Matlock (1986–1995): Season 3, Episode 8 - The Mayor: Part 1 - full transcript

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Evening, Judge Franklin.

Mayor Barelli is expecting you.

Evening, Mr. Brennert.

The mayor is waiting for you.

Why do I have to fight so hard



to get a little bit of
cooperation around here?

These...

Think you can handle this.

Welcome, Judge.

It's good to have you here.

Please take a seat.

Thanks for coming
by. Take a seat.

Gentlemen, I'll see you later.

You betrayed me! Betrayed what?

Betrayed what?

Look, you stand up like a man!

Hey, don't talk to me like that!

Hey, you!

Get him off of me! Get him off!



All right, O'Neill,
time to come out.

Hi, guys.

Hey, let's not get cute.

Book him.

Come on, let's go.

I heard you spent
the weekend in jail.

You heard right,

because nobody
showed to make my bail.

I did nine days once.

'60s, Alabama.

Never occurred to me that
the paper would post bail.

And I was on assignment.

You weren't.

You think I'd go to the
mayor's mansion for fun?

I had a tip.

Heard Mayor Barelli was
having an emergency meeting.

I thought it might
have something to do

with the senate seat
he's been eyeing.

So, did it?

Well, Judge Franklin
and Jack Brennert

were the only ones there.

Well, you've been baptized, kid.

Never knew a reporter worth
his byline hasn't been busted

chasing a story.

Here's looking at you.

Well, those three
may go way back,

but it was far from a reunion.

The mayor almost put his
fist down Brennert's throat.

Brennert almost put the
mayor through the French doors.

Franklin looked like he
wanted to strangle both of them.

Oh, what were
they fighting about?

I couldn't follow up.

I was in jail.

Get any pictures?

Cops got your camera.

Is the mayor having a
press conference today?

Yeah, in the rotunda.

Couple of minutes.

Read that.

Hi. This is Paul O'Neill,
The Chicago Daily Examiner.

I need to speak to the mayor.

It's urgent that I speak to him!

Oh, my God.

They already left.

You call the police.

I'm on my way.

Yeah, hello, Sergeant.

This is Jim Milburn.

Hey, we just got a tip.

Some guy says he's
gonna kill the mayor.

Um, ladies and gentlemen.

Ladies and gentlemen, may
I have your attention, please?

The mayor will make
a brief statement.

He'll answer your
questions when he's through.

Thank you.

Thank you and welcome.

In a little less than a year,

the people of this
state must decide

who will represent them in
the United States Senate.

They will either

decide for six more
years of the same thing,

of if they agree with me,

they'll decide that
it's time for a change.

Time for a new agenda.

Time for a new
voice to be heard.

Time for a new
generation to be heard.

I stand before you today
as I start down that long road,

confident that it will end...

Everybody, get down!
With a seat in the United...

Look, there he is!

Hey! Hey...!

After him!

Come on, let's go!

There he is up there!

There he goes!

Get around the other end.

Hold it right there!

Get out of the way!

Clear the area.

Halt!

He's in here.

Watch out!

Go to the other staircase.

Surround the second floor.

Try to get around
the east end there.

All right, stand back.

Stand back. Let him through!

Go get those people back
there... Coming through.

Hey, get out of the way.

Look, we got to
have some room here.

You got to transport
him as soon as possible.

Hold it right there.
Hold it right there.

There's something
I want you to see.

Hey, take him out. Let's go!

Come on. Keep 'em back.

We got some tape on the shooter.

I want you to look at it.

Go ahead.

Freeze it.

What do you think?

Wait a minute.

I know him.

That's the guy from the
nuclear demonstrations.

Paul, didn't you write
a piece on the guy

that led those demonstrations?

Yeah.

Weren't you getting
letters from him?

Yeah, I was. All right.

Some reporter called the police.

Now, how did he know

there was gonna be an
attempt on the mayor?

Was there a call?

Another letter?

A letter.

Let's have it.

There's no name.

What's his name?

Lou, I can't do that.

Let's take a walk.

Look, Paul,

I know some day you're
gonna want to grow up

and win a Pulitzer Prize,

but this isn't just
some two-bit snitch

you're protecting.

