybody see anything?
- Two kids over there
found the bodies.
Charlie's talking to them now,
I don't know what he's got.
I found this here business card.
It's one of the reverends.
And the baron found
these letters.
- Did you read them?
- Some of them.
- What some?
- (mumbles) right in here.
- Okay, take these over
to the lab in Finleyville.
Get the results back to
me as soon as you can.
I'm gonna talk to the kids and
I'll be back in the office.
- Okay, Sheriff.
- See you later, Sam.
- Come on, Wilbur.
Homicide even said that he
was shot in the head once
and she was shot three times.
Now, you're trying to tell
me that she wasn't shot.
- Just a little
farther there, Frank.
Someone ripped her tongue
right out of her head first.
- What?
- And damn near cut her
head clean off of her body.
- Son of a bitch.
(lighthearted soft music)
(exciting soft music)
- Cars out of gas.
If you're going anywhere,
you're gonna have to walk.
- So what's new?
I'm used to walking
anywhere I wanna go.
- Where are you going?
- Prayer meeting,
tonight's Wednesday.
- Again!
What you gonna have
him pray for this time?
(clanking)
- For heaven's sakes, Moss,
do you always have to think
of that dirty physical stuff?
- Okay, Clair, I
get the message.
- Let's try to act civilized.
- We are married.
What's uncivilized about
being a man and a woman
and having normal
wants and needs?
Clair, don't you remember
when we were first married
how warm and close we
felt after we made love?
- I don't remember, Samuel,
anymore than you do,
because if you did, you
remember that I was doing
the same thing then that I've
doing for the past five years.
Every time we touch, counting
the crack in the seat.
I (mumbles) like
some two bit whore.
After all, you are a minister.
- Also a man, Clair.
And your husband.
- I told you, Samuel,
don't touch me like that.
I can't stand it
and I never could.
- I know, Clair.
- One of these days, Samuel,
one of these days we'll
have this out completely.
- No we won't because
that might lead to divorce
and your social standing
couldn't take that.
- Don't be so bias, you married
me for my social standing.
- The church gives me
my standing, Clair.
I married you because
I loved you and
I thought you were a woman.
- I am a woman,
you remind me of it
every time you look at me.
- I know, but I
meant a human one.
Well, are you coming?
Your friends in my
congregation are waiting.
- I won't be going with you
to church tonight, Moss.
- Do what you thinks best.
Goodnight, Clair.
(slow organ music)
May the good Lord bless and
keep each and everyone of you.
Drive carefully for
I expect to see you,
all of you, here next
Sunday morning at 11:00 am.
(deep organ music)
- Thank you.
- I, I was really moved
by your sermon, Reverend.
You're so understanding
of people's needs.
Our last minister was sort of,
well, sort of old and...
You know what I mean.
- Why thank you, Miss, Miss?
- Marilyn, Marilyn Howard.
- Marilyn.
A pleasure, Ms. Howard.
- Marilyn.
- Marilyn.
It's getting late, do
you have a way home or,
or a car or something?
- No, I just walked tonight.
- Could I give you
a ride home then?
- Well, thank you, that
would be very nice.
- I have to turn off the
lights and lock up first.
You can wait in the car if
you want to, it's over there.
- All right, I'll
meet you in the car.
- Sometime I stop off for a
cup of coffee or something
after the service, is
it too late for you?
- Well, a small
soda would be nice.
(engine revving)
(light rock music)
- I'm glad the attendance
at prayer meeting's growing,
slowly but it's growing.
You know, I think adding
the choir helped with
the attendance, don't you?
- Mmm hmm.
- The choir sounded
great tonight, I think.
- Yes, it did.
- Ms. Howard, is
something wrong?
Ms...
Marilyn?
- Yes?
- Is something wrong?
- May I take your order, sir?
- Sure, what would you like?
- Just a small 7UP.
- Coffee, one cream, one
sugar, and a small 7UP.
Thank you.
- It's a beautiful evening.
- Yeah, it certainly is.
Is something wrong--
- You know, it's so nice
just to sit and think
on a night like this.
- Marilyn, are you sure
there's nothing bothering you?
And you can be--
- Your order, Sir.
- Thank you.
- Just keep the change.
- Thank you.
- Marilyn, if you're
troubled, I'd like to help.
- There's nothing wrong!
(tires squealing)
- Don't you see,
if we talk about--
- I am (mumbles) all right!
(sobbing)
I'm sorry.
- It's all right.
I don't think it will
stain your dress.
Do you wanna talk about it?
- I...
I can't.
(sobbing)
(slow rhythmic music)
- Is your trouble at home?
Is it your parents?
- My husband.
It's not his fault.
It's just that my life, my
whole existence has no meaning.
There's no love in my marriage.
Our marriage is simply a word.
We aren't in love anymore.
If we ever were.
I just wanna be loved!
- Now, now, I'm sure there are
a lot of people who love you.
- I don't mean
that kind of love.
I need the love and
understanding of a husband.
I need to feel like a woman.
The way you need
to feel like a man.
- Shall we go?
- Yes, please.
(soft rock music)
(loud sobbing)
- Here, here.
You know, you're a
very attractive girl,
even with mascara smeared
all over your face.
- Oh, I'm sorry.
Oh, god, I can't go in
like this, I'm a mess.
- Would you like to
get out of the car
and get some fresh air?
- Yes, yes, please.
Thank you.
- You feel better?
- Yes, thank you.
You know, you have
a very nice smile.
(eerie loud music)
(moaning)
Now I am a woman.
- I think I should feel guilty,
but I don't.
- Neither do I.
(scary rhythmic music)
(peaceful soft music)
Can we ever be like that?
- No.
(slow soft music)
- Have you ever
seen those before?
- Should I have?
- They were found next
to your husband's body.
- And?
- [Sheriff] They're
love letters from
Marilyn Howard to your husband.
- That steaming little bitch.
- [Sheriff] I beg your pardon?
- I said you're
a son of a bitch.
I've had enough of your
filthy insinuations.
If you wish to
speak to me further,
you can contact my attorney.
- When comes back to
town in a few days?
(door slamming)
Who's left out there?
- Well, I got Jess Howard
and Cooper, Moses Cooper.
He's a Deacon down at
the Reverend's church.
Says he's got some
information for us.
It'll probably be another
wild tale like Mrs. Sigmon.
But we better listen to him.
- Yeah, I guess you're right.
Let's get it over
with, bring him on in.
We'll let Jess cool
his heels for a while.
Oh and Harry, see if you can
get over to the Moss house
and get Billy away from there
without Ms. Moss knowing,
bring him in.
Hello, Mr. Cooper, I
understand you have some
information for us.
- Indeed I do.
You know, the Lord knows
I'm not a man to gossip,
but when a sin as evil as
this one comes upon man,
the burden on his heart
becomes almost unbearable.
And if I didn't
discuss it with you and
come at you with the
truth, then I, myself,
would be guilty of that sin
of, the sin of omission.
- Cooper, what are
you trying to tell us?
- What am I trying to tell you?
I'm trying to tell
you about a sin.
A sin of such magnitude
that it burdens my heart
with grief.
Now, I'm a benevolent
man, but no one short of
the almighty himself can
give absolution for sin
of such magnitude, one that
has just been perpetrated
against this church
and our community.
Now, do you realize that
our young people have
just been subjected to
a sin more insidious
than Judas himself?
Yeah, there's been a Judas
right here in our midst.
- What sin?
- Adultery.
- Adultery!
- That man and that woman,
both good God fearing people,
until the devil got his boney
fingers hooked in their souls
and drug them down to
the deepest pits of hell.
Them committing adultery,
one with another.
- [Man] Mose, do you
have first hand knowledge
of this alleged adultery?
- First hand knowledge,
you mean did I watch them?
I did not and I would not.
- Mr. Cooper, where
were you Thursday night?
- I was at the hospital
praying for Sister Thomas,
and you might be so happy
to know that he assured
me of her salvation.
- Thank you, Mr. Cooper,
you've been most helpful.
- Why, you're most welcome.
It was my duty.
Sin shall not go unpunished.
And should I get
anymore visions,
I'll come to you first.
- [Man] Mr. Cooper, next
time you get a vision,
how about coming to
us before they happen?
- I'll have his alibi checked.
- Do, but from the
way he said it,
I think he really was there.
- Mmm mmm, yeah.
Okay, yeah, and send
Jess Howard here,
I think he's cooled
his heels long enough.
Okay, bye.
Come on in here,
Jess, and sit down.
Jess, when was the last
time you saw your wife?
- The night before last,
she went to one of those
church meetings or something
and she didn't come home.
- Did she do or say
anything strange or unusual
before she left?
- No.
She was might shook
up when she left.
But I didn't suspect nothing.
You know how women are, they
do things like that sometimes.
- Did you know she
was having an affair
with Reverend Moss?
- Hell no!
She wasn't having no affair.
The Reverend, he was a fine
man and she was a good woman.
They weren't having no affair.
- Okay, Jess, you can go.
I don't think he knows anything,
besides Frankum says
his alibi checks out.
See what Billy knows.
Come on in, Billy.
Well, how are things
up on the hill?
- Okay.
- Billy, you know that
Reverend Sam's dead, don't you?
- Sure.
- [Sheriff] You notice anything
funny going on up there?
- Funny?
No, just the usual stuff.
- [Sheriff] You haven't noticed
anything out of ordinary?
- Nope.
- Billy, has Jess Howard
been up there lately?
Billy?
Billy, Billy!
- Huh?
- Jess Howard been up
to your place lately?
- Not that I can remember,
but then he could've been
there without me seeing him.
- Yeah, I guess so.
Okay, Billy, you
can go on home now.
- Well, it's been a month now.
