Matlock (1986–1995): Season 4, Episode 15 - The Student - full transcript

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Motions in the Lindheim
case are due Monday,

arguments are on the 19th...

and Old Man Peterson
wants to come in to see you.

Oh, tell him next
week. Anything else?

That's it. How about lunch?



Templin's.

Great with me.

Ooh, I got to go.

You're not coming with us? No.

There's nothing
on your calendar.

I know it.

What was that about?

Beats me.

He has been
disappearing a lot lately.

You think he's up to something?

I don't know.

That dirty dog.

Hi.

Yeah, I know her.



Okay, I'll see you Wednesday.

Wednesday it is.

Hi, Ben.

Did you follow me?

Yeah, you didn't know, huh?

No, you're good.

Thank you.

What are you doing here?

Oh, learning stuff.

See, I, I, I know the law,

but there's a lot of stuff
I know nothing about

and then there's stuff
that I know a little bit about,

and so I'm curious.

You are?

Yeah, I bet you thought
only the young were curious.

Well, how many
courses are you taking?

Two.

Really? Yeah.

Uh, 20th century American
novel and anthropology.

Anthropology? Yeah.

That's the scientific
study of man

and where he came
from and how he got

to be that way.

It's good.

Yeah, it's good.

Hi, Marcy.

Hey, Mark, I think your wife's
looking for you over there, pal.

Wife?

Caught cheating.

Definitely an "F."

Yeah, well, it's been fun.

You don't deserve a
creep like that, Marcy.

Come on, J.D., you're not
still mad at me, are you?

Why wouldn't I be?

One day we're hot, the
next day we're nothing.

Who is he, Marcy? He?

Who are you seeing now?

Nobody.

Don't give me that.

I know you're seeing someone.

Professor Gallagher,
it's really nice to see you.

Come here to party?

Where were you this afternoon?

We had an appointment at 6:00.

I was working out with the team.

Well, I hope it was a good one

because it just
may be your last.

I don't think so,
Professor Gallagher.

We got a game with
Georgetown next week.

I just graded your
blue book, J.D.

Why don't you come
to class tomorrow?

Because afterwards you and I
are going to have a very long talk.

What a jerk.

You want a beer?

No, thanks.

Man...

John.

John.

There's something I
need to talk to you about.

Yeah, Marcy, I-I
don't have the time.

But you've been
saying that all week.

I'll call you, okay?

No, it's not okay.

John!

So... any questions?

Amazing.

I'll see you Monday.

By then, I should have
completed grading your blue books.

But do come to class
anyway, all right?

Bye. Ha, ha, ha.

Do you need anything,
Professor Gallagher?

Yeah, would you take these
books back to my office?

I'll be there shortly.

Thank you.

Mr. Baker.

What's going on?

I heard J.D. screwed
up on his midterm.

Jocks, huh?

Well, congratulations,
Mr. Baker.

You got yourself a perfect score

on the blue book.

Great.

You're a C-minus student

with the brain of a flea,

who never aced
a test in his life.

You cheated; I want to know how.

Hey, man, I didn't
cheat, I studied.

Oh, for... You are
a pinhead jock...

and you're getting an "F,"

which means academic
probation, Mr. Baker.

Which means no more
basketball, Mr. Baker,

until you bring it up to a "C."

You won't flunk me.

You don't tell me how you
aced that test, I promise you I will.

Hey, man, I don't have
to tell you anything.

We're number one
in the conference.

Why?

'Cause of me.

You really think
the administration

is gonna let some
English teacher

throw an unbeaten
team down the drain?

You got a surprise coming.

No, I'm sorry,
Mr. Baker, you do.

What are you talking about?

Hey, I'm not through yet.

Yes, you are.

I know about you and Marcy.

I followed Marcy out of
the frat house last night.

I saw you kissing her.

What's my grade now,
Professor Gallagher?

Oh, you really think what you
know makes any difference?

Hey... Could I talk to you for a
minute, Professor Gallagher?

Yeah, he's all yours.

You promised you'd call.

Not now, Marcy.

Please. I said not now!

Yes, now!

I want to know if it's true.

Is what true?

Are you seeing someone else?

Oh, for crying out loud!

Answer me!

