Sound off for Chesterfield. Chesterfield, first with premium quality and best for you. Chesterfield brings you Dragmen. Ladies and gentlemen, the story you are about to hear is true. The names have been changed to protect the innocent. You're a detective sergeant. You're assigned to homicide detail. A young girl has been shot with a.22 caliber rifle. It was reported as suicide. Your job, investigate. Here is Chesterfield's record with smokers and important to you. No adverse effects to the nose, throat and sinuses from smoking Chesterfield. That's the report of a doctor who has been examining a group of Chesterfield smokers for a full year and two months as a part of a program supervised by a responsible independent research laboratory. Don't you want to try a cigarette with a record like this? Chesterfield, first with premium quality. Chesterfield, first choice of young America. And that's from a survey made in 274 colleges and universities. Try Chesterfield's today. Chesterfield, regular or king size. They're much milder and best for you. Dragmen, the documented drama of an actual crime. For the next 30 minutes in cooperation with the Los Angeles Police Department, you will travel step by step on the side of the law through an actual case transcribed from official police files. From beginning to end, from crime to punishment, Dragnet is the story of your police force in action. It was Monday, June 8th. It was warm in Los Angeles. We were working the day watch on a homicide detail. My partner is Frank Smith. The boss is Captain Warman. My name is Friday. Because I'm on my way into the office and it was 8.03 a.m. when I checked into room 42. Homicide. Joe? Yeah? Back here in the skipper's office. Ray Geese wants to talk to you. All right. Morning, Joe. Hi, Ray. What do you got? Suicide. Anything on it? Here's the report. Team from the business office went out last night. Get on it right away, will you? Right, Ray. Let's go. Yeah. Want to check this stuff before we get started? Might as well give us an idea of what we got to do. Let's report to say there you got it. Let's see, according to this, business office got a call at 2.30 this morning. Landlady out in the Westlake Park district called in and said that this young girl had committed suicide. Did they get an ID on her? No, they got her listed as Jane Doe, number 17. There's a description here. Better check out the missing persons, huh? Uh-huh. How'd the landlady happen to find the body? Well, according to the report, she heard the water running in the apartment, finally went up to see what it was. She knocked on the door, nobody answered. She opened it and went in, found the body. Well, the girl didn't live in the apartment then? No, places rented to her, Ross Mitchell. Anything on him? No, he says he wasn't home. He was checked through R&I, no make on him. How about prints on the victim? No go. Checked him out. Nothing on her here. We could send him on to Washington. Yeah. And then he found a suicide note. There's a copy of it here. What's it say? Ross, I've tried to make you understand. Nothing seems to do any good. I've told you that I won't stand in the way of your career, but you don't want to try to make a go of it. I know this doesn't solve anything. It's the only way I can think of. Any signature? No. The report says that the original copy's over at the crime lab for processing. Well, I guess we better start with the landlady, huh? It's the best lead we got. Glendo and Bates are out there now. Place was staked right away. Friday, you want a tech too? Right, thanks Ray. It's Friday time. Yeah. Uh huh. No, we just got it. Was that right? Okay, Max. No, have him wait there, will you? No, we'll be right over. Right, thank you. Well, it's a little break. Max over at the coroner's office says they know who the girl is. Yeah. Her father just identified the body. 8 14 a.m. We left the city hall and we went over to the hall of justice. We met the victim's father, a Mr. Robert Andrews Paul. He told us that there could be no mistake. The body was that of his daughter, Gloria Z. Paul. The attendant had given him some smelling salts and after introducing us, he'd left to close off the viewing room. I don't understand why she'd do it. None of it makes sense. When did you see your daughter last, Mr. Paul? Saturday afternoon. That was the last time. I never saw her again. She was gone Saturday night and all day yesterday, is that it? Yeah. You hear from her at all? No. Weren't you worried about her at all? No, sometimes she doesn't come home, stays with a girlfriend, but when I didn't hear from her last night, I got worried, started calling around. She say where she was gone when she left? Told me she was going over to see Peggy. Said the two of them were going to a show and that she'd be home for dinner, sure. Who is this Peggy? Peggy Rockwell, a friend of Gloria's. Have you talked to her? What? I say, have you talked to this Peggy since your