So, what have we got?
We've been working on this
damn thing for three weeks,
every lead, every piece
of evidence, nothing.
We don't have a
case against anyone.
- Mr. District Attorney,
has anything come from
Mable Swank story?
- Just Frank, please.
Mable told us something
about corn thieves and
hearing noises that night.
I don't know, she said she
followed them up to the scene,
saw a man and a woman
standing over the bodies.
She said it was Clair
Moss and Billy Spencer.
- Could be.
- Nope, we held them both in.
They had alibis and good
ones, they were clean.
Anyway, when I asked
Mable how come she waited
a month to come over, she
didn't tell us anything.
Nothing.
Guess on a case like this,
you gotta expect cranks.
You got anything, Wilbur?
- I'm afraid our leads
were dead ends too.
- Well, Bill, Wilbur,
guess we don't have a case.
Might as well work on
some of our other stuff.
Thank you, Bill.
Thanks for your help, Wilbur.
Of course, anything new does
come up, you guys let me know.
- Right away.
- Okay.
(light knocking)
- Hi, Carol Jenkins?
- Uh huh.
- My name's Chuck
Harper and I've--
- Whatever you're selling,
I'm not interested in.
- Oh no, man, I'm not a
salesman, I'm a reporter.
- That's worse.
- I wanna help reopen your
case, your sister's murder.
- How?
- I'm interviewing all the
people who were involved
in the case for a feature story.
- It's been over a
year, that won't help.
- There's some new evidence.
- What evidence?
- Well, I can't say yet
but you might be able
to give me some
information that will help.
- Well, come on in.
Chuck, we've been seeing
each other everyday now
for over a week and you
still haven't told me
what you found out.
- [Chuck] It's a secret.
- Please.
- Okay, okay.
Two things, remember
the business card
found at the scene?
- Mmm hmm.
- Well, originally they
couldn't find anything,
but I found out that there
really was an identification
of the fingerprint.
It belongs to William Spencer.
- Do you mean Billy?
- Yup, Clair Moss's brother.
Isn't he that kid who's
kind of dumb, or weird,
or something?
- Well, most people say
he's just a bit crazy,
but harmless.
(birds tweeting)
- Crazy Billy.
I'm gonna have to
use that in my story.
Anyway, there's more.
I was in divorce
court in Franklin and
I heard Clair Moss's
name mentioned.
It sounded interesting
so I sat in.
It seems this
woman, Joan Lindsay,
had been working for
a maid for Clair Moss
was getting a divorce.
You're not gonna believe it
but her husband was suing
for divorce on the
grounds that his wife had
come to him under
false pretenses.
He claims that she'd
been a mistress of
the Reverend Moss and
had been paid $5,000
to keep her mouth shut
about anything she heard
concerning the murder.
- Do you mean that this might--
- I mean, with all the
commotion that we're gonna
create in the
newspapers around here,
we just might get together
to reopen this case.
- Oh, Chuck.
(laughing)
(birds tweeting)
- Get me the DA,
Franklin Grover!
He's in, he's in Cleveland.
Idiot.
(buzzing)
Grover, Grover, this is
Baldwin at the Cabinet.
What the hell are you
all doing down there?
Why don't you get off
your fat asses and
get something accomplished?
You know, I don't see how
the devil you hold a job
down there, we have elections
here at the capitol.
And one's going on right now!
Now, listen damn it, I
want you to get out there
and get something done!
I want this Moss Howard
thing cleared up!
You got me smeared all over
the front page of the paper!
Now, do we understand
each other?
Clear the damn thing
up once and for all,
and I want a conviction!
(sighing)
- Guess who doesn't
really have an alibi?
- Who?
- Mose Cooper.
- Oh, come on, Harry.
He was at the
hospital all night.
50 people saw him there.
- Yeah, and the old lady he
was praying for died at 8:05.
Cooper left the hospital
and he said he went fishing
to meditate at night.
- Anybody see him
leave the hospital?
Does he have any
witnesses at all?
So, he says he
went fishing, huh?
That time of night.
Pick him up, Harry, book
him, suspicion of murder one.
- And after you
left the hospital,
you were still feeling
upset so you went fishing,
I believe, until
late that night.
- Yes, sir.
I was very depressed
and very worried.
And I went out
fishing to meditate.
Communicate with my Lord.
- Thank you, thank you
very much, Mr. Cooper.
That will be all.
Your witness.
- Uh, Mr. Cooper, I have
a few questions, sir.
Mr. Cooper, you are
a religious man?
- Yes, sir, I am.
- And you believe in
the Old Testament?
- Yes, sir.
- And do you believe
in the Bible literally?
- Word for word.
- And do you believe,
then, word for word,
an eye for an eye and
a tooth for a tooth?
- Yes, sir.
In fact, only two nights
before the murder,
I had a vision and the Lord
said he was displeased.
He was gonna send one of
his angels back to earth
and with the help of
a faithful follower,
he was gonna go out
and gonna smite down
that adulterer and
that adulteress.
Vengeance is mine,
say it the Lord!
- No further
questions, your Honor.
Thank you, Mr. Cooper.
And in conclusion,
ladies and gentlemen,
we have proven beyond
a shadow of a doubt,
that the defendant
had the opportunity
to commit these crimes.
He would have us believe
that he was fishing
the night of the murder.
Fishing all night long.
This self righteous
sanctimonious man set himself
up as judge, jury,
and executioner.
There is no doubt of his guilt.
The overwhelming facts
demand that you find him
guilty of murder in
the first degree.
And the state asks that
you recommend for this man,
who committed an act so
terrible, so horrible,
so malicious.
Ladies and gentlemen, you
have no choice except to
demand the death
penalty for this man,
for this premeditated act
of cold blooded murder.
The death penalty, ladies
and gentlemen, for this man!
(intense dramatic music)
Mose Cooper!
- Is the defense
ready for summation?
- Ladies and
gentlemen of the jury,
you have just witnessed the
most obscene perpetration
of injustice that's ever been
attempted in this country.
The prosecution has given
us no facts, no proof.
Now, they have established
that Deacon Cooper
is a very religious man.
Is that a crime?
And then they insult him by
calling him a pious hypocrite.
Well, to some extent or
another, aren't we all?
Now, they have established
that Mr. Cooper
cannot account for
his exact whereabouts
in front of witnesses on
that particular evening.
The evening of the murder.
Let me ask you this, how
many of you can prove to us
exactly where you were on
any given night a month ago,
much less half a year ago?
But you're not on
trial for your life.
That poor man is.
Ladies and gentlemen
of the jury,
please remember this as you
retire to the jury room.
Each one of you could
just as easily be sitting
in the defendant's chair.
Convict this man on this
flimsy circumstantial evidence
and you could just as easily
be convicting yourself.
Mose Cooper is just as
innocent as you are.
Thank you.
- All rise.
- How you doing, Chuck?
- I should ask how you're doing.
- Uh, you saw it.
- You know, I'm
partially responsible for
getting this case reopened,
but whether he did it or not,
they sure didn't
have much of a case.
This trial was run a whole lot
like the Spanish Inquisition.
Do you have a chance?
- Not much.
Governor Baldwin's
really pushing Grover for
a conviction on this one.
If the jury comes right back
in, we might stand a chance.
If they stay out for any
length of time, we're sunk.
- DA Special Investigator
hurt you a lot.
Mr. Cooper said this and
Mr. Cooper said that.
- Yeah, and it was all
hearsay evidence too.
But the judge, he
denied my objections
until after Grover had finished.
By then, the damage was done.
Oh, he instructed the jury
to disregard the testimony,
but they heard it.
- Well, hear they come.
- Wish us luck.
- All right.
- All rise.
(loud banging)
- Has the jury
reached its verdict?
- Yes, we have, Your Honor.
We find the defendant
guilty as charged
and we recommend he
be sentenced to death.
- Mose, it's time to go.
- I'm free?
- No, there's been no word.
(deep scary music)
- Mose Cooper, you've
been tried and convicted
by a jury of your peers
and have been found guilty
of murder in the first degree.
The state has sentenced you
to die by electrocution,
on this, the 30th day of August
and the year of our Lord,
1972, until you are
dead, dead, dead.
Mose Cooper, do you have
a statement to make?
The blindfold, please.
(intense rhythmic music)
(phone ringing)
Hold it!
Yes, sir.
No, sir.
Yes, sir.
Stop the execution, the
governor signed a reprieve.
Release him and take
him back to his cell.
- Well, thank you, Sheriff.
Now, explain to me just how
Mr. Cooper was reprieved.
- Well, he was having this
affair with Janice Meechum,
she works over at the
Sportsman Bar and Grill,
divorced, got three kids.
Well, he was with her all night.
Of course the
hypocritical old bastard
didn't want anybody to know it.
In fact, I think
he'd rather die than
let anybody know he was human.
- Well, how'd she
get him reprieved?
- Well, her conscious
got to her when
she heard he was
gonna be executed.
So, she just went to the
DA and told him the truth.
(laughing)
I'll bet Grover about
crapped in his pants.
Anyway, Grover called the
Governor and saved Mose.
Hell, they all ready had
him strapped to the chair.
He was about 15 seconds
away from getting fried.
- Where's Mose now?
- He's over at the County Home.
He just never could
seem to get over it.
A friend of mine
over there, a doctor,
said that he probably
would get better but
he never would be the same.
- You know, my paper's
getting down pretty hard
on capital punishment.
- You know, it's just like them.
I sometimes wonder what
side they're really on.
I guess that just whatever's
most sensational at the time.
Now, they don't give
a damn about anything
except selling newspapers.
- Say old Mose was really
having an affair, huh?
Who'd thought it?
Tell me about it.