Is it true?

Yes.

But I know you love me.

Marcy, you're very
beautiful, but love...

Professor, I made
you some fresh decaf.

I really believed you.

I thought you were for
real, that you were serious.

I never said that
this was serious.

I never said anything
that men don't say

to women that
they find desirable.

Now, I... I enjoy
being with you.

Now, if you
misunderstood that...

Misunderstood?

In class, when we were
reading Shakespeare,

didn't you talk about love
and passion and commitment?

And didn't you use those
same words with me?

Well, obviously, your
basketball players

have accustomed
you to a different style.

Oh, you bastard.

I'll tell the dean.

I'll tell the whole
damn board of directors

and have you fired.

Well, it won't work, darling.

I'm a star here.

I attract students and
grants to this campus,

and it's your word against mine,

and since they can't
afford to believe you,

they're going to believe me.

I hate you. Mm-hmm.

I really hate you, and I'll
get you if it's the last thing

I do!

Marcy.

He's crap, you can do better.

John?

Now what?

You're a brilliant man, John,

an extraordinary man.

From the first day I
walked into your class...

I worshipped you.

See, I thought
you were different.

I thought your word
meant something.

I mean, you're a man,
not a boy, but I was wrong

and next time I
won't be so naive.

Hmm.

Uh, correct me if I'm wrong,

but what I hear you saying
is that all men are alike.

Yes, you are.

Whether you're young
like J.D. or over the hill

like you, it makes no
difference, and next time

I'll protect myself
a little bit better.

Good-bye.

Oh, my God.

Hey, you're going to
have to leave. He's dead.

We're conducting an investigation
here. My, God, he's... he's dead.

Joey, get him out of here

and get some tape over here.

Sir, I-I know who did it.

I know who did it!

I know who did it!

Hello, Bob.

Ben.

What are you doing here?

I'm going to see Marcy Hansen.

Really? You know her?

Yeah, she sits next
to me in American lit.

You always leave
your door unlocked?

Well, we lock it at
night, but in the daytime,

my roommates and I
are in and out so much,

it's not worth the trouble.

That's probably how the
killer got your scissors.

Mm-hmm.

Uh, this... this, uh, boy

who said he heard you threaten,

uh, John Gallagher...

Yeah, Paul Knight.

He was always running
errands for... for John,

doing research for him,
hanging around his office.

Oh, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.

He followed him like a shadow.

Mm-hmm, that's him.

Yeah.

Uh... well,

how long did your, uh, affair

last with the professor?

It was a little over a month.

Will I have to talk
about this in court?

Oh, yeah.

Yeah.

Uh, Marcy, uh,

you're not the first young girl

to make a mistake and have...

an affair with an older,
more experienced man.

But it was more than an affair.

I mean, I adored him.

He inspired me.

He knew everything.

And when I was with him,

you know, I just
felt so special.

And then, when he dumped me...

Well, that's the way of it.

Did anybody else know

about your, uh, relationship?

Well, I guess Mark Carter did.

He was standing right there

when I was screaming
at John in his office.

Mark Carter? Oh, and...

oh, never mind.

What? Well,

when I showed up,

John was arguing
with J.D. Baker,

and he was accusing J.D.

of cheating on his midterm.

Oh, if that's true, then
J.D. is off the team,

and there goes the championship.

Anybody else?

No, not that I can remember.

Oh.

Yeah, well, what about, uh...

uh, what about your parents?

Well, my mom's
dead... Long time ago...

And my dad's in the air force.

Special assignment, Far East.

Shouldn't we tell him?

No, we're sort of on the outs.

Why? Well, you know,

he doesn't approve
of the way I...

you know, live.

Oh.

Boy, he's going
to hit the ceiling

when he finds about this one.

Well, uh, I'll go back

to the campus and...

ask around and see if I can, uh,

come up with anything.

Well, you believe me, don't you?

Well, you've been up
front about everything else,

so... yeah.

Oh, good.

Hi.

Oh, oh, hi, Michelle.

Uh, Michelle Thomas,
this is Marcy Hansen.

Hi. Uh, uh, I got to go.

You come on in and sit down

and have a chat with Marcy,

and I'm sure you'll get
the gist of everything.

