Anatomy of a Murder

In the Upper Peninsula of Michigan, small-town lawyer Paul Biegler (James Stewart), a former district attorney who lost his re-election bid, spends most of his time fishing, playing the piano, and hanging out with his alcoholic friend and colleague Parnell McCarthy (Arthur O'Connell) and sardonic secretary Maida Rutledge (Eve Arden). One day, Biegler is contacted by Laura Manion (Lee Remick), the wife of US Army Lieutenant Frederick "Manny" Manion (Ben Gazzara), who has been arrested for the first-degree murder of innkeeper Bernard "Barney" Quill. Manion does not deny the murder, but claims that Quill forced himself upon his wife. Even with such a motivation, getting Manion cleared of murder would be difficult, but Manion claims to have no memory of the event (driven mostly by Beigler's insistence that the only defense Manion has is of temporary insanity), suggesting that he may be eligible for a defense of irresistible impulse-a version of a temporary insanity defense. Biegler's folksy speech and laid-back demeanor hide a sharp legal mind and a propensity for courtroom theatrics that has the judge busy keeping things under control. However, the case for the defense does not go well, especially since the local district attorney (Brooks West) is assisted by high-powered prosecutor Claude Dancer (George C. Scott) from the Attorney General's office. The investigations reveal that Barney Quill was a ex-boxer and had done time in federal prison. After his death, his bar was managed by his manager Mary Pilant (Kathryn Grant), who is also poised to inherit all of Quill's wealth. Biegler spends a lot of time with Laura, to get her story straight. She is very flirty with Biegler, but backs off the moment Biegler mentions that Manion suspects the 2 of them of having an affair. further investigations also reveal that Mary Pilant might have been Quill's mistress and that Quill was enraged by Mary's affair with a local, and got drunk and one night took his frustration out on Laura by forcing himself on her. One night Biegler has to pull away Laura from a jazz joint, where she is drunk and flirting with the army boys. Bielger strongly admonishes Laura and asks her sternly to be nothing but the perfect wife till the trial is over. Furthermore, the prosecution tries at every instance to block any mention of Manion's motive for killing Quill (The prosecution has not allowed Laura's photos to be part of the evidence on the night she was forced upon, nor would they allow the examining doctor to make any remarks on whether Quill ejaculated before his death. Also, none of the witnesses are allowed to answer any questions re: Laura's appearance while Quill's & Manion's appearance are debated at length). Biegler eventually manages to get Laura Manion's forced sex encounter into the record (During the cross questioning of a witness that prosecution brought to the stand) and Judge Weaver (Joseph N. Welch) agrees to allow the matter to be part of the deliberations. However, during cross-examination, Dancer insinuates that Laura openly flirted with other men, including the man she claimed forced himself upon her. Psychiatrists give conflicting testimony to Manion's state of mind at the time that he killed Quill. Dancer says that Manion may have suspected Laura of cheating on him because he asked his wife, a Catholic, to swear on a rosary that Quill forced himself upon her. This raises doubt as to whether the act was non-consensual. Moreover Dancer also establishes a pattern of jealous rage with Manion and clearly claims that Manion may have shot Quill in a fit of jealous rage when he found Laura lying on a Rosary about her forced sex by Quill. Quill's estate is to be inherited by Mary Pilant (Kathryn Grant), whom Dancer accuses of being Quill's mistress. McCarthy learns that she is in fact Quill's daughter, a fact she is anxious to keep secret since she was born out of wedlock. Biegler, who is losing the case, tries to persuade Pilant that Al Paquette, (Murray Hamilton) the bartender who witnessed the murder, may know that Quill admitted to forcing himself upon Laura, but Paquette is covering this up, either because he loves Pilant or out of loyalty to Quill. Through Pilant, Biegler tries to persuade Paquette to testify for the defense, but Paquette refuses. During the trial, Laura claims that Quill tore off her panties while forcing himself upon her; these panties were not found in the crime scene, where she alleges the forced sec encounter took place. Pilant, unaware of any details of the case, voluntarily returns to the courtroom to testify that she found the panties in the inn's laundry room. Biegler suggests Quill may have dropped the panties down the laundry chute, located next to his room, to avoid suspicion. Dancer tries to establish that Pilant's answers are founded on her jealousy. When Dancer asserts forcibly that Quill was Pilant's lover and that Pilant lied to cover this fact, Pilant shocks everyone by stating that Quill was her father. Manion is found "not guilty by reason of insanity". After the trial, Biegler decides to open a new practice, with a newly sober McCarthy as his partner. The next day, Biegler and McCarthy travel to the Manions' trailer park home to get Manion's signature on a promissory note which they hope will suffice as collateral for a desperately needed loan. It turns out the Manions have vacated the trailer park, however, with the trailer park superintendent commenting that Laura Manion had been crying. Manion left a note for Biegler, indicating that his flight was "an irresistible impulse"-the same terminology Biegler used during the trial. Biegler states that Mary Pilant has retained him to execute Quill's estate. McCarthy says that working for her will be "poetic justice".