- Well, I'll tell
you all I know.
Janice said she
really liked him,
he brought things
over to her, you know,
and that sort of thing, and
she said he was the only man
that really halfway
treated her decent.
- [Chuck] What about that night?
- Well, he came over
just like he always did,
and he brought her one
of those real flimsy,
shorty nightgowns, I guess
she modeled it all over
the house for him.
Anyway, he spent the
whole night there,
just like he did
every Thursday night.
Looks like I was right
in the beginning.
The DA's all ready
decided or finally decided
to listen to old Mable Swank,
you know the good woman?
They want me to go
pick up Clair Moss
and Billy Spencer right now.
- Well, thank you, Sheriff.
- It's a pleasure.
(fun energetic music)
(buzzing)
- How you doing
tonight, Sheriff?
- Pretty good.
- Fine.
- Looks like you
got a nice crowd.
- Yeah, pretty nice crowd
tonight, (mumbles) pretty good.
(mumbles)
- I heard when he came up.
- Yeah.
- Seen Billy Spencer
running around?
Billy Spencer.
I have a warrant
for your arrest.
- Can I see that warrant.
- I'll show you down
at the jail (mumbles).
Come on.
Come on.
(fun energetic music)
- Harry, I've got to be
damn sure on this one.
Let's go over what we've got.
- Okay, Mable Swank has
told us she actually
saw the murders take place.
- I'm gonna save her until
the end of my presentation.
What else?
- Joan Lindsay, Clair MOss's
maid, she approved the motive.
- All right.
What about Wilma Sigmon?
- [Harry] She's our
weakest witness.
She'll tell about the affair,
that Clair knew about it.
- Fine.
- [Harry] Can't hurt.
We also have Lee Davidson,
the one who says he
recognized Billy and
Clair voices at the scene.
What do you think?
- Well, he's another
witness that places him at
the scene, I guess.
Put his name up on the board.
- Here in this
small southern town,
the officials in
charge of this case are
being very closed mouthed.
They're giving us little
or no information.
Curiosity seekers from
all over the state
are pouring in by
the thousands to see
the scene of the crime,
the Reverend's church,
and the Spencer Moss
mansion up on the hill.
Imaginative local
residents have turned this
into a miniature boom town.
Many tour guide services
have been established
and hot dog and soft
drink stands are
popping up everywhere.
Everyone seems to be
profiting from this tragedy
except the immediate
family of the victims.
The entire jury selection
was completed yesterday
with a defense counselor turning
down no perspective jurors.
I believe we, yes, we
are about ready to hear
the prosecutions
opening remarks.
- Now, I'm sure, ladies
and gentlemen of the jury,
my esteemed
adversary, Mr. Kline,
will try to alter the facts
and confuse my witnesses.
But the evidence in
this case will prevail.
I intend to prove that
Clair Moss was embarrassed
and humiliated by
her husband's affair
with a member of his choir.
And at that point, she made
the fatal decision to end it.
Listening in over
the phone extension,
Clair Moss overheard
the two lovers arrange
a clandestine meeting
on Hoffman Road.
She then called her
brother, Billy Spencer,
into the library and the two
of them set out to ambush
the Reverend Moss
and his mistress.
I have two witnesses
who can place them at
the scene of the crime.
And one of them actually
witnessed the murders.
She actually witnessed the
murders, ladies and gentlemen!
Thank you.
- The defense may present
its opening remarks.
- If it pleases the court,
we have nothing to
offer at this time.
- Is the prosecution
ready to present its case?
- Yes, your Honor.
- You may proceed.
- Your Honor, prosecution
calls County Detective
Harry Frankum.
- County Detective
Harry Frankum.
Put your left hand on the
Bible, raise your right.
You swear to tell the
truth, the whole truth,
and nothing but the
truth, so help you God.
- I do.
- You may be seated.
- Thank you.
Mr. Frankum, will you
please explain to the court
the events surrounding the
exhumation of the bodies
and your subsequent findings?
- Yes, in light of new evidence
uncovered in this case,
the court ordered
the case reopened,
full examination of the bodies.
- Wilbur, what's a
decomposed body look like?
- Frank, you don't wanna know.
- No.
(loud scary music)
Now, in addition to
these three bullet holes,
what else did you find
in your autopsy, sir?
- Well, as in the
previous autopsy,
we found that Ms. Howard has
a laceration across her neck.
And her tongue had been severed.
- Her throat had been cut,
almost completely severing
her head from her body.
And her tongue had been ripped,
ripped, out of her head.
Then, and then only, was
she shot three times.
Is that correct?
- Yes.
- Thank you.
Your witness.
- [Judge] Consulate.
- Yes, your Honor.
- Your witness.
- No questions, your Honor.
But if I might, I would
like to recall the witnesses
at a later time.
- We call Lee Davison.
Mr. Davison, where were you
on the night of the murders?
(throat clearing)
- Well, on that night, me
and a friend was out on
Hoffman Road Park, and we was
in the backseat of the car.
And uh...
(moaning)
(giggling)
- You and your damn belt buckle!
Not again.
(mumbles) Lee.
You go before I
even get started.
- Shh!
(moaning)
Hey Helen, what's
with the toe bit?
- Well, you didn't
even give me a chance
to take my pantyhose off first!
(laughing)
- Hey, would you shut
up, somebody's coming.
- Well, it's not me.
- Ah, shut up.
Hey, who do you recon that was?
- Who cares?
Come on, Lee, let's get going.
Honey.
- Huh?
- Will you love me always.
- Yeah, which way you
want me to love you first?
- Screw you!
- I wish you would, come on.
(moaning)
- Now, Mr. Davison, did you
recognize any of the voices?
- Yes, sir, two of them.
- Who were they?
- They were Clair Moss
and Billy Spencer.
- Thank you, Mr. Davison.
Your witness.
- I have no questions at
this time, your Honor.
Reserve the right to be called.
- The prosecution may continue.
- If it please the court,
the prosecution rests.
- All rise.
- Good evening,
ladies and gentlemen.
This is John Surrat of
TWATV with a further report
on the nationally
famous murder trial
taking place here today.
We have seen the prosecution
evolve what appears
to be an insurmountable
amount of evidence
and the defense hasn't even
cross examined a witness
during this sensational
trial happening here today.
We'll be back with our
on the spot coverage
tomorrow morning at 10:00 am.
This is John Surrat with
TWATV news signing off.
Okay, Harry, that's a wrap.
Gotta work all damn
day in this heat
and I'm getting tired
of all this garbage.
Good morning, ladies
and gentlemen.
As we resume our
coverage this morning,
we find one of the
co-defendants on the stand.
We will now go to
the cross examination
by the District Attorney of
defendant crazy Billy Spencer.
- Hi, Billy.
Did you kill Reverend
Moss and Marilyn Howard?
- Do what?
- Kill them?
- Kill who?
- The Reverend...
Nevermind, you know, a
lot of people around town
say that you're crazy, Billy.
Are you?
- Lots of people are
crazy about something.
Aren't you crazy
about your wife?
- What are you
crazy about, Billy?
Now, you understand
what I'm saying,
what are you crazy about?
- I don't know.
I guess hot fudge sundaes.
(light cracking)
- Billy, a lot of people
around town are saying
that you and your sister, Clair,
killed Reverend Moss
and Marilyn Howard.
Is that true?
- That's what I hear.
- We don't want to
know what you hear,
we want to know what
you know, absolutely!
Just the facts.
Let's start from the beginning.
What's your name?
- Billy Spencer.
- Where do you live?
- At my house.
(laughing)
- Where were you born?
- Well, I really can't say.
You see, I was an
infant at the time
and I can't remember
with any accuracy.
(people laughing)
- Billy, did your mother
have any children who lived?
I'm sorry, your Honor.
I have no further questions.
- What you have just
seen is the defendant,
William Spencer, who has
been dubbed Crazy Billy.
Mr. Spencer did not look at
all crazy during the exchange.
We will take you
back to the courtroom
for a continuation of our
live on the spot coverage
of today's events.
- Thank you, your Honor.
The defense wishes to recall
the prosecutions witnesses.
- [Judge] All of them?
- Most of them.
- Objection, your Honor!
The defense had its
opportunity yesterday.
- Your Honor, Brown
versus Brown states--
- [Judge] Sir, I'm
aware of those decisions
and I'm ruling in your favor.
Objection overruled,
you may proceed.
- Your Honor, I
call Wilma Sigmon.
You are absolutely
positive that Clair Moss
knew of the alleged affair
between Reverend Moss
and Marilyn Howard?
- Yes, sir, absolutely.
- How do you know
this to be a fact?
- I heard.
- From whom and
what did you hear?
- Well, I just heard.
- Do you have first hands
knowledge that Clair Moss
knew of the relationship
between Reverend Moss
and Marilyn Howard?
- Well, I don't
remember who told me.
But it must have
been a good source
or I wouldn't dare repeat it.
- Thank you, Mrs. Sigmon.
Your Honor, I move that this
witness's previous testimony
be stricken from the
record as hearsay.
- [Attorney Grover] Your Honor!
- Mr. Grover, if you wish
the court to entertain
(mumbles) on emotion, we
will adjourn in my chambers.
Very well, the entire previous
testimony of Wilma Sigmon
will be stricken and
the jury will disregard
all such testimony.
- Thank you, your Honor.
I now call Joan Lindsay.
Mrs. Lindsay, you saw Mrs.
Moss pick up the phone
and put it to her ear?
- Yes, sir.
- [Attorney] You
stood and watched her?
- No, sir, I was
setting the table.
I didn't want to
stare at her but
she didn't leave
the telephone table.
- She stood beside the phone but
you can't be certain
she overheard the
entire conversation?