Excuse me.

Paul Knight?

I'm Michelle Thomas,
Ben Matlock's associate.

We're representing Marcy Hansen.

Oh.

I was right there when
she threatened him.

Come on, Paul.

You really think
she'd be dumb enough

to kill him and then
walk out of the office

in full sight of the janitor?

She's an airhead.

Thinks a one-month affair is
the same as total commitment.

How did you know it
was a one-month affair?

I'm here a lot.

You and Professor
Gallagher were close?

He was my friend...
And my mentor.

He was helping me
get into graduate school.

Do you know what other
women he was seeing?

Just one.

Debbie Carter,

the wife of one of his
students, Mark Carter.

Mark Carter, yes.

Well, thanks, Mr. Knight.

You've been a big help.

You had to be
removed from the scene

of the crime that
night, didn't you?

Yeah. I heard the sirens

and saw the cops
go into the building.

When I saw Professor Gallagher,

I... I got pretty upset.

Oh, I bet.

Where were you just before that,

when the murder
was taking place?

In the campus library, studying.

Oh, why not in here?

I had to use the stacks.

I was doing research.

Ah.

Thanks.

Miss Thomas. Yes?

Um, when you go out,

you probably only date,
like, successful lawyers.

No, I date

men I like.

You ever date younger men?

Well, that depends on the
man and how much younger.

Would I be too...

Sorry.

Yeah, it's okay.

Thank you. Mm-hmm.

Sure.

Hey, Baker.

What?

You guys always run
during the season?

Yeah.

Heard you and
Professor Gallagher

had it out the other day.

Where did you hear that?

Never mind.

Whatever I do gets around.

What was it about?

I aced a test.

Doesn't happen too often.

Like, never.

Anyway, he accused
me of cheating.

Said he was going to flunk me.

Man, that would've
meant suspension,

probation from the team.

I wouldn't let that happen, man.

Yeah, but how could you

stop him from flunking you?

I put this school on the map.

Enrollment's up.

Alumni they thought were dead

are sending in donations.

They wouldn't yank me
for one lousy crib test.

Oh, so you did cheat.

Okay, what's the deal?

I'm a private investigator,
Conrad McMasters.

So, you think I
killed Gallagher?

Well, can you remember
where you were that night?

Yeah. So can about
20 other people.

I was practicing with the
team from 6:30 till 9:00.

See ya.

Hi. What did you get?

Uh, B-plus.

I mixed up Cro-Magnon
with Java man.

Oh. Yeah.

What'd you get? An A.

All right, cool.

Want to go over right now?

Yeah.

Uh, are you Mark Carter?

Uh, Mark Carter? No? No.

Are you Mark Carter?

Mark Carter?

Yes.

Um, I-I-I'm, uh...

What is that class?

Oh. Human sexuality.

Oh, they teach that now?

Well, understanding
sex goes a long way

towards understanding
human psychology.

You are?

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

I'm Marcy Hansen's lawyer.

Uh, is that your
major... Psychology?

Yeah, with an eye
towards business school.

Harvard, of course.

Oh.

Oh, that's... that's
where I, uh... yeah.

Uh, do you-you-you
take, uh, English classes?

Yeah, I am...

or I was in Professor
Gallagher's course.

Oh. I... I understand
he was familiar

with, uh, human sexuality.

He was sleeping with my wife.

Is that what you're getting at?

You knew?

My wife and I have
an open marriage.

You wouldn't understand.

Anyway, I suppose

you'd like to know where I was

at the time of the murder.

Isn't that the sort
of question you ask?

Often.

Well, I was right in there.

Lab night... We were
assigned a movie.

On human sexuality?

Practical applications thereof.

Uh-huh.

Mark Carter knew

that his wife was, uh...

you know.

Yeah.

And J.D. was working
out with the team.

And Paul Knight...

here... there's his
address on that paper.

And that's his picture

in the yearbook.

Now, I want you

to follow him and find out

what kind of stuff he's up to.

Yeah. Okay.

So, Mark Carter
knew his wife was...

you know.

Yeah. MAN: Hey, look out!

Oh...

Ben...

I blew it.

Wow.

I'm impressed.

Yeah, well...

