The Ballad of Gregorio Cortez (1982) - full transcript

[man] No. No, no. You can't help him.

-[woman gasps]

- Just take care of the baby.

Think about her to mince the sadness.

I'm about sick of this senseless killing.

What are we gonna do about it?

Hold it right there, feller.

- What you got in your mouth?

Aw, hell. He don't even understand English.

All right.

I'll talk to him in Mexican, goddamn it.

- There's no one in the house.

-[man] Habla!

- He ain't gonna tell us nothin'.

Hey. Listen to this.

Governor says he offers reward.

Been doing pretty good this season.

What kind of reward is it up to?

- Looks like it's up to a thousand dollars.

Back from Baltimore.

Here I lost 27.50 and won 25.

But for the season, I'm about 225 up.

Listen to this right here.

The Mexicans makin' a break

for the Rio Grande.

The man supposed to have fired the shots,

terminating the lives

of Sheriffs Morris and Glover,

is evidently making bold efforts

to reach the border.

Many determined men are in the saddle

following tracks of murder suspects.”

Come on. Get.

Hey, he jumped the fence.

Get the wire cutters.

Skin, give me your horse.

- Hey, hey, Billy.

- Excuse me. Sir?

Can you tell me where I can...

find Ranger Rogers?

- Huh?

- Ranger Rogers.

- Huh?

- Ranger Rogers?

Oh, I think he's up there in the cook car.

Thank you very much. Excuse me.

I'm looking for Ranger Rogers.

- You mean Captain Rogers.

- I mean Captain Rogers.

- You're looking at him.

- Well, how do you do?

Bill Blakely. San Antonio Express.

What can I do for you, Mr. Blakely?

I'm doing a story on the gang of Mexicans

that killed Sheriffs Morris and Glover.

- Come on in.

- Thank you.

How do you do?

- Cookie, get Mr. Blakely a cup of coffee.

- Thank you.

Thank you very much.

So...

I was wondering how the Texas Rangers

are being used in this chase.

Well, with God's help, the Rangers

will be the ones who bring him in.

How 'bout the train?

How does that fit in the picture?

Well, the Mexicans

have to head south to the border.

And the rail line runs in the same direction.

And we're in touch with the posses by wire.

So when they're sighted,

we ride the rail to the nearest point,

cut 'em off.

It's a mighty big country.

All right, men, dismount.

We'll make camp here.

- Let's get some fires set up.

- Yeah, yeah, yeah.

Get the horses watered.

Whoo-hoo.

Howdy.

- Hello.

- Bill Blakely, San Antonio Express.

- What's your name?

- Anthony Meyer.

Where are you from?

Oh, a little town right north,

San Angelo, Texas.

I don't think you'd know where it is.

It doesn't matter. Got anything you

want me to tell the folks back home?

No, I don't guess.

They don't even know where I am.

- Thanks for talking with me.

- You bet.

Hey, thanks a lot.

Come on, Barton. Let's go to the water.

Excuse me. Howdy. Bill Blakely.

- Oh, Jones is the name.

- Jones?

- Yeah.

- How you doin'?

Pretty good, I guess. I tell you,

I sure could use a drink of whiskey.

Yes, I know what you mean.

What in the hell happened to you?

He take your horse?

Took my horse and my gun.

This is some picnic, ain't it?

You should be dead.

Come on, get up.

Hyah.

Excuse me.

You're Boone Choate, aren't you?

- Depends on who's asking.

- Oh, sorry. Bill Blakely.

You were with Sheriff Morris

the day he was killed, right?

That's right.

Well, I'm a reporter

with the San Antonio Express.

I wonder if I could trouble you

for your story about what happened.

I don't know.

I mean, uh, I was unarmed.

It'd have been a whole different story

if I have had a gun.

You were Morris's interpreter,

isn't that right?

Yeah, I was.

I talk Mexican.

I've been around 'em most of my life.

You were the only one with Morris,

except for the Mexicans that day, is that right?

Well, at the shooting I was.

But before that, Mike Trimmell was with us.

- Huh?

- He's a deputy.

Sheriff Morris's nephew.

We dropped him off

just before we got up to the Cortez place

so he could check some brands

on the livestock.

'Cause you suspected they were stolen?

Hell of a lot more than suspected.

We talked to a Mexican who had traded

a horse with him a few weeks earlier.

We were just going to find out.

Whoa.

Ask him what his name is.

Ask ol' Romaldo if he knows

a Gregorio Cortez.