This is a stone-cold killer

who shot down the mayor
of this city in broad daylight.

Lou... Now, listen to me, man.

You cannot hold out on me.

Not now, not this time.

All right, but I'm
in on the bust.

Deal.

I met this guy about
six months ago.

He's an activist, but
he's strictly non-violent.

I mean, none of
this weird stuff...

Uh, politics, the environment.

He's involved. He's committed.

Paul, what's his name?!

I like this guy.

So what?!

His name is Chris Reardon.

He always wears pretty
much the same thing...

Cubs baseball cap,
army jacket, sunglasses.

Bingo.

All right, look around.

I told you to wait outside.

Typefaces match.

What the hell is
going on here? Freeze!

Hey... get your hands off of me!

Do I have you to thank for this,

O'Neill? Will you
let me talk to him?

Forget it.

We have a warrant
for your arrest.

For what? Attempted murder.

What the hell are
you talking about?

Somebody just shot the mayor.

Well, it wasn't me!

But whoever did it succeeded.

He just died on
the operating table.

Cuff him.

Let's go.

O'Neill, do something.

Come on, move it.

O'Neill!

You know I wouldn't
do something like this.

O'Neill!

Excuse me.

Uh... Excuse me.

Uh... Uh, excuse me.

Uh, excuse me.

I'll call you back.

Mr. Matlock? Yeah.

Paul O'Neill, Chicago
Daily Examiner.

Uh-huh. Well, let
me take this for you.

Oh, thank you.

Good, you came
straight from the airport.

Yeah.

The wire I got from Harry
sounded pretty urgent.

Uh, how is Harry?

Working hard? Yes, sir.

Uh, Harry Eubanks

is the hardest-working
publisher I know.

That's why we're number one.

Yeah, yeah.

Well, uh... tell me
about this Chris, uh...

uh, Weir... Reardon.

Reardon, yeah.

Well, around here,
everybody loved Brian Barelli,

which means nobody
likes Chris Reardon.

It's a miracle he
hasn't been lynched.

Lynched? Mr. Matlock,
I was right there.

I saw the guy who
shot Mayor Barelli.

He looked like Chris Reardon...
He even dressed like him...

But I don't think it was him.

I'm almost sure it wasn't him.

You know this fellow? Yeah.

I know him.

They got him right up here.

Huh.

You believe

in the system of justice,
don't you, Mr. Matlock?

Of course.

Now, the first thing
we have to establish

is where you were at
the time of the murder.

You realize that the
entire legal process

was created by the rich,

for the rich, so...

there's no real justice.

Uh, Mr. Reardon,
I can't defend you

unless you answer my questions.

Now, I need to
know where you were

at the time of the murder,

who could have
gotten into your home,

used your typewriter.

If you won't cooperate with me,

you could wind up in
Joliet for the rest of your life.

Mr. Matlock, I'm going to jail.

And not even you
can change that.

Because I'm poor.

Because I protest
society's corruption.

Because the rich and powerful
want to silence my voice.

That's where it's at.

Fine.

Mr. Reardon,

you're a bright man, I suppose,

but when your
next lawyer visits,

I'd get off my soapbox
and talk about the case.

Guard!

All right.

Not that I think it
will help much...

but I'll tell you.

Gonna take the case?

Yeah.

Only because,

in all the years I've
known Harry Eubanks,

he's never asked a favor,

so I got to assume my defending

some aging, bigmouthed hippie

is damned important to him.

Harry Eubanks didn't
send that telegram.

I did.

The fact is, Harry Eubanks
thinks Chris Reardon did it,

but when I heard that you two

are old friends, I...

I had to send that telegram.

Chris doesn't have a prayer
without a good attorney.

You could still back out.

It would prejudice his case.

You got me up
here to get a story.

No, I didn't.

Well, then, why?
Because I had to.

Why? Because I
don't think he's guilty.

You don't?

I saw the killer tear his jacket

when he left the
scene of the crime.

Chris Reardon's
jacket wasn't torn.

And unlike practically
everybody else

around here, Chris
Reardon never sold out.