- No, sir.
- [Attorney] She could've
put the phone down?
- Yes, sir.
- [Attorney] Point two.
Later that same evening
when the defendants were
together in the library,
did you overhear
their conversation?
- Parts of it, I went in
(mumbles) with coffee.
- [Attorney] Well,
what did you hear?
- They were planning
to kill Reverend--
- [Attorney] No, I mean,
what were their exact words.
- Exact?
- [Attorney] As closely
as you can remember.
- Mrs. Moss said that they
definitely had to handle
the situation and that they
should take care of it tonight.
Later when I went in,
Mrs. Moss told Billy that
he would be most beneficial.
I remember those words
for sure, most beneficial.
And she said that Billy
could do everything,
all she would do was supervise.
- Did either person
actually say they were going
to kill anyone?
- No.
- [Attorney] Then what
you actually heard
was the defendants
alluding to what you assumed
was going to be a crime.
- I guess that's what they did.
- Joan, may I call you Joan?
Joan, is it possible that
Mrs. Moss and her brother
were discussing a
business venture,
or some other matter
that had nothing to do
with a crime of which
they're now accused?
- I guess, maybe.
- [Attorney] Now, point three.
Why did Mrs. Moss
pay you $5,000?
- Her exact words were
to keep your mouth shut.
- [Attorney] About what?
- About what I saw and heard!
- Were you having an
affair with Samuel Moss?
- Yes, sir.
- [Attorney] Did Clair
Moss know about it?
- Yes, sir.
- Did she kill you?
- No, sir!
- [Attorney] She
gave you $5,000 and
asked you not to talk
about it, didn't she?
- I thought she meant
about the murder!
- [Attorney] But isn't it
more logical to believe
that she wanted you to keep
quiet about your affair?
- I'm sorry, Mrs. Moss.
All this time I really
believed you did it.
But I guess you didn't.
- Mr. Davison, what
were you doing in
the backseat of your car?
- We were making out.
- Mr. Davison, you
are a remarkable man.
You have testified that
you were making out
in the backseat of your
car with your lady friend,
and in the midst of
this heated activity,
you heard voices well
enough to identify
the person speaking?
And yet, you ask us to
believe that even though
you could identify
the person speaking,
you could not hear
the words said.
- Well, I heard them.
Now, we parked out
on Canton Road and
we was in the backseat of--
- Canton Road, you
said Hoffman Road.
- Yeah, yeah, I mean
Hoffman Road, Hoffman Road.
- Which one?
- Uh, uh, look, you're
confusing me, mmm hmm.
- Where were you, Mr. Davison?
- I don't remember.
- Are you sure the
voices you heard
belong to the defendants?
- Mmm, no.
- Will you say that
a little louder, sir?
- No, but it was a
man and a woman and
it must've been them, must've.
- Thank you, Mr. Davison.
Redirect.
- No questions, your Honor.
- [Judge] The
defense may proceed.
- If it pleases the
court, the defense rests.
- Your Honor, the prosecution
has a material witness
who has been unable to
testify until this time.
- You may proceed.
- The people call Mable Swank.
- Sorry to inconvenience you
in this manner, Mrs. Swank.
- Miss.
- [Judge] Yes, you
may proceed, counsel.
- Thank you, your Honor.
- I realize that you're
extremely ill and
that this is quite
an imposition.
So, I'll spare you the
burden of questioning.
Will you please explain,
for the entire court,
exactly what you saw on
the night of the murders?
- Well, I had been bothered
with corn thieves for sometime.
So, the night when
I heard the noises,
I drove my mule to
see where it was.
I drove across Shelton's
place and that it were...
So, I tied my mule to a tree.
And I snuck up on them
through the bushes
and I hid behind their car.
- All right, Moss, you
came out here to lay her!
Lay her!
Get down on the ground
and go to it, now!
Undress her, Moss,
unveil her beauty.
Do it!
(soft sobbing)
Now the rest.
Is she a woman, Moss?
A real woman, a human woman?
- Clair, think
what you're doing!
- [Clair] Shut up.
Kiss her, Moss.
Make love to her.
Show me how the animals do it.
(soft sobbing)
Do you feel like
a man now, Moss?
You don't look
anymore like a man.
(crying)
(gun firing)
(loud screaming)
Give me your knife.
- No!
No!
No, please, please!
No, no, no!
(grunting)
- And then they shot
her three or four times.
- And that's all you saw?
- Oh, no.
The worst of all,
after they killed her,
they went back over
and dressed them
up real respect.
And laid them out
real proper like,
just like an undertaker,
and that's all I saw.
- [Attorney Grover] Thank you.
Your witness.
- Thank you.
Ms. Swank, I have several
questions to ask you,
so I'll get right to it.
Why didn't you tell
your story to the police
immediately after it happened?
- Didn't nobody ask me.
- [Attorney] I see.
How long have you
lived here, Miss...
- Mable.
- [Attorney] Mable.
- A good while.
- [Attorney] Where did you
live before you came here?
- No where in particular.
- [Attorney] I would like
to know where in particular.
- The witness will
answer the question.
- I don't remember.
- [Attorney] Do you
remember what you did there?
- No.
- Your Honor, I have
here a deposition from
the psychiatrist, Dr. Howard.
- It's not (mumbles)!
Don't tell him nothing!
- [Attorney] I think you've
told us quite enough, thank you.
(loud banging)
- I'm not quite sure I
know what just happened.
We'll discuss it later in
our chambers, Mr. Grover.
You may continue the defense.
- The defense rests, your Honor.
- Is the prosecution
prepared for a summation?
- Uh, yes, your Honor.
Ladies and gentlemen,
I intend to be brief.
The defense has presented
us with not one shred
of evidence, he has
merely tried to confuse
and slander my witnesses.
Do not let this
confuse the facts.
The facts are that these
two people willingly
plotted the execution of
two innocent human beings.
They are murderers!
We implore you to sift
through the actual facts.
And the state demands
that you find them guilty
of murder in the first degree,
and that they each
be sentenced to die
in the electric chair.
Thank you.
- Thank you, your Honor.
Ladies and gentlemen of the
jury, I too, shall be brief.
I don't believe I've
confused anyone.
In performing my
responsibilities to this court
and to the defendants,
I, along with you,
have listened to the
prosecution's arguments
and the prosecution's witnesses.
We have discovered the truth.
Now, there is a matter
of great importance
I must discuss with you,
that of reasonable doubt.
In the last two days,
we've heard testimony
intended to establish the
guilt of these two defendants.
That testimony has failed.
There's a great deal
of room for doubt.
And with that reasonable
doubt, you must judge on
the side of acquittal.
For to make a mistake on
the side of conviction
would be tragedy.
For you, the defendants,
and for our sacred
system of justice.
Thank you.
- Ladies and
gentlemen of the jury,
it is my responsibility
to charge
you with your responsibilities.
You may retire to the jury
room and decide the guilt
or innocence of the defendants.
Weigh these facts carefully,
be considerate whether
it is or is not
reasonable doubt.
If the defendants are guilty,
you must recommend sentence.
Weigh the (mumbles)
in this case,
decide if it's life
imprisonment or execution.
So you are charged,
the jury will retire.
- Well, that was certainly
the most beautiful job
of killing of an
eyewitnesses testimony
that I've ever seen.
Mr. Kline, Mrs. Moss's attorney,
sure pulled a
surprise of the year.
Just as an unbeatable case
had been painstakingly
built by the DA, Kline
completely discredited all
the witnesses in as
cool and calm a manner
as a dentist extracts a tooth.
From where I sat, a complete
acquittal will be forthcoming.
(dramatic intense music)
- Quit, Billy.
(high pitched intense music)
- Billy, calm down.
- The defendants and their
attorneys seem very confident,
as well they should be.
The jury has been out
for two hours now and...
Just a moment, something's
going on in there.
(loud screaming)
- I'm not gonna die for
your insane jealousy!
She did it!
- Now, Billy, sit down.
(screaming)
(gun firing)
(screaming)
- Ladies and gentlemen,
this was certainly the most
bizarre turn of events that
I have personally
ever witnessed.
The jury had reached
their verdict and
found the defendants
innocent of all charges.
But before they were able
to announce that verdict,
the witnessed William
Spencer, Crazy Billy,
perpetrate a
courtroom shoot out,
which took the lives of
two innocent onlookers
as well as the defense
attorney and a policeman,
culminating in his own death.
During the melee, crazy
Billy was heard by the entire
courtroom, screaming that
his sister, Clair Moss,
had committed the murders.
The jury has just returned
the verdict of guilty
as charged of murder
in the first degree.
And we are awaiting sentencing.
- [Judge] Clair S Moss,
you have been found guilty
of murder in the first degree,
and I, therefore, sentence
you to die by electrocution
on the first day of December,
in the year of our Lord,
1972, until you are
dead, dead, dead.
(soft singing)
(loud rumbling)
(soft humming)
(deep dark music)
- Okay, Clair, it's time to go.
- Don't worry, Missy,
it will be over soon.
Jesus loves you and
I'll be praying for you.
- [Clair] You better
pray for yourself!
(deep intense music)
How, like this?
- Clair Spencer Moss,
you have been tried and
convicted by a
jury of your peers.
And have been found guilty of
murder in the first degree.
The state has sentenced
you to die by electrocution
on this, first day of
December, the year of our Lord,
1972, until you are
dead, dead, dead.
Clair Moss, do you
have a final statement?
- That two timing
son of a bitch!
(deep intense music)
- Jesus, Mary, and
Joseph assist me in
my last (mumbles) amen.
(scary loud music)
(building music)
(siren alarming)
(screaming)
(loud eerie music)
(intense thumping music)
(sirens ringing)
- Sam, what you got?