I taught him
everything he knows.

Uh, Marcy Hansen, this
is Conrad McMasters.

Aren't you the girl I saw
talking to J.D. Baker?

Well?

So, I dated J.D.

When?

Right before I got
involved with John.

Why didn't you tell me?

Because I was afraid
you would ask me

if I was sleeping with him.

Well, I guess I know
the answer to that one.

What were you talking
to him about at the track?

I was just telling
him not to tell anyone

what I just told you.

I mean, not that you wouldn't
have found out eventually.

And the DA will, too.

You can bet on that.

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So, what's going on?

I, uh, I was just looking
for a term paper I wrote

for professor Gallagher.

He said it was the
best he ever read

on Browning's imagery.

And I wanted it back.

You didn't make a copy?

No, dumb of me, huh?

I was in a hurry.

You know, Gallagher thought I
could get that paper published.

Yeah, you're good;
it's hard to believe

you didn't make a copy.

You can run, but you can't hide.

Guy's name is Ronald Marlow.

He's in the same
British literature class

with J.D. Baker and Mark Carter.

But breaking into somebody's
office just to get papers back

does not make sense.

So, I poked around afterwards
and I didn't find any papers.

His or anybody else's.

So, he must've been
after something else.

Well, John doesn't
assign term papers.

Just blue book tests.

That's what he was doing
the night I went to talk to him.

He was reading blue books.

I didn't find any blue books.

Look at this police picture.

The only thing on his desk
are textbooks and his computer.

You sure he's
reading blue books?

Yeah, I'm positive.

That's the test he
thought J.D. cheated on.

He was reading the blue books

and entering the
grades into his computer.

I saw him doing it.

The computer's off.

Well, then he
must've finished them.

What could he have
done with them?

Maybe the killer took
them. I don't know. Mm.

Did you find out
anything about that Paul,

uh, what's his name, Knight?

Yeah, he studies. That's it?

No, he took a break.

He escorted a female
friend to a lecture,

then he shook hands
with her afterwards,

and he went back and
he studied some more.

Hmm.

Disappearing blue books?

No... you think
that's what that fellow

Marlow was really
after? Blue book exams?

Well, it'd be
worthwhile to find out.

Hello?

Ronald Marlow, please.

Yeah, this is he.

Uh, Mr. Barlow,

this is Alfred St. James.

I'm one of Dean
Ferguson's assistants.

She asked me to go through

the late Professor Gallagher's
things, sort of tidy up

for the person who's
gonna be taking his classes.

Anyway, I have here a stack

of blue books from
his Brit lit course.

They're all critiqued
and graded.

You can see yours if you'd like.

Uh, I would love to.

Good, then I'll just stick
them in an envelope

and leave them at the info desk.

All right, that's great.

And hey, thanks
a lot for calling.

Don't mention it.

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Hey, what's up?

You did cheat on
John's test, didn't you?

What makes you think that?

Ron Marlow had
copies of all the tests

the professor was
gonna give all season,

and I'll bet you did, too.
That's how you aced it.

You're out of your mind.

Where did you get the tests?

Hey, man, I don't know
what you're talking about.

J.D., please. Now, we all know

that Marcy didn't
steal those tests.

But whoever did
could be the real killer.

Now, J.D., as mad as
you may be at Marcy,

she once meant something to you,

and I'm sure a
friendship like that

isn't easy to forget.

I know you want to help.

You're serious, you
think I stole those tests?

Paul, you had the
run of his office.

Because he
trusted me implicitly.

I think you stole the tests,

the professor found out
about it, so you killed him.

Why? So he wouldn't
have you expelled!

No, no, I mean, why
would I steal the tests?

I'm a straight A
student; I love to study.

The lowest grade I've
ever gotten is a B-plus.

And I have 165 IQ.

Or did I cheat
on that test, too?

Come on, you stole the tests

so you could sell them
to your classmates.

Are you kidding? A guy could
make a fortune doing that.

That's right, Paul.

Michelle, I'm here
on a scholarship.

I don't have a car,
I live in a dump,

I eat one meal a day
because that's all I can afford,

and I have exactly 553 dollars
and 92 cents in a bank account

and you can check it.

I will.