He didn't tell him

that you wanted to talk to him.

He told him you wanted him.

Ask him if he's traded him a horse lately.

He says he hasn't traded a horse.

I understand “no,” Boone.

Uh, tell him another fellow said he did.

He ain't gonna tell you nothing.

Well, you habla him

that he's under arrest.

No.

He says, “No man can arrest him.”

Boy, get back in that surrey.

[Choate] I thought he might shoot me,

so I got out of the surrey

and I run like hell.

And I run into Mike,

who was riding up towards the house.

Mike!

Mike!

- What happened?

- They got him. They shot the sheriff, Mike.

- They what?

- They got him!

What do you mean, they got him?

We got to get some help, Mike. He's dead.

- What do you mean, he's dead?

- He's dead! They got him!

We lost him, Mike.

They shot him three times.

[Choate] We went off to get some help.

The rest of us didn't get back

to Corlez is place till about dusk.

That's where he got it, Mike.

Shot him right there.

They either took him with 'em,

or buried him.

- Hyah! Let's go!

- I'm surprised they didn't take his watch.

Let's go.

Curly, get into town and call up

Sheriff Glover over in Gonzales.

- We're gonna be trackin' 'em.

-[man shouts]

Come on!

[Choate] We followed the wagon tracks.

They led us right into Mexican Town.

[Blakely] So that's how you caught Romaldo.

But how did you know where to look for Gregorio?

Well, let's just say that we persuaded him

to tell us where he'd gone.

He headed north to hide out

with a friend by the name of Martin Robledo.

So Glover and Mike and me

and a half a dozen other boys

took the train for Belmont the next morning.

That's a little station near where

the Cortez gang was hiding out.

It's your deal, Tim.

[man] All right, listen here, boys.

We're gonna be coming into Belmont soon.

I want every damn Mexican

on the train arrested,

and we're gonna do the same

when we get into town.

- This is the last hand.

- Two?

Yup. Whatever you want. You're betting.

I don't want nobody warning them

that we're coming.

I'm light.

- That's right.

- Gonna scare you out.

[Choate] Glover was close to Morris,

and I could tell it was really eatin' him up.

You owe me one dollar - two dollars.

What's the latest word on Mrs. McKinley?

Remember about a week ago,

they said she was just hanging on.

Now they say she's,

uh, like a spring chicken.

Goddamn it.

It still doesn't make any sense to me.

- Boone?

- Hmm?

You say that Mexican drew his pistol

before Morris?

- Yep.

- Had it behind him, you say?

I didn't see it in front of him.

Pair of tens.

I mean, Morris was fast.

One of the fastest.

He didn't have it in front of him

when he came off the porch,

so he had to have it behind his back,

probably in his belt.

Pullin' a gun from the hip is a hell

of a lot faster than from behind your back.

Damn, I still don't understand

how Morris got plugged.

What you got?

Why the hell didn't you look for him that night?

[Trimmell] Because we thought he was dead.

A dead man doesn't go crawling off

into the bushes.

It wasn't a question

of lookin' or not lookin'.

You couldn't see two feet in front of you.

Just haunts me to think of him laying

out there all by himself, Trimmell.

[Choate]

Well, you know how it is in this business.

One slipup, adios.

Well, they'll pay.

[Choate] From Belmont

we rode on out to Henry Schnabel's place.

That's where we figured

that the Cortez gang was hiding out.

Hey, Henry.

Hello, Sheriff.

What brings you by here this evening?

Sheriff Morris got shot down in Karnes.

- We got word they headed this way.

- Scheisse.

You've got some Mexicans living here,

haven't you?

Yeah. Yeah, the Robledo family.

But, uh, what do you want with them?

They've been working for me now

for five years.

Don't want anything with them, Henry.

It's them Mexicans they know from Karnes.

Name's Cortez. He's the ringleader.

Well, come on, Henry.

Let's go talk to 'em.

- I haven't eaten yet my supper.

- Goddamn it, Henry!

We're gonna have you back here

in five minutes. Now, come on!

All right.

[Choate] By the time we got

to the Robledo house, it was dark.

We rode up like nothin' was wrong.

Howdy, Martin.

[Choate] Then Glover tore around

the side of the house,

and all hell broke loose.

Is he there?

Get him! Get him!

[Choate] Then I saw Glover's horse.

And just a few feet away was Glover,

lying there, dead.

They had a hell of an advantage on us,

being in the house

and seeing us come up on 'em.

Later we found out there was a whole house

full of guns and ammunition.