He's still fighting
the good fight.

I... I like that.

And because somebody
used me to frame him.

I don't like that.

You own your own house?

Such as it is.

Get ready to transfer the title.

Somebody's going to pay my fee.

In view of the heinous
nature of this crime

and the substantial
possibility of flight,

bail is set in the amount

of $1 million. Who the hell

has $1 million? Chris, please,
please. Uh, Your Honor...

$1 million, sir.

What the hell... Chris,
Chris, I'll talk to him.

I'll talk to him.

I understand I have
you to thank for, uh, him.

Yeah.

I feel badly about this. Good.

You ought to.

Uh, Mr. Matlock? Hmm?

Before you talk to that judge,

there are a few things
you should know.

Come in.

You got a minute, Your Honor?

One minute is about
all I have, counselor.

Thank you.

And if it is about the case,

we should call the
assistant state's attorney.

Oh, that's up to you.

I'm here because it's
come to my attention

that you and the late Mayor
Barelli were old friends.

You're concerned
about conflict of interest.

As a matter of fact, I am.

Don't be.

I won't be sitting
on Reardon's trial.

I only sat on his,
uh, bail hearing

because Judge Powell was ill.

You can appeal the amount,
but you won't do any better.

Brian Barelli had
many old friends.

I'm due in court,
uh, Mr. Matlock,

so you'll excuse me.

Excuse me.

Here's the stuff you wanted.

Oh, thanks. It's the pictures.

And-and that's where
the killer was standing?

Yeah, it was right up there.

Come on down, Michelle.

You know her? Yeah.

That's Michelle
Thomas, my associate.

Is she married?

No. Engaged?

No.

Living with anybody?

No.

Damn.

Oh, here we go.

So, you think the killer

was hired by one
of these people.

Well, the press conference

wasn't called until
the last minute.

According to my source
in the mayor's office,

these people were
the only ones who knew

when and where it
was going to be called.

Hmm. Well, that's
Judge Stuart Franklin.

Ex-cop, ex-city councilman.

Good friend of Mayor Barelli.

I don't recognize this guy.

That's Jack Brennert.

He owns a couple of factories.

Good friend? Supposedly.

Why supposedly?

Because a couple of
days before the murder,

Brennert, Franklin and Barelli

got into a serious
shoving match.

What about?

I don't know.

Is that Mrs. Barelli?

Mm-hmm.

That's Joseph Chan,
Barelli's right-hand man.

What about this girl press aide?

Melissa Landis.

She's my source.

Ah.

Well, I guess we can
start with these four.

Yeah.

I'll get Tyler.

Maybe we got a
problem underneath.

Montero, look at
pump number one.

Got it.

I'll check up here.

Check number two pump!

Mr. Brennert?

Yeah! I'm Ben Matlock,

Chris Reardon's lawyer.

I'd like to ask you
a couple questions.

Come on.

That's a hard
hat area out there.

I didn't have one.

Right, I need this.

Some hotshot lawyer
gets hurt outside

and sues me out of business.

What's your problem, huh?

Defending a lunatic

like Reardon doesn't
keep you busy enough?

What do you want with me?

I understand you and the
mayor had quite a tussle

over at his place last week.

Says who?

Paul O'Neill.

He was right outside the window.

He heard the mayor accuse
you and Judge Franklin

of betraying him.

What did he mean by that?

Judge Franklin and I were there

to talk about a
run for the Senate.

There wasn't any fight.

Paul said there was.

Paul O'Neill was
trespassing, all right?

Maybe he, uh, made up the
story to justify what he did.

Now, you're going
to have to leave.

I'm busy. Really?

I heard your
business is way off.

Here... wear this.

Leave it by the front
door on your way out.

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Hey, Mr. Chan.

I'm, uh... I'm Ben Matlock,

uh, Chris Reardon's lawyer.

I saw your picture in the paper.

Yes, well, I, uh, suppose

you really have your
work cut out for you now,

don't you, Mr. Matlock?

How is that?

You haven't heard.

Well, the, uh, prosecution...

they have an eyewitness,
Melissa Landis.

Mayor Barelli's press aide?