daughter disappeared? Yes, I called her last night. I talked to her then. I was most out of my mind. I didn't know what to do. I talked to her last night. She didn't know. Did your daughter know anybody named Ross Mitchell? Ross Mitchell? No, I don't think I've ever heard the name. Why do you ask that? I just wondered. You know something about this you're not telling me, is that it? No, sir, we don't. Well, it must be something like that. You don't just come up with a name like that out of thin air. You got to have a reason. Now look, I'm a father. I got a right to know. All night sitting there waiting for the phone to ring, calling her friends, thinking she's been in an accident, imagining all kinds of things. If you know something, you should tell me. I've got to know. How am I going to tell her mother? Poor woman's almost dead with worry. She doesn't know about this. All she knows is that the baby's gone. That's all. The baby's gone. Gloria is dead. I don't know what to do. All right, Mr. Paul, try to take it easy. I'm sorry if you got a cigarette. Yes, sir. Here you go. Here, I'll give you a light. I'm sorry about that. It's all right, sir, we understand. And do you think you can give us an address where we can talk to this Peggy Rockwell? Yes, she works at a restaurant over on Seventh. I've got a home address, too, if you want it. We hope you'll understand this, Mr. Paul. We don't mean any offense here. What's that? Did your daughter have any steady boyfriends that you know about? No, I don't think so, knowing that she went with steady. No one man she liked more than the others? I think there was. I don't know who. Her mother asked her about it a couple of times, wanted to know who the fellow was, but Gloria never said. Just said that it wasn't serious. It didn't matter. I'd seem to get along with this man, would you know? All right, I guess. I told you I never saw him. I didn't know who he was. But whenever Gloria had a date with him, she acted like it was something special. Did your daughter have a job? Not regular. She used to model once in a while, and then maybe she'd pick up a day's work and pictures, not much. Can you think of any reason why she'd want to take her own life? No. She seemed pretty happy, never gave any indication there was anything wrong. She been ill lately under a doctor's care? No, not that I know about. Mr. Paul, is it possible she might have been seeing a doctor and you wouldn't know about it? No, her mother would have known. She'd have told me. Now, I'm pretty sure she was feeling all right. Anything about her job that bothered her? What do you mean? Well, was she happy with what she was doing, the kind of work she was doing? Oh, yeah. Gloria didn't want a career. She was looking for a husband, one to settle down and raise a family. Well, can you think of anything at all that might make her want to take her own life, as I ask you? I can't understand it. None of it makes any sense to me. Where she was found, she didn't know anybody in that part of town. I don't know what she'd be doing over there. Could she drink? I don't think I understand. Well, did she drink much, sir? Bars, cocktail lounges? No, she didn't. Now, Gloria was a good girl. She didn't drink or smoke. She was a good girl. And I don't understand all this. First, this thing with Ross. Now, you want to know if she drinks. I don't know what you're trying to get at, but I don't like it. You're trying to make Gloria something that she isn't. She's a good girl, always has been. Just a home and family. It's all she wanted, nothing more. I don't know why you're asking me all these questions. I'm her father. You're the police. It's up to you to find the reason. That's your job. Not to come around and say things about my girl. I'm sorry. We're not saying anything, Mr. Paul. You're trying to make me believe that Gloria wasn't a nice girl. I know different. I raised her since she was a baby. I gave her all the care I could. I don't know why she'd do a thing like this. You don't? No. Why ask me these questions? Well, sir, you said it yourself. You're her father. We continue to talk to the father of the victim. From him, we got a list of the girl's friends, the address and the names of the people that she worked for. While we were talking to him, he was unable to give us any ideas as to why his daughter, Gloria Paul, might want to take her own life. He insisted that he didn't know anybody or any one of his daughter's acquaintances named Ross Mitchell. A telephone call was put through to his wife, but she was unable to tell us who the man was. 8.20 a.m. Mr. Paul recovered from the initial shock and he went home. 8.39 a.m. We drove over to the roaming house where Gloria Paul had been found. On the way, we stopped to call the crime lab to see if they'd been able to come up with anything in the dead girl's effects to help us. Lieutenant Lee Jones at the lab told us that they hadn't finished their investigation