(mumbles)
What happened?
- Somebody shot them.
- Shot them?
Damn.
Anybody see anything?
- Two kids over there
found the bodies.
Charlie's talking to them now,
I don't know what he's got.
I found this here business card.
It's one of the reverends.
And the baron found
these letters.
- Did you read them?
- Some of them.
- What some?
- (mumbles) right in here.
- Okay, take these over
to the lab in Finleyville.
Get the results back to
me as soon as you can.
I'm gonna talk to the kids and
I'll be back in the office.
- Okay, Sheriff.
- See you later, Sam.
- Come on, Wilbur.
Homicide even said that he
was shot in the head once
and she was shot three times.
Now, you're trying to tell
me that she wasn't shot.
- Just a little
farther there, Frank.
Someone ripped her tongue
right out of her head first.
- What?
- And damn near cut her
head clean off of her body.
- Son of a bitch.
(lighthearted soft music)
(exciting soft music)
- Cars out of gas.
If you're going anywhere,
you're gonna have to walk.
- So what's new?
I'm used to walking
anywhere I wanna go.
- Where are you going?
- Prayer meeting,
tonight's Wednesday.
- Again!
What you gonna have
him pray for this time?
(clanking)
- For heaven's sakes, Moss,
do you always have to think
of that dirty physical stuff?
- Okay, Clair, I
get the message.
- Let's try to act civilized.
- We are married.
What's uncivilized about
being a man and a woman
and having normal
wants and needs?
Clair, don't you remember
when we were first married
how warm and close we
felt after we made love?
- I don't remember, Samuel,
anymore than you do,
because if you did, you
remember that I was doing
the same thing then that I've
doing for the past five years.
Every time we touch, counting
the crack in the seat.
I (mumbles) like
some two bit whore.
After all, you are a minister.
- Also a man, Clair.
And your husband.
- I told you, Samuel,
don't touch me like that.
I can't stand it
and I never could.
- I know, Clair.
- One of these days, Samuel,
one of these days we'll
have this out completely.
- No we won't because
that might lead to divorce
and your social standing
couldn't take that.
- Don't be so bias, you married
me for my social standing.
- The church gives me
my standing, Clair.
I married you because
I loved you and
I thought you were a woman.
- I am a woman,
you remind me of it
every time you look at me.
- I know, but I
meant a human one.
Well, are you coming?
Your friends in my
congregation are waiting.
- I won't be going with you
to church tonight, Moss.
- Do what you thinks best.
Goodnight, Clair.
(slow organ music)
May the good Lord bless and
keep each and everyone of you.
Drive carefully for
I expect to see you,
all of you, here next
Sunday morning at 11:00 am.
(deep organ music)
- Thank you.
- I, I was really moved
by your sermon, Reverend.
You're so understanding
of people's needs.
Our last minister was sort of,
well, sort of old and...
You know what I mean.
- Why thank you, Miss, Miss?
- Marilyn, Marilyn Howard.
- Marilyn.
A pleasure, Ms. Howard.
- Marilyn.
- Marilyn.
It's getting late, do
you have a way home or,
or a car or something?
- No, I just walked tonight.
- Could I give you
a ride home then?
- Well, thank you, that
would be very nice.
- I have to turn off the
lights and lock up first.
You can wait in the car if
you want to, it's over there.
- All right, I'll
meet you in the car.
- Sometime I stop off for a
cup of coffee or something
after the service, is
it too late for you?
- Well, a small
soda would be nice.
(engine revving)
(light rock music)
- I'm glad the attendance
at prayer meeting's growing,
slowly but it's growing.
You know, I think adding
the choir helped with
the attendance, don't you?
- Mmm hmm.
- The choir sounded
great tonight, I think.
- Yes, it did.
- Ms. Howard, is
something wrong?
Ms...
Marilyn?
- Yes?
- Is something wrong?
- May I take your order, sir?
- Sure, what would you like?
- Just a small 7UP.
- Coffee, one cream, one
sugar, and a small 7UP.
Thank you.
- It's a beautiful evening.
- Yeah, it certainly is.
Is something wrong--
- You know, it's so nice
just to sit and think
on a night like this.
- Marilyn, are you sure
there's nothing bothering you?
And you can be--
- Your order, Sir.
- Thank you.
- Just keep the change.
- Thank you.
- Marilyn, if you're
troubled, I'd like to help.
- There's nothing wrong!
(tires squealing)
- Don't you see,
if we talk about--
- I am (mumbles) all right!
(sobbing)
I'm sorry.
- It's all right.
I don't think it will
stain your dress.
Do you wanna talk about it?
- I...
I can't.
(sobbing)
(slow rhythmic music)
- Is your trouble at home?
Is it your parents?
- My husband.
It's not his fault.
It's just that my life, my
whole existence has no meaning.
There's no love in my marriage.
Our marriage is simply a word.
We aren't in love anymore.
If we ever were.
I just wanna be loved!
- Now, now, I'm sure there are
a lot of people who love you.
- I don't mean
that kind of love.
I need the love and
understanding of a husband.
I need to feel like a woman.
The way you need
to feel like a man.
- Shall we go?
- Yes, please.
(soft rock music)
(loud sobbing)
- Here, here.
You know, you're a
very attractive girl,
even with mascara smeared
all over your face.
- Oh, I'm sorry.
Oh, god, I can't go in
like this, I'm a mess.
- Would you like to
get out of the car
and get some fresh air?
- Yes, yes, please.
Thank you.
- You feel better?
- Yes, thank you.
You know, you have
a very nice smile.
(eerie loud music)
(moaning)
Now I am a woman.
- I think I should feel guilty,
but I don't.
- Neither do I.
(scary rhythmic music)
(peaceful soft music)
Can we ever be like that?
- No.
(slow soft music)
- Have you ever
seen those before?
- Should I have?
- They were found next
to your husband's body.
- And?
- [Sheriff] They're
love letters from
Marilyn Howard to your husband.
- That steaming little bitch.
- [Sheriff] I beg your pardon?
- I said you're
a son of a bitch.
I've had enough of your
filthy insinuations.
If you wish to
speak to me further,
you can contact my attorney.
- When comes back to
town in a few days?
(door slamming)
Who's left out there?
- Well, I got Jess Howard
and Cooper, Moses Cooper.
He's a Deacon down at
the Reverend's church.
Says he's got some
information for us.
It'll probably be another
wild tale like Mrs. Sigmon.
But we better listen to him.
- Yeah, I guess you're right.
Let's get it over
with, bring him on in.
We'll let Jess cool
his heels for a while.
Oh and Harry, see if you can
get over to the Moss house
and get Billy away from there
without Ms. Moss knowing,
bring him in.
Hello, Mr. Cooper, I
understand you have some
information for us.
- Indeed I do.
You know, the Lord knows
I'm not a man to gossip,
but when a sin as evil as
this one comes upon man,
the burden on his heart
becomes almost unbearable.
And if I didn't
discuss it with you and
come at you with the
truth, then I, myself,
would be guilty of that sin
of, the sin of omission.
- Cooper, what are
you trying to tell us?
- What am I trying to tell you?
I'm trying to tell
you about a sin.
A sin of such magnitude
that it burdens my heart
with grief.
Now, I'm a benevolent
man, but no one short of
the almighty himself can
give absolution for sin
of such magnitude, one that
has just been perpetrated
against this church
and our community.
Now, do you realize that
our young people have
just been subjected to
a sin more insidious
than Judas himself?
Yeah, there's been a Judas
right here in our midst.
- What sin?
- Adultery.
- Adultery!
- That man and that woman,
both good God fearing people,
until the devil got his boney
fingers hooked in their souls
and drug them down to
the deepest pits of hell.
Them committing adultery,
one with another.
- [Man] Mose, do you
have first hand knowledge
of this alleged adultery?
- First hand knowledge,
you mean did I watch them?
I did not and I would not.
- Mr. Cooper, where
were you Thursday night?
- I was at the hospital
praying for Sister Thomas,
and you might be so happy
to know that he assured
me of her salvation.
- Thank you, Mr. Cooper,
you've been most helpful.
- Why, you're most welcome.
It was my duty.
Sin shall not go unpunished.
And should I get
anymore visions,
I'll come to you first.
- [Man] Mr. Cooper, next
time you get a vision,
how about coming to
us before they happen?
- I'll have his alibi checked.
- Do, but from the
way he said it,
I think he really was there.
- Mmm mmm, yeah.
Okay, yeah, and send
Jess Howard here,
I think he's cooled
his heels long enough.
Okay, bye.
Come on in here,
Jess, and sit down.
Jess, when was the last
time you saw your wife?
- The night before last,
she went to one of those
church meetings or something
and she didn't come home.
- Did she do or say
anything strange or unusual
before she left?
- No.
She was might shook
up when she left.
But I didn't suspect nothing.
You know how women are, they
do things like that sometimes.
- Did you know she
was having an affair
with Reverend Moss?
- Hell no!
She wasn't having no affair.
The Reverend, he was a fine
man and she was a good woman.
They weren't having no affair.
- Okay, Jess, you can go.
I don't think he knows anything,
besides Frankum says
his alibi checks out.
See what Billy knows.
Come on in, Billy.
Well, how are things
up on the hill?
- Okay.
- Billy, you know that
Reverend Sam's dead, don't you?
- Sure.
- [Sheriff] You notice anything
funny going on up there?
- Funny?
No, just the usual stuff.
- [Sheriff] You haven't noticed
anything out of ordinary?
- Nope.
- Billy, has Jess Howard
been up there lately?
Billy?
Billy, Billy!
- Huh?
- Jess Howard been up
to your place lately?
- Not that I can remember,
but then he could've been
there without me seeing him.