Glover got shot in the heart, you know.

Schnabel got hit in the head.

Couple of the Mexicans were wounded,

but the worst ones got away.

I read something about a hanging.

What about that?

Well, we had a little necktie party,

all right, but we didn't croak 'em.

We just let them dangle for a while,

then tried to get some truth out of 'em.

Yeah, we could've killed 'em.

Wasn't nothin' wrong with the rope.

- Well, did they talk?

- No, they wouldn't say nothin'.

Next morning we took Glover

and Schnabel into town.

It was real sad.

Mrs. Glover was there. Real sad.

Take care of the baby.

Think about that to mince the sadness.

That's three loved ones we lost

in the last couple of days.

I don't know what it takes

to get you folks riled up.

- Get on with it.

- Hyah!

- Don't get out of the city much, do you?

- Not recently.

But I covered Teddy Roosevelt

and the Rough Riders in the Cuban campaign.

- That a fact?

- Yes, sir.

Well, out here if it crawls it'll bite you,

if it flies it'll sting you.

- If it grows, it'll stick you.

-[laughing]

-[man] Mexicans!

- Ho! Hey!

-[man shouts]

-[gunshot]

They got them horses.

Whoo!

Yeah, we got 'em now. We got 'em.

[gunfire continues]

You got a dead one over there?

All right. Load him up on his horse.

These two men over there.

Round up those loose horses.

Bring him over here.

Bring him over here.

Jones! Get over here and tend to this man.

- All right.

- Get me Boone Choate over here!

[Choate] Coming in.

- Boone?

- Yeah.

All right. Let's see.

Yeah.

Neither one of these two are Cortez.

I can vouch for that.

But they could be part of the gang,

and those horses they got are probably stolen.

Hell with it.

Two less Mexicans we got to chase down.

Anyway, uh,

after that we hunted around

for a couple of days,

and we tracked them all the way down

to Guadalupe River.

That's where we lost 'em.

The posse broke up after that.

I joined up with the Rangers.

I'm in it to the end now.

Thank you very much for talking to me.

I'm gonna go in here and file this story.

I'd like to ask you some more questions

later, if that's all right.

Good enough.

What did you say?

A man don't disappear. Well, you're right.

That's what I was saying.

I know that that's what you were saying.

I'm just saying it too.

He's right ahead of us.

Yeah, that's right. We're right behind him.

I want to send a wire

to the San Antonio Express.

[telegraph operator]

I'll be with you in just a moment, sir.

Yeah! I'm still here.

Judge, this is not easy.

We have to follow the tracks.

Tracks!

What?

I - I said-

You said -

The whole country is following?

Oh! Oh, the whole country

is following what is happening.

All right.

Damn it, Judge. I know it.

I know that you need the results.

I need the results.

Well, hell, yes, I'm doing the best I can.

What?

Um... reward?

Did you say a reward?

Thousand dollar reward.

Good. Yeah.

Let everybody know. Mm-hmm.

Let the Mexicans know. Yeah, right.

Maybe that'll smoke 'em out.

I said - [sighs]

Never mind.

All right. Good-bye.

Great invention.

Excuse me. You must be Frank Fly,

the fellow took Glover's place.

You hit the fly right on the head.

Bill Blakely, San Antonio Express.

Must be the fellow reporting the chase.

That's right.

I've just been riding with the Rangers.

I was with them

when they caught two of the gang.

Excuse me. It'll just take me a minute

to file this story.

- I'd like to talk to you if I could.

- Well, you're gonna have to hurry.

- I got to get back on the train.

- Yes, sir.

[telegraph operator]

We're ready for your story, Mr. Blakely.

All right.

Uh... San Diego, Texas.

- Special.

A posse of Rangers...

encountered...

the men who are supposed

to have killed Sheriffs Morris

and Glover.

Maybe they were horse thieves,

but I can't say.

They sure as hell aren't part of the Cortez gang

because there isn't any.

What do you mean?

Just what I'm saying. There isn't any gang.

- It's, uh - It's just one man.

- How do you know?

Been trailing him for over a week.

Tracks don't lie.

It's, uh - It's one man, that's for sure.

If you'd like to see for yourself,

why don't you come along?

- I'd like that.

- Fine.

-[whinnying]

- Shh.

Shh.

Hep. A-hep.

Ah, hey-oh.

Hep, a-hep.

Hep, a-hey-oh.

Think that's one of 'em?

Nah, not watering cattle.

More'n likely one of the local picaros.