yet. 8.50 a.m. We arrived at the house and talked with the landlady, Selma Keen. It's terrible. Poor little thing. You haven't seen Ross Mitchell yet, have you? No, he hasn't come in. I told the officers last night that I didn't expect him until noon today. Have you seen the girl before? Once in a while. She'd come in with Ross, wait for him and then they'd go right out. Did you see her last night, son? I told the officers that were here last night that I didn't. Didn't you talk to them at all? Yes, ma'am. We have a report they filed, Mrs. Keen, but we'd like to get some additional facts from you. It seems like a waste of time, but I suppose you have to. Yes, ma'am. Do you have any idea when she might have come in? No, not the slightest. When was the last time you saw Mitchell? Saturday around noon. He came in and told me that he'd be out of town over the weekend. He said for me to keep an eye on the place. Yes, ma'am. Did he tell you where he was going? He said he was going to visit an assistant director friend of his over in La Piñata. Did he say what the friend's name was? No, they're working on a picture together. Ross just met him the other day, asked him out for the weekend. Ross was very good at making friends. Do you know where he's working? No. Ross just said it was a sea adventure, doing it in full color, 3D, too. I guess it's going to be quite a spectacle. I didn't have all the gimmicks in my day. Ma'am. Didn't have 3D or the other things. My day, we acted. We knew how to act from the heart. These youngsters are good flack. Make a star out of anybody. Oh, things have changed. And here, this one. That's me with the pith helmet. This was made over on Catalina Island. We were shooting a jungle picture. We acted. No doubles for us. Real actors. Hmm. When was this, ma'am? A few years ago. Now, why are you asking all these questions about Ross? Well, a note the girl left was addressed to him. That doesn't mean anything. Just some lovesick girl. Doesn't mean Ross had anything to do with it. How'd you happen to find the body? I went to bed about 10.30. They were running one of my old movies on TV, and I stayed up to see it. You happened to catch it. The thing called The Floods Will Come. Made it over at Catalina. It starred Nick Benton. Real movie idol. Here's one of the stills from the picture. Yes, ma'am. Here's the whole company. That's me. And that's Nick with the patees. He put on a little weight. I remember he had to do road work while we were there to trim down. Held the company up for a week. The grand picture. They didn't do it right on television, though. Look, look horny. I guess the way they ran it through the machines. You know, we all looked pasty. Even Nick. Yes, ma'am. Would you go on, please? Well, after I saw the rest of the picture, I went up to the kitchen, got a bowl of shredded wheat to eat in bed. Came back to the bedroom, and I heard this noise. What noise was that, ma'am? Like somebody was running water in one of the taps. Went on and on. Pretty soon it started to bother me. I couldn't understand it. Finally, I went up to see who it was. Noise came from Ross's apartment. I'd knocked, but there wasn't any answer, so I unlocked the door and went in. I thought something was wrong. That's when I saw her. I see. She was lying on bed. Right away, I called the police. Now, before you went up, did you hear any other noises? Any sound of a struggle, anything like that, maybe? No. Just the water running. I didn't see a lot of shots, ma'am. You hear that? No, no, I didn't. A lot of shooting in the picture I was watching. Did you touch anything in the room? No, I turned the lights, but that's all. The room was dark when I went in. Just turned on the lights, and then I called you. According to our report, there wasn't any purse found in the body. Did you see one when you went in there? I didn't. But if I had, you'd gotten it. What are you trying to say, that I stole her purse? Is that what you're trying to say? No, ma'am, that's not what we're trying to say. Better not. I've got a reputation in this town. I know a lot of big people. I'm not going to have you come in here and call me a thief. Well, we didn't mean to offend you, ma'am. Who has a key to Mitchell's place besides him, ma'am? No one. He's got the only one. I don't like a lot of keys to the rooms out. I tell all the tenants that. Have you got any idea how the girl might have gotten into the room? No. Do you know who the gun belonged to? Yes, it was Ross's. You're pretty sure about that, are you? Yes, I saw it when he moved in. Commented on it then. He said that he'd had it since he was a kid. Kept it out of sentiment. What's this all about, anyway? You seem to think that there's something wrong with that here. No, ma'am. It's just that in things like this, we have to make a complete investigation. You can understand. Oh, well, I want to do all I can to help you, but I do have an appointment. If there's nothing more