- Yeah, I guess so.
Okay, Billy, you
can go on home now.
- Well, it's been a month now.
So, what have we got?
We've been working on this
damn thing for three weeks,
every lead, every piece
of evidence, nothing.
We don't have a
case against anyone.
- Mr. District Attorney,
has anything come from
Mable Swank story?
- Just Frank, please.
Mable told us something
about corn thieves and
hearing noises that night.
I don't know, she said she
followed them up to the scene,
saw a man and a woman
standing over the bodies.
She said it was Clair
Moss and Billy Spencer.
- Could be.
- Nope, we held them both in.
They had alibis and good
ones, they were clean.
Anyway, when I asked
Mable how come she waited
a month to come over, she
didn't tell us anything.
Nothing.
Guess on a case like this,
you gotta expect cranks.
You got anything, Wilbur?
- I'm afraid our leads
were dead ends too.
- Well, Bill, Wilbur,
guess we don't have a case.
Might as well work on
some of our other stuff.
Thank you, Bill.
Thanks for your help, Wilbur.
Of course, anything new does
come up, you guys let me know.
- Right away.
- Okay.
(light knocking)
- Hi, Carol Jenkins?
- Uh huh.
- My name's Chuck
Harper and I've--
- Whatever you're selling,
I'm not interested in.
- Oh no, man, I'm not a
salesman, I'm a reporter.
- That's worse.
- I wanna help reopen your
case, your sister's murder.
- How?
- I'm interviewing all the
people who were involved
in the case for a feature story.
- It's been over a
year, that won't help.
- There's some new evidence.
- What evidence?
- Well, I can't say yet
but you might be able
to give me some
information that will help.
- Well, come on in.
Chuck, we've been seeing
each other everyday now
for over a week and you
still haven't told me
what you found out.
- [Chuck] It's a secret.
- Please.
- Okay, okay.
Two things, remember
the business card
found at the scene?
- Mmm hmm.
- Well, originally they
couldn't find anything,
but I found out that there
really was an identification
of the fingerprint.
It belongs to William Spencer.
- Do you mean Billy?
- Yup, Clair Moss's brother.
Isn't he that kid who's
kind of dumb, or weird,
or something?
- Well, most people say
he's just a bit crazy,
but harmless.
(birds tweeting)
- Crazy Billy.
I'm gonna have to
use that in my story.
Anyway, there's more.
I was in divorce
court in Franklin and
I heard Clair Moss's
name mentioned.
It sounded interesting
so I sat in.
It seems this
woman, Joan Lindsay,
had been working for
a maid for Clair Moss
was getting a divorce.
You're not gonna believe it
but her husband was suing
for divorce on the
grounds that his wife had
come to him under
false pretenses.
He claims that she'd
been a mistress of
the Reverend Moss and
had been paid $5,000
to keep her mouth shut
about anything she heard
concerning the murder.
- Do you mean that this might--
- I mean, with all the
commotion that we're gonna
create in the
newspapers around here,
we just might get together
to reopen this case.
- Oh, Chuck.
(laughing)
(birds tweeting)
- Get me the DA,
Franklin Grover!
He's in, he's in Cleveland.
Idiot.
(buzzing)
Grover, Grover, this is
Baldwin at the Cabinet.
What the hell are you
all doing down there?
Why don't you get off
your fat asses and
get something accomplished?
You know, I don't see how
the devil you hold a job
down there, we have elections
here at the capitol.
And one's going on right now!
Now, listen damn it, I
want you to get out there
and get something done!
I want this Moss Howard
thing cleared up!
You got me smeared all over
the front page of the paper!
Now, do we understand
each other?
Clear the damn thing
up once and for all,
and I want a conviction!
(sighing)
- Guess who doesn't
really have an alibi?
- Who?
- Mose Cooper.
- Oh, come on, Harry.
He was at the
hospital all night.
50 people saw him there.
- Yeah, and the old lady he
was praying for died at 8:05.
Cooper left the hospital
and he said he went fishing
to meditate at night.
- Anybody see him
leave the hospital?
Does he have any
witnesses at all?
So, he says he
went fishing, huh?
That time of night.
Pick him up, Harry, book
him, suspicion of murder one.
- And after you
left the hospital,
you were still feeling
upset so you went fishing,
I believe, until
late that night.
- Yes, sir.
I was very depressed
and very worried.
And I went out
fishing to meditate.
Communicate with my Lord.
- Thank you, thank you
very much, Mr. Cooper.
That will be all.
Your witness.
- Uh, Mr. Cooper, I have
a few questions, sir.
Mr. Cooper, you are
a religious man?
- Yes, sir, I am.
- And you believe in
the Old Testament?
- Yes, sir.
- And do you believe
in the Bible literally?
- Word for word.
- And do you believe,
then, word for word,
an eye for an eye and
a tooth for a tooth?
- Yes, sir.
In fact, only two nights
before the murder,
I had a vision and the Lord
said he was displeased.
He was gonna send one of
his angels back to earth
and with the help of
a faithful follower,
he was gonna go out
and gonna smite down
that adulterer and
that adulteress.
Vengeance is mine,
say it the Lord!
- No further
questions, your Honor.
Thank you, Mr. Cooper.
And in conclusion,
ladies and gentlemen,
we have proven beyond
a shadow of a doubt,
that the defendant
had the opportunity
to commit these crimes.
He would have us believe
that he was fishing
the night of the murder.
Fishing all night long.
This self righteous
sanctimonious man set himself
up as judge, jury,
and executioner.
There is no doubt of his guilt.
The overwhelming facts
demand that you find him
guilty of murder in
the first degree.
And the state asks that
you recommend for this man,
who committed an act so
terrible, so horrible,
so malicious.
Ladies and gentlemen, you
have no choice except to
demand the death
penalty for this man,
for this premeditated act
of cold blooded murder.
The death penalty, ladies
and gentlemen, for this man!
(intense dramatic music)
Mose Cooper!
- Is the defense
ready for summation?
- Ladies and
gentlemen of the jury,
you have just witnessed the
most obscene perpetration
of injustice that's ever been
attempted in this country.
The prosecution has given
us no facts, no proof.
Now, they have established
that Deacon Cooper
is a very religious man.
Is that a crime?
And then they insult him by
calling him a pious hypocrite.
Well, to some extent or
another, aren't we all?
Now, they have established
that Mr. Cooper
cannot account for
his exact whereabouts
in front of witnesses on
that particular evening.
The evening of the murder.
Let me ask you this, how
many of you can prove to us
exactly where you were on
any given night a month ago,
much less half a year ago?
But you're not on
trial for your life.
That poor man is.
Ladies and gentlemen
of the jury,
please remember this as you
retire to the jury room.
Each one of you could
just as easily be sitting
in the defendant's chair.
Convict this man on this
flimsy circumstantial evidence
and you could just as easily
be convicting yourself.
Mose Cooper is just as
innocent as you are.
Thank you.
- All rise.
- How you doing, Chuck?
- I should ask how you're doing.
- Uh, you saw it.
- You know, I'm
partially responsible for
getting this case reopened,
but whether he did it or not,
they sure didn't
have much of a case.
This trial was run a whole lot
like the Spanish Inquisition.
Do you have a chance?
- Not much.
Governor Baldwin's
really pushing Grover for
a conviction on this one.
If the jury comes right back
in, we might stand a chance.
If they stay out for any
length of time, we're sunk.
- DA Special Investigator
hurt you a lot.
Mr. Cooper said this and
Mr. Cooper said that.
- Yeah, and it was all
hearsay evidence too.
But the judge, he
denied my objections
until after Grover had finished.
By then, the damage was done.
Oh, he instructed the jury
to disregard the testimony,
but they heard it.
- Well, hear they come.
- Wish us luck.
- All right.
- All rise.
(loud banging)
- Has the jury
reached its verdict?
- Yes, we have, Your Honor.
We find the defendant
guilty as charged
and we recommend he
be sentenced to death.
- Mose, it's time to go.
- I'm free?
- No, there's been no word.
(deep scary music)
- Mose Cooper, you've
been tried and convicted
by a jury of your peers
and have been found guilty
of murder in the first degree.
The state has sentenced you
to die by electrocution,
on this, the 30th day of August
and the year of our Lord,
1972, until you are
dead, dead, dead.
Mose Cooper, do you have
a statement to make?
The blindfold, please.
(intense rhythmic music)
(phone ringing)
Hold it!
Yes, sir.
No, sir.
Yes, sir.
Stop the execution, the
governor signed a reprieve.
Release him and take
him back to his cell.
- Well, thank you, Sheriff.
Now, explain to me just how
Mr. Cooper was reprieved.
- Well, he was having this
affair with Janice Meechum,
she works over at the
Sportsman Bar and Grill,
divorced, got three kids.
Well, he was with her all night.
Of course the
hypocritical old bastard
didn't want anybody to know it.
In fact, I think
he'd rather die than
let anybody know he was human.
- Well, how'd she
get him reprieved?
- Well, her conscious
got to her when
she heard he was
gonna be executed.
So, she just went to the
DA and told him the truth.
(laughing)
I'll bet Grover about
crapped in his pants.
Anyway, Grover called the
Governor and saved Mose.
Hell, they all ready had
him strapped to the chair.
He was about 15 seconds
away from getting fried.
- Where's Mose now?
- He's over at the County Home.
He just never could
seem to get over it.
A friend of mine
over there, a doctor,
said that he probably
would get better but
he never would be the same.
- You know, my paper's
getting down pretty hard
on capital punishment.
- You know, it's just like them.
I sometimes wonder what
side they're really on.
I guess that just whatever's
most sensational at the time.
Now, they don't give
a damn about anything
except selling newspapers.