She was standing right beside
the mayor when he was shot.

Saw the killer very clearly

and, uh, she says it
was Chris Reardon.

Huh.

She say why she was
so long in coming forward?

From what I understand,

she was at Janet Barelli's side

all the way up
until this morning.

Well, if you'll excuse me,
Mr. Matlock, I am quite late.

Uh, it was a
pleasure meeting you.

Uh, Mr. Chan?

Um, are you and, uh,
Jack Brennert good friends?

We're, uh... we're
planning a, uh,

memorial service
for the mayor, yes.

Then, uh, you weren't
worried that, uh...

I might see you here.

Must have been my imagination.

Hi. I'm here to
see Mrs. Barelli.

I'm Michelle Thomas.

I'm an attorney with
Ben Matlock's office.

I don't care who you are.

Mrs. Barelli is not ready
to talk to anyone yet.

Melissa.

It's all right.

I'll talk with her.

But I've got to go
back downtown.

Well, go ahead, I'll be fine.

Well, all right.

But just let the phone ring,
because I left the machine on.

Thank you, Melissa.

Good-bye.

I'm Michelle Thomas.

It's nice to meet you.

Shall we go in here?

I appreciate your seeing me.

Well, I'm only
doing what I believe

my husband would've wanted.

Please, have a seat.

Thank you.

Mrs. Barelli, I understand
your husband met with

Stuart Franklin and Jack
Brennert last Friday night.

That's correct.

Can you tell me what
the meeting was about?

Oh, I'm sorry.

I just said hello
and then I left.

Well, I-I understand that they
got into a violent argument.

No, I don't think so.

I was in the den reading.

It's right next door;
I would've heard.

Mrs. Barelli?

May I see you for a moment?

Yes, of course.

Will you excuse us?

Sure.

Hello. No one is available

to take your call right now.

Please leave your
name and number

at the sound of the beep

and your call will be
returned. Thank you.

Janice, this is Nicole Carlton.

I got your message.

If you really think
we should talk,

let's do it over lunch tomorrow.

The Señor, 1:00.

Oh, there he is.

The security guard
said we can go right up.

Great. Tyler
Hudson, Paul O'Neill.

Nice to meet you, Paul. Hey.

Uh, Nicole Carlton
called Janice Barelli today.

Who is Nicole Carlton?

A model.

The talk is she
and Mayor Barelli

were very, very good friends.

Oh, and the decanter
you said got broken

during the fight in
the mayor's library...

Yeah?

It's not broken anymore.

It's not crystal anymore either.

Mrs. Barelli replaced it.

Maybe she knows
more than she's saying.

Somebody's coming.

What do you suppose
they were fighting about?

I don't know.

Maybe we'll find out
in the mayor's office.

It's O'Neill and this
is the only way out.

It's no problem.

Oh!

It's Joseph Chan.
Call the paramedics.

Oh, whoa!

Hey!

I'll go this way. All right.

I, uh...

came in to get some names
and addresses I needed

out of the mayor's files
for the memorial service.

As, uh... soon as I
unlocked the door,

somebody came up from behind me,

shoved me in and, uh,
hit me over the head.

Did you get a look at him?

No... no, I didn't.

I did.

He was a little under six feet.

Looked exactly like the
guy who shot the mayor.

Any idea why someone would
want to steal files from the mayor?

Now, wait a minute.

That implies that the
mayor had something to hide.

It's not an unreasonable
assumption.

Yes.

Well, that is
simply not the case.

Now, if you'll excuse
me, I'm going home.

I'm very tired, and
my head is throbbing.

Good night.

You know, I'll be
the first to admit

I don't like Joseph Chan.

But if the mayor had
something to hide in his files,

Joseph Chan would know
exactly what and where.

Hmm.

Now, maybe he and his friend

came in here to get it.

Maybe they heard us coming,

and he had the other
guy knock him out.

That devious?

Oh, yeah.

He does keep showing up.

Mm-hmm.

You want to get
something to eat?

Uh, no, thanks.

I'm planning on having
a big lunch tomorrow.

Thank you for
joining me for lunch.

Yeah, give me some
more. Come on, come on.