you want, I'd like to be going. That's all right, Miss King. If we want to talk to you, we'll be able to reach you here? Yes, right here. We'll give you a call to tell you about the inquest. Am I going to have to be there? Yes, ma'am. You and Mitchell. Why him? Well, it was his apartment, ma'am. But he didn't have anything to do with it. Well, maybe so, ma'am, but he'll still have to be there. It's not fair. A thing like this can ruin him. By the time the papers get through it, he'll be finished. It can ruin his career. He doesn't know anything about it. He won't be able to tell you anything. You're wrong there, ma'am. He's got a lot to explain. We went upstairs and met the officer staked out in the room and looked at the apartment where the girl had been found. 9.20 a.m. We gave our card to Thelma Keen and asked her to call us if she thought of anything else. We also asked her to notify us immediately in the event she heard from Mitchell. The stakeout on the room continued. 9.52 a.m. We drove over to the coffee shop on West 7th Street to talk to the girl's friend, Peggy Rockwell. We found her in the back of the place typing out the day's menus. What about Gloria? Something wrong? When was the last time you saw her, miss? Let's see. Saturday night. She stayed at my house. Left about noon on Sunday. I had the day off. Figured that maybe we'd do something, but Gloria said she had something to do. Last I saw her was on Sunday morning. You know a man named Ross Mitchell? That bum. Why do you say that, miss Rockwell? Because he is. Real no good. You're pretty friendly with Miss Paul? Gloria thought so. It turned out he was just using her. How do you mean? Thought at first she could get him some jobs. Turned out when he could do better, he dropped her. They were going to get married and then he thought he could do better, so he dropped her. Say, do you mind if I go ahead with these menus? The boss will be sore if I don't get through with them. No, you go right ahead, miss. We can talk while I'm doing it. Yes, ma'am. I took the coarse ones, touch typing. Didn't think I'd ever use it. Boy, was I fooled. You go right ahead, miss. Well, this Ross really gave her the rush. Had her take him around, introduce him to her friends. She got him a couple of jobs. She's the one who introduced him to Mike. Mike? Yeah, Mike Cowlitz, Ross' agent. Peggy set it up. She's done just about everything for him. Then the bum acts like this. What do you mean, miss? Treated her so bad. Say, how do you spell croquettes? Well, I think it's C-R-O-Q-U-E-T-T-E-S. O-Q-E-T-T-E-S. Turkey. They had roast turkey last night. I don't understand how people can eat them, but we sure sell a lot of them. Did Miss Paul say she was going to see Ross over the weekend? Yeah. She said she had an appointment with him Sunday. Said she'd called him and set it up. You know what time? No, just said she wasn't going on like this. Had to be straightened out. I don't blame her. She's told her friends they were going to get married, and at the last minute, Ross had back out. Her family know about Ross? No. Father didn't mind her doing a little work and show business, but he didn't want her to marry anyone in it. She thought that if they just got married, then the family would understand. Jo, yeah, I'll call the crime lab, see if they've finished. Yeah, fine, thanks. How'd Miss Paul and Mitchell seem to get along, ma'am? What do you mean? Well, do they have any arguments or disagreements, would you know? Not often. Most of the trouble they had was about getting married. Ross kept saying that it wouldn't do him any good to be married now. He thought that it might hurt his career. That's all he thought about. Were you ever present in any of these arguments? Once. We'd gone out on a double date, went to a place down at the beach, had dinner, and then stopped on the way back for a couple of drinks. Ross got pretty drunk, got into a big thing about his career. He went on and on about how hard he'd work, how much the theater meant to him, all that kind of stuff. What did he say? Finally, he said right out, he'd kill anyone who tried to stop him, just like that. He'd kill anyone who tried to stop him. Joe. Yeah? See you, ma'am. Would you excuse me, please? Sure. Just a minute. Is there one L or two Ls in broccoli? Just one, ma'am. Well, thanks. Yeah? I just talked to Lee Jones. Yeah, did he finish up? Yeah, something's wrong. What's that? He thinks the girl was murdered. You are listening to Dragnet, the authentic story of your police force in action. Years ahead of them all. Chesterfield is years ahead of all cigarettes. Chesterfield quality is highest. Here's the proof. The chemical analysis give an index of good quality for the country's six leading cigarette brands. The index of good quality table, which is a ratio of high sugar to low nicotine, shows Chesterfield quality highest. Chesterfield quality highest. 15% higher than its nearest competitor. Chesterfield quality highest. 