We'll just sit tight and wait.

Well, boys, I hate to disturb your reverie,

but it's time to get back on the trail.

This here is Mr. Blakely,

a newspaperman from San Antonio.

- How you doing? Mike Trimmell.

- Mike.

- That's Zach T. Porter.

- Howdy.

[Blakely] Mr. Porter.

Manuel Tom. Call him Skin.

Skin?

Redskin.

Oh. How do you do?

[Blakely] You were a good friend

of Glover's. Is that right?

- Glover and I were close.

- How did you get involved?

On that particular night, I was in the jail

playing dominoes with Judge Kennon.

And suddenly this fellow comes busting in.

He says, “Glover's been shot.

Schnabel too.”

Then the judge swore me in as the sheriff.

I got together a bunch of boys.

Then I got myself a good tracker.

Got out there as quick as we could.

- Let that kid down!

- Stay out of it, Frank!

Goddamn you, let that kid down!

Let that kid down.

I'll let him down, but you get

that goddamn pistol out of my face.

All right.

Turn those women and children loose.

Jim, get down here and look at that boy.

Frank!

This is the bunch of greasers

that killed Morris, Glover, and Schnabel!

We're trying to find out

where the hell the rest of them went.

Looks like you're doing a damn good job!

- We're doing our best.

- Who are you?

- Mike Trimmell.

- You're Morris's nephew, aren't you?

-[man whimpering]

That's right.

- You responsible for this mess?

- Yep.

My name's Frank Fly.

I've been appointed chief deputy

in charge of this operation.

Boone, I'm gonna hold you responsible

for getting those people back to town.

You tell Judge Kennon

we started tracking that trail.

Mike, you're going with us.

Where's Glover?

Glover's on the porch.

Sorry about your uncle.

Heard he was more like a father.

You want to talk about what happened,

that's fine.

You want to talk about my private life,

that's where your job ends.

All right, Mike.

When Boone came back to you

after your uncle was killed,

why didn't you go back?

You had a gun, didn't you?

I'd rather not talk about that,

if you don't mind.

I can understand that, Mike,

but when things like this happen,

people have a right to know what happened,

and I have a right to find out.

Huh? You had a gun, didn't you?

Well, it was not really that simple.

I was about a quarter mile away

from the house

when I saw Boone come running down

through the sage.

- They got him, Mike. They got the sheriff.

- They what?

They got him.

There's a whole bunch of 'em.

What are you talking about, they shot him?

- They shot him three times, Mike!

- Let's go get 'em!

- No, he's gone!

- Stay here, Boone.

- He's gone, Mike!

- Let go of the goddamn horse!

- We can't just leave him there!

- There's too many of 'em. We'll get him back.

Gotta get some help.

Come on. We lost him, Mike.

Ruby, come.

Well, what about the Robledo place

where Glover and Schnabel were shot?

- How'd that happen?

- That was a mess.

What do you mean, a mess?

- There was a lot of confusion that night.

- Confusion?

Was there drinking?

Look, Mike, if I write about it,

I won't use any names,

but I know Glover was a heavy drinker

and Boone isn't exactly a teetotaler.

I want to know what happened.

[Trimmell] Yeah, there was some drinking.

There you go, boys. Pass it around.

Goes better on the inside

than it does the bottle.

Don't give none to Billy Bob here.

[Trimmell] Well, we stopped to make plans

just before we go! to the Robledo place.

We'd been goin' for a couple of days

with little to eat and not much sleep.

[man] Yeah.

By then, Glover was pretty worked up.

Hey, hey. Pass that down.

Come on. Don't keep that there.

That's for old Morris.

All right. Here's to Morris.

All right, let's go.

Let's go get those sons of bitches.

Come on!

Hyah! Hyah!

Move. Move, you son of a bitch,

and I'll blow your goddamn head off.

-[man] Mike, is that you?

- Yeah, I got one of 'em.

- Shit, I think it's Schnabel.

- What?

Holy shit.

Son of a bitch.

Somebody shot him right up close.

He's got powder burns on his face, Mike.

Oh, my God.

[Blakely]

Could it have been one of your own men?

It could have been Mrs. Robledo,

as far as we know.

- Could it have been one of your own men?

- It's possible.

You ain't the ones looking

for them Mexicans, are you?

[Fly] How's that?

I saw y'all follow the tracks in.

Made me start thinking about a Mexican

who come in here yesterday to water some cattle.

Get to thinking,

after watching you follow 'em in,

we may have made a hell of a mistake.