- Say old Mose was really
having an affair, huh?
Who'd thought it?
Tell me about it.
- Well, I'll tell
you all I know.
Janice said she
really liked him,
he brought things
over to her, you know,
and that sort of thing, and
she said he was the only man
that really halfway
treated her decent.
- [Chuck] What about that night?
- Well, he came over
just like he always did,
and he brought her one
of those real flimsy,
shorty nightgowns, I guess
she modeled it all over
the house for him.
Anyway, he spent the
whole night there,
just like he did
every Thursday night.
Looks like I was right
in the beginning.
The DA's all ready
decided or finally decided
to listen to old Mable Swank,
you know the good woman?
They want me to go
pick up Clair Moss
and Billy Spencer right now.
- Well, thank you, Sheriff.
- It's a pleasure.
(fun energetic music)
(buzzing)
- How you doing
tonight, Sheriff?
- Pretty good.
- Fine.
- Looks like you
got a nice crowd.
- Yeah, pretty nice crowd
tonight, (mumbles) pretty good.
(mumbles)
- I heard when he came up.
- Yeah.
- Seen Billy Spencer
running around?
Billy Spencer.
I have a warrant
for your arrest.
- Can I see that warrant.
- I'll show you down
at the jail (mumbles).
Come on.
Come on.
(fun energetic music)
- Harry, I've got to be
damn sure on this one.
Let's go over what we've got.
- Okay, Mable Swank has
told us she actually
saw the murders take place.
- I'm gonna save her until
the end of my presentation.
What else?
- Joan Lindsay, Clair MOss's
maid, she approved the motive.
- All right.
What about Wilma Sigmon?
- [Harry] She's our
weakest witness.
She'll tell about the affair,
that Clair knew about it.
- Fine.
- [Harry] Can't hurt.
We also have Lee Davidson,
the one who says he
recognized Billy and
Clair voices at the scene.
What do you think?
- Well, he's another
witness that places him at
the scene, I guess.
Put his name up on the board.
- Here in this
small southern town,
the officials in
charge of this case are
being very closed mouthed.
They're giving us little
or no information.
Curiosity seekers from
all over the state
are pouring in by
the thousands to see
the scene of the crime,
the Reverend's church,
and the Spencer Moss
mansion up on the hill.
Imaginative local
residents have turned this
into a miniature boom town.
Many tour guide services
have been established
and hot dog and soft
drink stands are
popping up everywhere.
Everyone seems to be
profiting from this tragedy
except the immediate
family of the victims.
The entire jury selection
was completed yesterday
with a defense counselor turning
down no perspective jurors.
I believe we, yes, we
are about ready to hear
the prosecutions
opening remarks.
- Now, I'm sure, ladies
and gentlemen of the jury,
my esteemed
adversary, Mr. Kline,
will try to alter the facts
and confuse my witnesses.
But the evidence in
this case will prevail.
I intend to prove that
Clair Moss was embarrassed
and humiliated by
her husband's affair
with a member of his choir.
And at that point, she made
the fatal decision to end it.
Listening in over
the phone extension,
Clair Moss overheard
the two lovers arrange
a clandestine meeting
on Hoffman Road.
She then called her
brother, Billy Spencer,
into the library and the two
of them set out to ambush
the Reverend Moss
and his mistress.
I have two witnesses
who can place them at
the scene of the crime.
And one of them actually
witnessed the murders.
She actually witnessed the
murders, ladies and gentlemen!
Thank you.
- The defense may present
its opening remarks.
- If it pleases the court,
we have nothing to
offer at this time.
- Is the prosecution
ready to present its case?
- Yes, your Honor.
- You may proceed.
- Your Honor, prosecution
calls County Detective
Harry Frankum.
- County Detective
Harry Frankum.
Put your left hand on the
Bible, raise your right.
You swear to tell the
truth, the whole truth,
and nothing but the
truth, so help you God.
- I do.
- You may be seated.
- Thank you.
Mr. Frankum, will you
please explain to the court
the events surrounding the
exhumation of the bodies
and your subsequent findings?
- Yes, in light of new evidence
uncovered in this case,
the court ordered
the case reopened,
full examination of the bodies.
- Wilbur, what's a
decomposed body look like?
- Frank, you don't wanna know.
- No.
(loud scary music)
Now, in addition to
these three bullet holes,
what else did you find
in your autopsy, sir?
- Well, as in the
previous autopsy,
we found that Ms. Howard has
a laceration across her neck.
And her tongue had been severed.
- Her throat had been cut,
almost completely severing
her head from her body.
And her tongue had been ripped,
ripped, out of her head.
Then, and then only, was
she shot three times.
Is that correct?
- Yes.
- Thank you.
Your witness.
- [Judge] Consulate.
- Yes, your Honor.
- Your witness.
- No questions, your Honor.
But if I might, I would
like to recall the witnesses
at a later time.
- We call Lee Davison.
Mr. Davison, where were you
on the night of the murders?
(throat clearing)
- Well, on that night, me
and a friend was out on
Hoffman Road Park, and we was
in the backseat of the car.
And uh...
(moaning)
(giggling)
- You and your damn belt buckle!
Not again.
(mumbles) Lee.
You go before I
even get started.
- Shh!
(moaning)
Hey Helen, what's
with the toe bit?
- Well, you didn't
even give me a chance
to take my pantyhose off first!
(laughing)
- Hey, would you shut
up, somebody's coming.
- Well, it's not me.
- Ah, shut up.
Hey, who do you recon that was?
- Who cares?
Come on, Lee, let's get going.
Honey.
- Huh?
- Will you love me always.
- Yeah, which way you
want me to love you first?
- Screw you!
- I wish you would, come on.
(moaning)
- Now, Mr. Davison, did you
recognize any of the voices?
- Yes, sir, two of them.
- Who were they?
- They were Clair Moss
and Billy Spencer.
- Thank you, Mr. Davison.
Your witness.
- I have no questions at
this time, your Honor.
Reserve the right to be called.
- The prosecution may continue.
- If it please the court,
the prosecution rests.
- All rise.
- Good evening,
ladies and gentlemen.
This is John Surrat of
TWATV with a further report
on the nationally
famous murder trial
taking place here today.
We have seen the prosecution
evolve what appears
to be an insurmountable
amount of evidence
and the defense hasn't even
cross examined a witness
during this sensational
trial happening here today.
We'll be back with our
on the spot coverage
tomorrow morning at 10:00 am.
This is John Surrat with
TWATV news signing off.
Okay, Harry, that's a wrap.
Gotta work all damn
day in this heat
and I'm getting tired
of all this garbage.
Good morning, ladies
and gentlemen.
As we resume our
coverage this morning,
we find one of the
co-defendants on the stand.
We will now go to
the cross examination
by the District Attorney of
defendant crazy Billy Spencer.
- Hi, Billy.
Did you kill Reverend
Moss and Marilyn Howard?
- Do what?
- Kill them?
- Kill who?
- The Reverend...
Nevermind, you know, a
lot of people around town
say that you're crazy, Billy.
Are you?
- Lots of people are
crazy about something.
Aren't you crazy
about your wife?
- What are you
crazy about, Billy?
Now, you understand
what I'm saying,
what are you crazy about?
- I don't know.
I guess hot fudge sundaes.
(light cracking)
- Billy, a lot of people
around town are saying
that you and your sister, Clair,
killed Reverend Moss
and Marilyn Howard.
Is that true?
- That's what I hear.
- We don't want to
know what you hear,
we want to know what
you know, absolutely!
Just the facts.
Let's start from the beginning.
What's your name?
- Billy Spencer.
- Where do you live?
- At my house.
(laughing)
- Where were you born?
- Well, I really can't say.
You see, I was an
infant at the time
and I can't remember
with any accuracy.
(people laughing)
- Billy, did your mother
have any children who lived?
I'm sorry, your Honor.
I have no further questions.
- What you have just
seen is the defendant,
William Spencer, who has
been dubbed Crazy Billy.
Mr. Spencer did not look at
all crazy during the exchange.
We will take you
back to the courtroom
for a continuation of our
live on the spot coverage
of today's events.
- Thank you, your Honor.
The defense wishes to recall
the prosecutions witnesses.
- [Judge] All of them?
- Most of them.
- Objection, your Honor!
The defense had its
opportunity yesterday.
- Your Honor, Brown
versus Brown states--
- [Judge] Sir, I'm
aware of those decisions
and I'm ruling in your favor.
Objection overruled,
you may proceed.
- Your Honor, I
call Wilma Sigmon.
You are absolutely
positive that Clair Moss
knew of the alleged affair
between Reverend Moss
and Marilyn Howard?
- Yes, sir, absolutely.
- How do you know
this to be a fact?
- I heard.
- From whom and
what did you hear?
- Well, I just heard.
- Do you have first hands
knowledge that Clair Moss
knew of the relationship
between Reverend Moss
and Marilyn Howard?
- Well, I don't
remember who told me.
But it must have
been a good source
or I wouldn't dare repeat it.
- Thank you, Mrs. Sigmon.
Your Honor, I move that this
witness's previous testimony
be stricken from the
record as hearsay.
- [Attorney Grover] Your Honor!
- Mr. Grover, if you wish
the court to entertain
(mumbles) on emotion, we
will adjourn in my chambers.
Very well, the entire previous
testimony of Wilma Sigmon
will be stricken and
the jury will disregard
all such testimony.
- Thank you, your Honor.
I now call Joan Lindsay.
Mrs. Lindsay, you saw Mrs.
Moss pick up the phone
and put it to her ear?
- Yes, sir.
- [Attorney] You
stood and watched her?
- No, sir, I was
setting the table.