31% higher than the average of the five other leading brands. Don't you want to try a cigarette with a record like this? Chesterfield. With premium quality and best for you. Try Chesterfield today. Regular or king size. 10 37 a.m. We drove to the crime lab and talked with Sergeant J. Allen. He told us that when they checked for powder burns on the body, they hadn't found any. They measured the reach of the dead girl and found that it would have been almost impossible for her to have pulled the trigger on the rifle, leaving the fingerprints they found on the gun. Water test failed to show any traces of nitrate powder on her hands. They checked the handwriting on the suicide note found in the room against samples of Gloria Paul's writing and found that they didn't match. From their findings, they said that it was their opinion that the girl had not killed herself that she'd been murdered. We went back to the city hall and got a local and an APB on Ross Mitchell. We called the landlady of his rooming house. She hadn't heard from him. 12 30 p.m. We went back to the rooming house and relieved the stakeout. We asked the landlady not to say anything to Mitchell about our being there. 12 45 p.m. Still no sign of the suspect. One o'clock. One thirty. Who are you? What are you doing in my place? Come on in. Who are you? Police officers. Come on in. Close that door. Put that suitcase down. What's this all about anyway? What have you guys been doing here? The place is so torn up. You're Ross Mitchell. Yes, sir. I'm Ross Mitchell. You know a girl named Gloria Paul? What's she got to do with it? You know her? Yeah, I know her. When's the last time you saw her? Say, what's this all about? What's all these questions? When was the last time you saw Gloria Paul? Friday night, I guess. Don't you know for sure? All right. Friday night. You haven't seen her since? I told you the last time was Friday night. You didn't see her Sunday? No. Where were you Saturday and Sunday? Out of town. Where? La Cagnata. Can you prove you were there? Why? Can you prove you were there? I don't like all this. You guys coming in here asking a lot of questions. What are you trying to prove? I don't have a choice. That's what you say. You haven't told me what this is all about. I'm not telling you anything until you tell me. Now, you look, Mitchell, understand this. We're not here to pass the time of day. You better come up with some answers quick. Now, who are you with? A friend of mine, a guy named Sid Austin. What's his phone number? You're going to call him? We've got to check your alibi. Now, what's his number? It won't do any good to call him. I thought you said you were there. I was. Then we've got to call him. Well, he won't be able to tell you anything. He wasn't there. He just let me use his place. There wasn't anybody there. I'm sure he's got somebody else inside you. You mean here? That's right. Nobody. You've got the only key, huh? That's right. The landlady's got one, just the two of them. You got any idea how somebody else could get in here? No. Why? How well do you know Gloria Paul? What's she got to do with it? How well do you know her? We used to go together. Anything serious between you? She thought we might get married. How do you feel about it? I don't think that's any of your business. Maybe it is. How do you feel about it? I liked her. Not sure what her problem was. I like her. Oh. Can I please have a cigarette? Yeah. Here. Here's a match. Thanks. How did it happen? I thought maybe you could tell us. Why did you figure that? Where'd you see her last? Up here. This room? Yeah. When was that? I told you, Friday night. Do you have any trouble with her? No. No argument? I told you no. I know, I know, I know. I know. I know. I know. I know. You think she's a stupid girl. You have any trouble with her? No. No argument? I told you no. Well, how did it happen? Can't you tell me? You own a.22 rifle? Yeah. You got bullets for it? Yeah, why? Where do you keep it? Closet over there. You keep it loaded? No, the bullets are on the shelf in the closet. All right, come on, Ross. We better go downtown. What for? I want to talk to you. What for? You got to tell me before I have to go. You got to tell me what you're holding me for. For the suspicion of murder. Now, come on. Where are you taking him? Downtown. Why? We want to talk to him. You didn't have anything to do with it, did you, Ross? I don't even know what this is all about. All I know is that Gloria's dead. She killed herself in your room. What? In your room, Ross. It was suicide. Well, they're arresting me for murder. Well, you can't do that. Ross didn't have anything to do with it. It was suicide. That's what you said. All right, come on, Mitchell. Well, you can't do that. It was suicide. You want to take him out the car, Frank? Yeah. You can see that you're making a mistake. He didn't have anything to do with it. He's going to have enough