Forget that I ever
asked you out.

Are you suggesting I knew

what was going to be
asked on that midterm

before I even took the test?

No, I'm telling you.

Well, it's not true.

I mean,

how would I know?

Well, you either bought or stole

copies of all the tests
the professor planned

to give this term.

I did no such thing.

You did, and we both know it.

You can't prove I cheated

on that test.

As far as I know, Gallagher
hadn't even graded it yet.

All you know is, it wasn't
in his office last night.

It's just a matter
of time, Mr. Marlow.

Uh... have you ever been
subpoenaed to appear in court?

It's frightening.

See, Ronald Marlow
couldn't have stolen

the test by himself.

He's too high-strung.

Are you listening?

No, I'm studying
so I won't flunk.

You think he did it?

What... what?

Steal the test himself.

Oh, no, but I think he'll
lead us to whoever did.

Who's that?

That's Mark Carter.

Hi.

Ben Matlock.

Paul Knight?

I'm not stealing anything.

Michelle tells me you
have $553 in the bank.

That's right.

The dean asked me to, uh,

pull all of Professor
Gallagher's files.

He kept everything
in this computer.

You know how to
operate that thing?

Pretty standard stuff.

Anybody with a
rudimentary knowledge

of computers could
do what I'm doing.

Well, didn't

the professor use some
kind of access code?

He said it would be too
much of a bother to remember,

which, as it turns
out, was a mistake.

That's how those
tests got stolen.

They were stolen
from the computer?

Mm-hmm.

What are you doing here?

I'm working.

The place was broken into

two or three nights ago.

Oh, yeah.

Was it ever broken into before?

No.

Did the professor
always keep it locked?

Always.

Okay.

Take a look at this.

These are all the
grades people earned

in the professor's
British lit course.

As you can see, I'm
the last person there

that needed to
cheat on the midterm.

Hmm.

All A's.

Not bad.

What's this?

Uh, time log.
Computer automatically

records the date and
time of every entry.

Oh, look at that.

J.D. Baker... F.

Punishment for cheating.

The professor rarely
flunked anyone.

Huh, Gerald Eubanks... F.

Ronald Marlow... F.

Mark Carter...

Well, that's interesting.

Look at that.

Huh.

Mr. Carter,

I understand you planned
to go to graduate school.

That's right. Harvard.

Business.

That's where the
money is these days.

Harvard, uh, is an
expensive school.

I mean, you got to have money

to go there to learn
how to make money.

How are you going to
handle that? Well, I'm sure...

I'm sure I can get
some sort of scholarship.

Yeah. And I have some savings,
and my wife intends to work.

Your wife?

I understand that, uh,

uh, your wife

and Professor Gallagher,

uh, were well-acquainted.

They were sleeping together.

Hmm. And you knew that?

My wife tells me everything.

Hmm. So,

you knew when and where

Professor Gallagher and
your wife were gonna meet.

Yes. We have an open marriage.

If you knew when

Professor Gallagher was
gonna be with your wife,

you also knew when he
was not gonna be in his office.

Well, I...

Yeah, so on an evening

when you knew
Professor Gallagher was...

otherwise occupied
with your wife,

you went to his office,
turned on his computer,

and stole the midterm tests

from his British literature
class, didn't you?

No.

And then, you sold copies

of those stolen tests to
your fellow classmates.

No. Do you know...?

You know Mr. Ronald Marlow?

What if I were to tell you

that he is prepared to testify

that he paid you $2,000

for his copy of
that stolen test?

What would your reply be?

He's lying. Uh-huh.

How about, uh, J.D.
Baker and Gerald Eubanks?

They lying, too?

I'm going to object, Your Honor.

Whether he sold them
or not is not relevant

to this prosecution.

The hell it's not!

No profanity, Mr. Matlock.

Excuse me, Your Honor,

but this is relevant.

We are going
somewhere with this.

It will tie together.

Overruled.

Watch the cussing.

Yes, sir.

Now...

these are telephone records

subpoenaed by this court.

And they show...

every phone call

that was made from
the professor's office

the night he was murdered.

The number dialed,
the time it was dialed,

and the person the
number belonged to.

And this is a printout

from Professor Gallagher's
personal computer.