I didn't want to
stare at her but
she didn't leave
the telephone table.
- She stood beside the phone but
you can't be certain
she overheard the
entire conversation?
- No, sir.
- [Attorney] She could've
put the phone down?
- Yes, sir.
- [Attorney] Point two.
Later that same evening
when the defendants were
together in the library,
did you overhear
their conversation?
- Parts of it, I went in
(mumbles) with coffee.
- [Attorney] Well,
what did you hear?
- They were planning
to kill Reverend--
- [Attorney] No, I mean,
what were their exact words.
- Exact?
- [Attorney] As closely
as you can remember.
- Mrs. Moss said that they
definitely had to handle
the situation and that they
should take care of it tonight.
Later when I went in,
Mrs. Moss told Billy that
he would be most beneficial.
I remember those words
for sure, most beneficial.
And she said that Billy
could do everything,
all she would do was supervise.
- Did either person
actually say they were going
to kill anyone?
- No.
- [Attorney] Then what
you actually heard
was the defendants
alluding to what you assumed
was going to be a crime.
- I guess that's what they did.
- Joan, may I call you Joan?
Joan, is it possible that
Mrs. Moss and her brother
were discussing a
business venture,
or some other matter
that had nothing to do
with a crime of which
they're now accused?
- I guess, maybe.
- [Attorney] Now, point three.
Why did Mrs. Moss
pay you $5,000?
- Her exact words were
to keep your mouth shut.
- [Attorney] About what?
- About what I saw and heard!
- Were you having an
affair with Samuel Moss?
- Yes, sir.
- [Attorney] Did Clair
Moss know about it?
- Yes, sir.
- Did she kill you?
- No, sir!
- [Attorney] She
gave you $5,000 and
asked you not to talk
about it, didn't she?
- I thought she meant
about the murder!
- [Attorney] But isn't it
more logical to believe
that she wanted you to keep
quiet about your affair?
- I'm sorry, Mrs. Moss.
All this time I really
believed you did it.
But I guess you didn't.
- Mr. Davison, what
were you doing in
the backseat of your car?
- We were making out.
- Mr. Davison, you
are a remarkable man.
You have testified that
you were making out
in the backseat of your
car with your lady friend,
and in the midst of
this heated activity,
you heard voices well
enough to identify
the person speaking?
And yet, you ask us to
believe that even though
you could identify
the person speaking,
you could not hear
the words said.
- Well, I heard them.
Now, we parked out
on Canton Road and
we was in the backseat of--
- Canton Road, you
said Hoffman Road.
- Yeah, yeah, I mean
Hoffman Road, Hoffman Road.
- Which one?
- Uh, uh, look, you're
confusing me, mmm hmm.
- Where were you, Mr. Davison?
- I don't remember.
- Are you sure the
voices you heard
belong to the defendants?
- Mmm, no.
- Will you say that
a little louder, sir?
- No, but it was a
man and a woman and
it must've been them, must've.
- Thank you, Mr. Davison.
Redirect.
- No questions, your Honor.
- [Judge] The
defense may proceed.
- If it pleases the
court, the defense rests.
- Your Honor, the prosecution
has a material witness
who has been unable to
testify until this time.
- You may proceed.
- The people call Mable Swank.
- Sorry to inconvenience you
in this manner, Mrs. Swank.
- Miss.
- [Judge] Yes, you
may proceed, counsel.
- Thank you, your Honor.
- I realize that you're
extremely ill and
that this is quite
an imposition.
So, I'll spare you the
burden of questioning.
Will you please explain,
for the entire court,
exactly what you saw on
the night of the murders?
- Well, I had been bothered
with corn thieves for sometime.
So, the night when
I heard the noises,
I drove my mule to
see where it was.
I drove across Shelton's
place and that it were...
So, I tied my mule to a tree.
And I snuck up on them
through the bushes
and I hid behind their car.
- All right, Moss, you
came out here to lay her!
Lay her!
Get down on the ground
and go to it, now!
Undress her, Moss,
unveil her beauty.
Do it!
(soft sobbing)
Now the rest.
Is she a woman, Moss?
A real woman, a human woman?
- Clair, think
what you're doing!
- [Clair] Shut up.
Kiss her, Moss.
Make love to her.
Show me how the animals do it.
(soft sobbing)
Do you feel like
a man now, Moss?
You don't look
anymore like a man.
(crying)
(gun firing)
(loud screaming)
Give me your knife.
- No!
No!
No, please, please!
No, no, no!
(grunting)
- And then they shot
her three or four times.
- And that's all you saw?
- Oh, no.
The worst of all,
after they killed her,
they went back over
and dressed them
up real respect.
And laid them out
real proper like,
just like an undertaker,
and that's all I saw.
- [Attorney Grover] Thank you.
Your witness.
- Thank you.
Ms. Swank, I have several
questions to ask you,
so I'll get right to it.
Why didn't you tell
your story to the police
immediately after it happened?
- Didn't nobody ask me.
- [Attorney] I see.
How long have you
lived here, Miss...
- Mable.
- [Attorney] Mable.
- A good while.
- [Attorney] Where did you
live before you came here?
- No where in particular.
- [Attorney] I would like
to know where in particular.
- The witness will
answer the question.
- I don't remember.
- [Attorney] Do you
remember what you did there?
- No.
- Your Honor, I have
here a deposition from
the psychiatrist, Dr. Howard.
- It's not (mumbles)!
Don't tell him nothing!
- [Attorney] I think you've
told us quite enough, thank you.
(loud banging)
- I'm not quite sure I
know what just happened.
We'll discuss it later in
our chambers, Mr. Grover.
You may continue the defense.
- The defense rests, your Honor.
- Is the prosecution
prepared for a summation?
- Uh, yes, your Honor.
Ladies and gentlemen,
I intend to be brief.
The defense has presented
us with not one shred
of evidence, he has
merely tried to confuse
and slander my witnesses.
Do not let this
confuse the facts.
The facts are that these
two people willingly
plotted the execution of
two innocent human beings.
They are murderers!
We implore you to sift
through the actual facts.
And the state demands
that you find them guilty
of murder in the first degree,
and that they each
be sentenced to die
in the electric chair.
Thank you.
- Thank you, your Honor.
Ladies and gentlemen of the
jury, I too, shall be brief.
I don't believe I've
confused anyone.
In performing my
responsibilities to this court
and to the defendants,
I, along with you,
have listened to the
prosecution's arguments
and the prosecution's witnesses.
We have discovered the truth.
Now, there is a matter
of great importance
I must discuss with you,
that of reasonable doubt.
In the last two days,
we've heard testimony
intended to establish the
guilt of these two defendants.
That testimony has failed.
There's a great deal
of room for doubt.
And with that reasonable
doubt, you must judge on
the side of acquittal.
For to make a mistake on
the side of conviction
would be tragedy.
For you, the defendants,
and for our sacred
system of justice.
Thank you.
- Ladies and
gentlemen of the jury,
it is my responsibility
to charge
you with your responsibilities.
You may retire to the jury
room and decide the guilt
or innocence of the defendants.
Weigh these facts carefully,
be considerate whether
it is or is not
reasonable doubt.
If the defendants are guilty,
you must recommend sentence.
Weigh the (mumbles)
in this case,
decide if it's life
imprisonment or execution.
So you are charged,
the jury will retire.
- Well, that was certainly
the most beautiful job
of killing of an
eyewitnesses testimony
that I've ever seen.
Mr. Kline, Mrs. Moss's attorney,
sure pulled a
surprise of the year.
Just as an unbeatable case
had been painstakingly
built by the DA, Kline
completely discredited all
the witnesses in as
cool and calm a manner
as a dentist extracts a tooth.
From where I sat, a complete
acquittal will be forthcoming.
(dramatic intense music)
- Quit, Billy.
(high pitched intense music)
- Billy, calm down.
- The defendants and their
attorneys seem very confident,
as well they should be.
The jury has been out
for two hours now and...
Just a moment, something's
going on in there.
(loud screaming)
- I'm not gonna die for
your insane jealousy!
She did it!
- Now, Billy, sit down.
(screaming)
(gun firing)
(screaming)
- Ladies and gentlemen,
this was certainly the most
bizarre turn of events that
I have personally
ever witnessed.
The jury had reached
their verdict and
found the defendants
innocent of all charges.
But before they were able
to announce that verdict,
the witnessed William
Spencer, Crazy Billy,
perpetrate a
courtroom shoot out,
which took the lives of
two innocent onlookers
as well as the defense
attorney and a policeman,
culminating in his own death.
During the melee, crazy
Billy was heard by the entire
courtroom, screaming that
his sister, Clair Moss,
had committed the murders.
The jury has just returned
the verdict of guilty
as charged of murder
in the first degree.
And we are awaiting sentencing.
- [Judge] Clair S Moss,
you have been found guilty
of murder in the first degree,
and I, therefore, sentence
you to die by electrocution
on the first day of December,
in the year of our Lord,
1972, until you are
dead, dead, dead.
(soft singing)
(loud rumbling)
(soft humming)
(deep dark music)
- Okay, Clair, it's time to go.
- Don't worry, Missy,
it will be over soon.
Jesus loves you and
I'll be praying for you.
- [Clair] You better
pray for yourself!
(deep intense music)
How, like this?
- Clair Spencer Moss,
you have been tried and
convicted by a
jury of your peers.
And have been found guilty of
murder in the first degree.
The state has sentenced
you to die by electrocution
on this, first day of
December, the year of our Lord,
1972, until you are
dead, dead, dead.
Clair Moss, do you
have a final statement?
- That two timing
son of a bitch!
(deep intense music)
- Jesus, Mary, and
Joseph assist me in
my last (mumbles) amen.
(scary loud music)