Well, I can't argue with you there.

Hah!

Hungry?

Thank you.

Enjoy it.

- Coffee?

- Por favor.

I make good coffee too.

Do you speak English?

I don't speak Mexican.

I ain't that good a cook,

but I've been doing it all my life.

I had a woman cook for me

about three months one time.

Oh, she sure was a good cook.

Good to have somebody to talk to.

Even if you don't understand me.

You wouldn't think a person would tire

of his own company, would you?

After riding these fences

for two months though,

a person gets tired of his own company.

Slow down.

Slow down.

You'll make yourself sick

if you eat that fast.

Sick. [imitates retching]

You don't understand

a damn word I'm saying.

Yeah, that Barbara was the best.

She's something.

I wonder where she is.

Hey, I don't mean to talk your ear off.

Just good to have somebody

to talk to, you know.

Nah.

You're gonna need that.

What you got, Skin?

Cortez was here last night.

He spent the night there.

By the feel of the rocks,

it's a little warm in there.

Which way did he go?

- South, this morning, top of this ridge.

- South.

- How long?

- Two hours.

Two hours.

Okay. Let's get him.

Whoa.

- There he is!

- Come on.

Ha! Come on!

Hyah! Hyah!

Hah.

Whoa!

We got him in a box canyon.

Shh.

[Rogers] I want to see a dozen men

up on the rim of the canyon.

I want fires lit at 20-foot intervals,

burning all night long.

We're going after him

at first light in the morning.

Come on, move it!

Come on. Let's move out.

[chattering, faint]

Well, Frank, looks like we got him.

Yeah, yeah, looks like we got him.

Move!

Shh. Shh. Shh.

Shh.

Might be one way to look at it.

Maybe so.

Right there, that's being a good neighbor.

[whispers] Go.

Man, this ol' mare's rode to death.

-[Fly] What's the story, Skin?

-[Skin] He left last night.

- Left last night.

- One track here, and he didn't camp.

Looks like we sure underestimated

that man, doesn't it?

Damn, that coyote buzzard.

I don't know how he got out of here,

the way we had him surrounded.

- He's gone?

- He is gone, Mr. Blakely.

Pick up his tracks there, Skin.

You men out there, go around,

cover the other side of that thicket.

- Make sure he's not in there.

- You hear that?

- Will do.

- Right.

Should've come in after him last night,

like I told 'em.

But they didn't wanna listen to me,

so to hell with 'em.

Probably in Mexico by now.

[man] “A posse of Rangers

encountered the men

who are supposed to have killed

Sheriffs Morris and Glover

about ten miles northwest of Benavides

this morning

and had a hard fight.

They killed one, captured one

who was badly wounded,

and one escaped.”

“The clearing out

of a large gang of Mexicans

who have, for several years,

been stealing horses in this part of the state,

as well as committing

many and other crimes.

All the lower country has been

notified by wire to be on the lookout,

and strong hopes are entertained

that he will be captured.”

Here's some more.

“A reward of $1,000

has been offered for his capture.”

A thousand dollars!

Boy, that's a lot of money.

“The wife and children

of the bandit, Gregorio Cortez,

are being held in the county jail here

-during the investigation of the killing...

-[man] Caramba, hermano. Oué frayedia.

Of Sheriff Morris of Karnes County.

- Howdy.

- Howdy.

- Colorado, can I get a cup of that?

- Sure.

Morning, Captain Rogers. How are ya?

Been reading that story

you filed night before last.

[Blakely] Oh.

Mexican supposed to be Cortez

has been surrounded

and escape is considered impossible.

Captain Rogers and Sheriff Fly

are leading the chase.

Excitement runs high here tonight,

and the prospects are very encouraging

at this hour, midnight,

that Cortez will be captured in a few hours.”

Go on. I thought that was

rather a good story.

- If we'd have caught him.

- True.

You know, over 600 men are hunting him,

but if he escapes to Mexico,

you can bet the Texas Rangers'll get blamed.

Well, you know, that's politics.

That reminds me, I meant to ask you.

The word around the capital is that

the Texas Rangers are about to be disbanded,

that they've outlived their usefulness.

The future of the Rangers

is not dependent on the capture of Cortez.

However, if he has crossed the border -

Pardon me, Captain.

Mr. Meza's got a burr under his blanket

about somethin'.

[Blakely] He wants to know if it's true

there's a thousand-dollar reward for Cortez.

{Rogers} Yep, that's right.