Shows the name of every student

who was in his
British literature class,

and the grade they
received on the midterm.

A blue book.

And it also shows
the date and the time

he punched that
grade into the computer.

Now, look right here

at these telephone
records, Mr. Carter.

On the night he was murdered,

Professor Gallagher
made three phone calls.

First, see. Five-five-five-

seven-eight-six-eight.

That's Gerald
Eubank's number, okay?

Second... five-five-five...

see that? Oh-nine-four-seven.

That's Ronald Marlow's number.

Now the third number.
You recognize that number?

That's my number. Aha.

Yeah.

So he talked to
you that night, huh?

No. He must have
talked to my wife.

Oh, no, Mr. Carter.

He talked to you.

See, he had called Mr. Eubanks

and accused him of
cheating on the midterm,

just as he had accused
J.D. Baker earlier in the day.

And see right here.

After he made the
call to Mr. Eubank,

at 5:11 p.m.,

on December 8, Mr. Gallagher
entered the grade... see? Look.

Here. F...

besides Mr. Eubanks' name.

Then after he called Mr. Marlow,

he did the same thing with him.

But Mr. Marlow will testify

that after Professor
Gallagher confronted him,

he told the truth.

He told him that you are the one

he bought the test from.

That's a lie.

So-so, that's, that's why he
placed the call to you, see?

We never talked! Uh-huh.

Did-did he tell you he was
going straight to the dean?

Or did he remind you

that proof of cheating
on an exam results

in immediate
expulsion because of

university rules?

We had no such conversation.

Expelled for cheating.

That means not... not
even a B.A. degree.

Forget Harvard business school
or any other business school.

Your career was ruined...

Till you remembered the
fight that Marcy Hansen had

with Professor Gallagher,

then you knew she
was your perfect setup.

You went to her apartment,

took her scissors.

Went back to his
office, stabbed him,

and then you took
all the blue books

so that your name could never

be associated with
the cheating scandal.

That's not true.

I couldn't have
done any of that.

I-I was in class, damn it!

Watch the cussing.

That class runs from 7:00
p.m. to 9:00 p.m., doesn't it?

Right. Yeah.

And they showed a
movie that night, right?

Yes. Human Sexuality.

Pretty explicit stuff?

Yeah. Yeah.

Be pretty easy for a
person to slip out of

a darkened lecture hall showing
stuff like that on the screen,

wouldn't it?

That's what...
just what you did.

No. Yes, you did,
and there's one

other thing in Professor
Gallagher's office

to prove it.

See, getting rid of the blue
books wasn't enough for you.

You had to be sure there
was nothing in his files

that could harm you.

So, knowing how to
operate the computer,

you turned it on
to get a little look

at the list of grades.

This list.

And I don't know how you did it.

I don't know...

I don't know whether
you invented it,

or you changed it, or what.

But I do know

that at 19:29,

that evening...
That is 7:29 p.m...

You gave yourself a grade.

An A.

I did not.

How do you know that
he didn't give me that A?

Maybe he did, but
we know the janitor

who was on duty that night
has testified in this court

that Marcy Hansen
left the professor's office

at 7:20.

7:20.

Now, if he gave you that A,

we know he was alive at 7:29.

Marcy Hansen could
not have done it.

If he did not give you that A,

then we know that
someone other than my client

was in his office
after she left.

And we both know
that person was you,

Mr. Carter.

You killed him.

This is a longwinded story.

You-you don't have any proof.

I don't need any proof.

I just need to show
that she didn't do it.

The D.A. needs the proof.

And if I were you,

I'd be looking over my shoulder
every damn minute. Apologize.

Because I know
the district attorney.

And she hates to fail
worse than you do.

Oh, thank you. Thank you.

Well, now we can
get back to school.

Yeah, we got a lot to do. Yeah.

What do you gotta do? Well,
I got my American lit paper.

On what? I was
thinking Hemingway.

He's good.

Or Faulkner.

He's good.

Which one would you choose?

I don't know.
They're both terrific.

Well, let's say we have
a few and talk it over?

Sounds good. Sure does.

It's new for me, but why not?

Yeah. Hey, Charlie!

What'll you have?

Four hotdogs all the way.