Give me some more.

Yeah, yeah.

Like that, yeah.

Yeah!

Terrific.

That's a wrap.

Thanks, Nicole.

Thank you.

Ms. Carlton, hi.

I'm Michelle Thomas.

What's the ad for?

Perfume. Oh.

Do I know you? No.

I'm an attorney.

I'd like to talk to
you about the lunch

you had today with Mrs. Barelli.

First, she tries to pay me off,

and now she sics
her attorneys on me.

Is that it?

Tell her this for me, lady.

Tell her I have no
intention of telling anyone

about my relationship
with her husband.

Not because of her.

Because of him.

What Brian and I
shared was special.

You think I want to see the
news media get hold of it?

Watch them drag his
name through the mud?

So, tell her to leave me alone.

I don't work for Mrs. Barelli.

I represent the man
accused of killing the mayor.

So, uh, Mrs. Barelli

had money in that
envelope at lunch.

I think I've told you enough.

I don't think so.

Brian Barelli and
I were in love.

As soon as he became senator,

he was going to divorce
Janice and marry me.

I don't know whether
he told her that or not,

but if he did,

you ought to be talking to her.

You sure this is the
place you brought him?

Positive.

Thanks.

He gave me a 20.

Lucky for you.

Hey, give me a beer.

Looking for somebody?

Yeah, actually, I am.

Big guy.

Long hair... wears it
kind of long in back.

Fancy boots. You mean Eddie.

Yeah. Too bad.

You just missed him.

- Any idea where he went?
- We pretty much

keep our mouths shut around
here, know what I mean?

What do I look like, a cop?

Yeah.

I owe Eddie some
money from a card game.

He said he hung out here,

so I thought I'd drop
by and pay him off.

Leave the money with
me... I'll give it to him.

Tell you what.

Here's my name and phone number.

You have Eddie call me.

You're all mouth and
no brain, know that?

What are you talking about?

That guy didn't know Eddie.

He didn't even know his name

till you started
flapping your jaw.

Take this over to Eddie's hotel.

Tell him this guy
is looking for him.

Do it now.

♪ ♪

I'm due in court in five
minutes, Mr. Matlock.

You should've made
an appointment.

I know and-and I tried,

but you're a very busy man.

If you're not in court,

you're meeting
with civic leaders

or organizing charity events.

I've always served
my community, always.

Well.

Uh, you and
Brian Barelli were...

pretty close friends, right?

He was like a brother to me.

Uh, I gather he helped secure,

uh, your appointment
to the bench.

Though the way I hear it,

a lot of people were
surprised you took it.

You were a popular councilman

with a large constituency
on the South Side.

They kind of expected you
to become mayor one day.

Being a judge is more stable.

And, evidently, a lot safer.

Well.

An odd coincidence,
though, wasn't it?

What?

Less than a month
after your appointment,

the man who was mayor
resigned for reasons of health,

then, uh, Brian Barelli
became mayor and not you.

What are you getting at?

Well, maybe your old
friend sandbagged you.

Maybe he knew the man was ill.

Got you appointed judge
just to kind of, you know,

get you out of the way.

That is ridiculous.

Yeah, I guess, sure.

I mean, if you felt you
had a score to settle

with Mr. Barelli, why
wait around for three years

to do anything about it?

Of course, it
could explain that...

terrible argument.

Oh, here, let me help you.

What argument? Yeah.

Oh, the one out at his house.

He said you betrayed
him, remember?

That's funny. Imagine.

Accusing you of betraying him.

Golly, look at the time.

I'm due in court myself.

Maybe I'll see you there.

You never can tell.

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

Hear you're looking for me, huh?

Not anymore. So,
you carry a piece.

You a cop?

No, just paranoid.

Lots of senators get divorced.

Not if they want to
become president.

Oh.

Still, people might
think you were trying

to buy Miss Carlton
off as a way of...

covering up the fact that you
had a motive for killing him.

That's not true!

That's how it could look.

You don't intend

to make these
accusations public, do you?

Chris Reardon is
innocent, Mrs. Barelli.

Ben Matlock and
I intend prove that.