[chuckles] Wants to know

if you have the money here.

No, but if you help us capture him,

you'll get your money.

You know where he is? Have you seen him?

Said he gave him these. They're his guns.

You Gregorio Cortez?

You're under arrest.

[man] There he is! There he is!

You men stand down!

Get the garbage from the tracks!

-[all shouting]

-[man] Come on! Let's string him up!

He's killed three men, Your Honor,

two of 'em very well-respected sheriffs.

His alleged confessions

have appeared in newspapers.

It's not a great case, Your Honor.

It is a difficult case, Mr. Abernathy,

but the court's gonna require your abilities.

[man] Appealing to the county,

there might not ever be a trial.

Oh, there'll be a trial, all right.

Well, look at it this way, Bertram.

If the Mexicans ever do

get around to using the vote,

you'll be the most popular man in the state.

Mama!

[moans] Mama.

[Fly] Come on.

No,

No!

No! No!

No! No!

Oh, no!

No!

No! No!

No! No!

No!

[sobbing, groaning] No. No.

No.

[Fly] It's been a hard 77 days -

Ten, 77, isn'! it?

- And I want to thank you.

-[Blakely] Whatever the expense.

- Gonzales thanks you.

-[Mike] Thank you, Frank.

-[Fly] Everything all right?

- By the way, it's delicious, Frank.

-[Rogers] Put on a good spread, Frank.

-[men continue chattering]

Captain McDonald had been a-runnin' this,

we wouldn't have wasted

all them taxpayers' money like we did.

-[Fly] You boys done good.

- Everybody's time's coming.

We'd have killed him right on the spot.

That's just the trouble.That's why the capital

is thinking of disbanding the Rangers.

Texas is getting into the economic mainstream.

You've got to have due process of law.

What are you gonna do with that sorrel you got?

[Choate] Goddamn.

-[Fly] Well, let's hear it!

- All right!

[cheering, chattering]

[man] Damn sure hard

to teach an old dog new tricks.

Skillet, I don't know what you're talking about,

but this is a new century.

We got to be a new type of

law enforcement agency right along with it.

Things are changing fast.

Y'all have everything you want.

A napkin. I-l would like a napkin.

- Give me some fresh suds, will ya?

-[man] Damn right.

Greenhorn, you may be

an awful good reporter...

but you oughta live with us a while

and see what we'll put up with.

-Indian poker.

Skin, look at this scalp you missed.

I'll bet you the big city'd scare you worse

than that prairie scares me.

- I never have saw one, so -

- That's what I'm saying.

-[all laughing]

- It's a terrible thing. Terrible thing.

Mike, I wanna congratulate you

and that little star of yours there.

How about some napkins?

I propose a toast

to the new high sheriff of Karnes County.

- Thank you, William.

- Here you go, Captain.

You know what to do

if you do need something, don't you?

No, sir. I'm going to Beaumont.

There's no napkins?

He's gonna work out in the oil fields

during the day,

and I'm gonna work the poker table.

At night I'm goin' out to the oil fields,

he's comin' in to the poker table.

And I'll end up workin' a double shift,

because y'all seen how he plays cards.

- You oughta fire that son of a bitch.

I hate to repeat myself,

but is there anything I can do for ya?

-[Choate] Nope.

- Anything at all.

- Ask, please.

- No napkins.

- Gentlemen, I'd like to propose a toast.

-[man] I'll drink to that.

To Gregorio Cortez,

who extended the life of the Texas Rangers.

-[Fly] I'll drink to that.

- Here's how.

Let's have one for Texas,

and let's have one

for the men and women that make Texas.

-[Abernathy] All right, sir.

What's the word for “lawyer”?

[Fly] I don't know.

[Abernathy] Aw, hell, it's impossible.

You know that, uh -

that Mexican lady from downstairs?

[Fly] Yeah.

[Abernathy] Would you ask her if she'd

come up and interpret for me, please?

-[Fly] Sure. Yeah.

-[Abernathy] Thanks, Frank.

Good afternoon, ma'am.

Would you please step in?

Uh, my name is, uh, B.R. Abernathy.

Uh, I've been appointed

to represent, uh, Mr. Cortez in this case,

and, uh, apparently he speaks no English.

And my Spanish is, uh...

rudimentary, to say the least.

I was hoping that you might act

as interpreter for me.

I'd be happy to.

Thank you, ma'am.

He wants us to sit down.

[Abernathy] Uh, ma -

Uh, what was your name again, please, ma'am?

- Carlota Munoz.