trouble with that girl killing herself in his apartment. You can't arrest him for murder. It was suicide. What are you trying to tell us, lady? What? Something you want to say here? No. You're making things up. All right. Let's go. Yes. Let's go ahead. Take him. Go ahead. He wants to be a star. Let him. Go ahead and take him and serve him right the way he treats people. I tried to help him. God knows I tried. Got him to meet a lot of important people, a lot of contacts. You think he was interested? You bet he was. How does he show it? I'll tell you how. He thanks me for all I've done for him by running around, chasing after that young nobody, that Gloria. I tried to reason with her, tried to talk some sense into her, told her that she couldn't do anything for him, told her that I could make him a star bigger than anybody. She said she loved him. She doesn't know how to love. You want to go ahead? Came over here all the time begging Ross to marry. I told her to get out of his life and stay out to leave him alone. He didn't need her. When was all this? Sunday evening. She came here all dressed up. When they're young, they know everything. I'm one of the biggest stars this town ever had. She's a nobody. I know what's good for that boy. Didn't you tell us you didn't see the girl Sunday, isn't that right? That's what I said. Did you see her Sunday? Yes, I did. She wanted me to let her into Ross's apartment. I told her he wasn't there. She said it didn't make any difference. She'd wait for him. Well? I told her to leave him alone. She didn't understand him. Didn't know how to take care of him. I know the right people. He could have written his own ticket in this town. He could have been big. You don't want him. I killed her. All right, you want to get a coke, ma'am? Yes. Doesn't make any difference. I did it to help him. I thought you'd think it was suicide. I didn't think you'd figure anything else. You wrote the note, didn't you? I did. That's what you've got to understand. For him, that was all that counted. He'd married her and he'd been through. I had to stop it. I didn't want to kill her. You can see I couldn't let him marry her. Ross is a fine actor. Real talent. Doesn't come along often. All right, lady, let's go. He'll understand, won't he? He'll know why I did it. He'll understand. I wouldn't know, ma'am. Huh? We'll let you ask him. The story you have just heard is true. The names were changed to protect the innocent. On October 14th, trial was held in Department 89, Superior Court of the State of California, in and for the County of Los Angeles. In a moment, the results of that trial. Now here's our star, Jack Webb. Thank you, George Fenomen. Friends, Dragnet Radio is taking a summer vacation. We'll be back in the fall. George Fenomen will tell you all about that in a minute. Meanwhile, I hope you'll watch our TV show regularly. And I also hope that all of you who are not Chesterfield smokers will try them. I like to feel that when we resume broadcasting in the fall, every one of you will have switched to Chesterfield. You'll find their best for you. And of course, when you go on that vacation this summer, be sure to take along a couple of cartons, will you? Chesterfield, we all hope you have a very pleasant summer. ["The Star-Spangled Banner"] Thelma Alice Keene was tried and convicted of murder in the first degree. She was sentenced to life imprisonment in the California Institute for Women, Corona, California. ["The Star-Spangled Banner"] You have just heard Dragnet, a series of authentic cases from official files. Technical advice comes from the Office of Chief of Police, W.H. Parker, Los Angeles Police Department. Technical advisors, Captain Jack Donahoe, Sergeant Marty Wynn, Sergeant Fance Brasher. Heard tonight were Ben Alexander, Virginia Greg, Vic Perrin. Script by John Robinson, Ben Alexander. Music by Walter Schuman. Hal Gibney speaking. For a million laughs, tune in Chesterfield's Martin and Lewis Show, Tuesday on this same NBC station. And sound off for Chesterfield, either regular or king size. You'll find premium quality Chesterfield's much milder. Chesterfield is best for you. By special request, Dragnet is being sent to our servicemen and women all over the world. Chesterfield has brought you Dragnet transcribed from Los Angeles. Tonight, ladies and gentlemen, Dragnet leaves radio for the rest of the summer. We'll be back early in September. Watch then for our return. Check the radio listings of your newspaper for the day and time. Please note, however, that if Dragnet is seen on television in your community, it will continue throughout the summer. Have you tried new cork tipped Fatima? It's the smooth smoke. Here's why. New Fatima tips of perfect cork. King size for longer filtering. And Fatima quality for a much better flavor and aroma. Remember, Fatima has the tip for your lips. Try new Fatima. See how smooth it is. 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