If we have to make
all this public, we will.

Is that a threat?

It's a strong suggestion

that you be honest with us.

I have been honest.

The argument your
husband had in here

with Franklin and Brennert,

what was it about?

I don't know.

I think you do.

I'd like you to leave now.

If you really

believed in
justice, Mrs. Barelli,

you'd help us find the
man who killed him.

Mr. Matlock.

Where have you been?

I caught up with the guy
we were chasing last night.

Actually, he caught up with me.

Knocked me out with my own gun,

which he then stole.

You were carrying a gun?

I thought I might
run into trouble.

You suckered me
into taking this case,

but now it's my case.

I'll tell you when, where and
if you're gonna get in trouble.

I'm already in trouble.

I don't have a
permit for the gun.

You've got to go find that gun.

I can't.

I've been subpoenaed.

What was the man who pointed
the gun at you wearing, Mr. O'Neill?

Jeans, an army
jacket, sunglasses,

and a Chicago Cubs baseball cap.

Now you accompanied
Sgt. Marshall

to the defendant's
apartment about an hour later,

correct? Yes.

When the defendant arrived home,

what was he wearing?

Jeans, an army
jacket, sunglasses,

and a Chicago Cubs baseball cap.

But... That's all, Mr. O'Neill.

Defense wish to cross? Please.

Uh, the man who
pointed the gun at you,

when you were chasing
him... Was it Chris Reardon?

No, it was not.

Melissa Landis said
it was Chris Reardon.

It was a guy dressed up
to look like Chris Reardon.

What makes you so sure?

Well, for one thing,
the man who shot

Mayor Barelli tore his
sleeve making his getaway.

The jacket Chris Reardon
was wearing an hour later

was not torn.

And for another thing,

the letter I got tipping me off

to the assassination was
not written by Chris Reardon.

An expert said it was
typed on his typewriter.

It was.

But whenever Chris wrote
to me about Mayor Barelli,

he always misspelled his name.

Instead of two
"L's" and one "R",

he always used two
"R's" and one "L".

Hmm.

Is there any other
reason you think

the assassin was someone
other than Chris Reardon?

Yeah.

To a lot of people Chris
Reardon is a royal pain in the...

I understand.

He protests.

He demonstrates.

He makes noise.

But that's because he believes
this can be a better place.

He sees what's wrong,
he doesn't give up.

But he doesn't kill people.

He's loud.

He bothers people.

So there's a lot of people

that'd like to
believe that he did it.

But I've talked with him,

I've written about
him, I know him.

Chris Reardon
couldn't commit murder.

Thank you.

Having heard

the testimony presented
by the prosecution,

this court finds reason
to believe the crime

of murder in the first
degree has been committed.

The defendant shall
be bound over for trial

on June 7, in district
court two at 9:00 AM.

Court adjourned.

Round one for the bad guys.

But you put up a
pretty good fight.

- Uh, Ben...
- Hmm?

Oh.

Janice Barelli, Ben Matlock.

Hello. Hello.

There was an
argument that night,

and Brian was very upset.

And you were right, Miss Thomas.

Whatever upset Brian,

I don't think he would have
wanted it swept under the rug.

You didn't hear anything?

Ask Joseph Chan.

He arranged that meeting.

He had to have known
what was going on.

It was nice to meet you.

Bye.

I've known Joseph
Chan a long time.

Let me check this out.

♪ ♪

Chan?

♪ ♪

Ben Matlock, please.

Ben, it's Paul.

Chan's been killed.

Shot through the chest.

Looks like it happened
just before I got here.

Okay.

Yeah, reporting a murder
at 2733 Woodman Avenue.

♪ ♪

What?

Hold it!

Freeze!

Oh, uh, Sergeant.

Matlock, right? Yes.

Reardon's lawyer? Yes.

Uh, is Paul O'Neill around?

Not anymore.

Where'd he go?

That's what we'd like to know.

A couple of my men
saw him leaving the scene

just as they arrived.

Had a gun on him.

What?

I'm putting a warrant
out for his arrest.

Too bad you're taken.

'Cause he's gonna need
one hell of a good lawyer.