Miss Munoz, uh -

Um, would you ask Mr. Cortez...

to, um, tell me in detail...

what, uh - what occurred

when Sheriff Morris, uh,

visited him at his home?

He wants to know

what's going to become of his family.

Would you tell him, please,

that, uh, I've not yet seen his family,

but as soon as this interview is over

I will see them

and, uh, make certain that

their wants and needs will be taken care of.

You're very welcome, sir.

Now, would you ask him to tell me...

in detail...

about, uh, what happened

the day Sheriff Morris visited him at his home.

They had just returned

from working two weeks.

[Carlota] It was late in the afternoon.

The children were playing.

Valeriano.

-[Morris] Ask him what his name is.

Romano.

[Morris] Ask ol' Romano if he knows

a Gregorio Cortez.

[Morris] Ask him

if he's traded him a horse lately.

Well, then you habla him

that he's under arrest.

[Cortez] No.

[Choate] Says no man can arrest him.

- Well, boy, get back in that surrey.

-[pistol hammer cocks]

Valeriano!

Valeriano!

Shh.

- Shh. Shh.

[Abernathy] Why -

Why did he tell the sheriff “no”

when the sheriff asked him

if he'd traded a horse?

[Carlota] He said, no,

he had not traded a caballo.

He had traded a yegua,

which is a mare.

I see.

In Spanish, we make the distinction

between a... male horse

and a female horse.

So it was a-

It was a matter of misunderstanding.

The, uh - The interpreter

did not understand the word, uh -

- What was that word again?

So he told the sheriff,

no, he hadn't traded a horse.

This - W-Would you please tell him

that this is a very important fact?

It's - It's the most important fact

that's come out so far.

What did he say, please, ma'am?

He asked if that's -

if that confusion was why his brother died.

Yes. Yes, they -

they didn't understand what he said.

Please continue.

What - What happened, uh, next?

He took his brother

to the house of a friend.

Shh.

Shh.

Shh.

- He left him there.

- And where did he go?

He started walking north.

Because he knew

they would look for him in the south.

[Carlota] He had just finished telling them

what had happened when they arrived.

Did he know who these people were?

No.

Hold him, Mike. Come on.

They hanged his godson.

He saw them do it.

[judge] Mr. Abernathy,

you may address the jury.

Your Honor...

gentlemen of the jury,

let me attempt now to put in perspective

the facts that have been

brought out in testimony here.

Gentlemen, I would be dwelling

in a fool's paradise

to believe that you also

had not heard these rumors

and read these headlines

that screamed for

the lifeblood of this man.

Gentlemen, he's not a criminal.

He's a simple man of the earth.

He acted legally under the laws of Texas.

Under our laws,

a man may resist an illegal arrest,

even to the point of using deadly force,

if deadly force is, uh -

is threatened against him.

When, uh, Sheriff Morris asked Mr. Cortez

if he had traded for a horse,

Mr. Cortez said he had not

traded for a horse,

he'd traded for a mare.

The interpreter

did not know the word for “mare,”

so he simply told the sheriff,

no, he had not traded a horse.

So put yourself in his shoes,

ladies and gentlemen.

A man comes to your house,

a man who speaks a tongue foreign to you.

You don't understand him.

He asks questions.

You try your best to answer these questions,

and suddenly he draws a revolver

and shoots your brother...

mortally wounding him.

What would you do, gentlemen?

Would you pull your revolver and fire,

trying to, uh, protect your life,

your - your property,

your family, your brother?

Or would you stand there...

and accept the medicine

that your brother has just taken?

- I believe I know the answer to that.

-[translating, whispering in Spanish]

I believe every honest man

in this courtroom

can answer that question.

Of course you would fire.

Of course you'd fight to save your family.

And of course you'd flee.

- For he knew -

Had he stayed...

-a posse would have come -

Not thirsting for justice -

thirsting for his blood.

[interpreter whispering]

He fled to the home of his friend,

Mr. Martin Robledo,

who, uh, lives in Gonzales County.

In the evening, after it was dark,

they heard a noise.

He ran out the door and he saw this, uh -

this enormous shape of a man

bearing down on him on horseback,

firing his pistols.

Well, Mr. Cortez,

not knowing who this man was -

There was no announcement made -

fired his pistols wildly

as he tried to run,

scrambling in the rocky earth.

No man could hit anything on purpose,

moving like that.

If he did kill Sheriff Glover,

it was self-defense.

Mr. Schnabel,

who my client is also accused of killing,

was on the other side of the house.

I'd like someone to explain to me how somebody

could shoot a man on the other side of the house.

Maybe shoot over it and the bullet

dropped down. I don't know.

Gentlemen, this man has suffered

untold pain and... agony.

He's lost his brother.

His family is, at this moment,

incarcerated in jail.

His children, his wife.

Gentlemen, release this family.

Let 'em be together again.

The only crime

that this man has committed is...

he's been too good a horseman.

Thank you, gentlemen.

Your Honor.

- Gracias.

- Thank you.

Your Honor...

gentlemen of the jury...

members of the court...

my worthy adversary, Mr. Abernathy...

has sought...

to paint you some pretty pictures.

He has tried to draw a picture

that Gregorio Cortez

is a victim here.

[interpreter whispers]

Gregorio Corlez es la victima.

- Well, there were only three victims...

- And they're all dead...

at the hands of Gregorio Cortez.

Now, who is Gregorio Cortez?

Gregorio Cortez is a man

who kills and runs...

in the cover of darkness.

Yeah.

He drew a gun

and shot our beloved sheriff...

Dick Glover...

and our friend,

Henry Schnabel.

And in his diabolical, scheming ways,

he rode in circles...

he rode in figures of eight,

eluding the law,

and I'm sure laughing all the way.

Mrs. Glover,

your trials are just beginning...

with your six young, orphaned daughters.

There'll be nights that...

you'll wake...

in a feverish nightmare of loneliness...

and reach across your bed

for the protection and the love

of your husband's arms.

[interpreter whispering in Spanish]

But he won't be there.

Because Gregorio Cortez has taken him away.

And in the future,

when those six helpless,

young orphans...

need a father's touch...

-their father's love -

-[sobbing]

When that little girl

falls and scrapes her knees

and seeks to sit on her daddy's knee,

that knee will not be there.

Because Gregorio Cortez has taken it away.

- And so I ask this jury...

to bring in the only verdict...

and that is murder...

in the first degree.

Take Gregorio Cortez...

out of this free world

and lock him away...

until it is time to hang him.

[Blakely] ls the boss in? Hello?

- Oh, I definitely expect trouble.

Hell, there's trouble right now.

Yes, sir.

-[man] String him up!

-[man 2] Sit down!

Ladies and gentlemen, please be seated.

- Take your seats.

Order in the court. Order in the court.

- Order!

[judge] Gentlemen of the jury,

have you reached a verdict?

[interpreter whispering in Spanish]

- We have, Your Honor.

- Will the defendant please rise.

“We, the jury, find the defendant

guilty of murder without malice.

Sentence: 50 years confinement

in the Texas penitentiary.”

- You will take charge of the prisoner!

No! No mate a ese hombre!

[Cortez] No kill man! No kill man!

Oww!

[PW] Wayne?

Wayne?

Wayne?

Wayne?

All right.

-[man] We want Cortez, Frank!

-[man 2] You know who we want, Frank!

[Fly] What in the hell

are you talking about?

You know what we're talkin' about!

[man 3] He's ours, Frank!

- No, he's not yours!

-[man 4] We're gonna get 'im!

He belongs to the State of Texas.

That's who he belongs to.

- No! We want him now!

-[Fly] Come on, boys!

Don't do this!

Don't get yourself in trouble like this, now!

[man] Are we gonna stand here

and let more sheriffs get killed?

Damn you! Go home, boys!

We don't wanna hear no more talk, Frank.

You're gonna hear as much talk

as I got to talk.

- I took an oath, damn you!

[man] Break the door down!

- Carmen!

-[Valeriano] No!

- Carmen!

Carmen!

- Carmen!

Y'all better move!

-[man] Come on, boys!

I don't wanna have to shoot anyone,

but I will.

Back off with that thing.

Now, y'all just hold it just a minute.

I was a friend of Dick Glover's,

just like the rest of ya.

We all know it.

But let me tell you

how we all feel, Frank.

And I can speak for all of us.

All we want is that damn greaser.

I'd probably be out there with you tonight.

You know that.

- Grab him.

- That's enough jabberin', Frank.

- You gonna let us in?

- That's all we want.

What in the hell's the matter with you people?

You want to avenge

the death of Dick Glover,

well, why the hell don't you

bring a friend of his up here?

Not one of his enemies.

You wouldn't dare come outside and say that.

There he is. That's Cortez.

- There's Gregorio.

That's the man.

Stand back. Stand back.

[Fly] Stand back.