Latest / Great Detectives of Old Time Radio Volume 2|Mystery Audio Dramas / Dragnet: Eric Kelby (EP1406)

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Dragnet: Eric Kelby (EP1406) · Great Detectives of Old Time Radio Volume 2|Mystery Audio Dramas

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Welcome to the Great Detectives of Old Time Radio from Boise, Idaho. This
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Today check out my review of The Escape Artist, the twenty thirteen TV miniseries
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starring David Tennant as Barrister Will Burton, and you can have my reviews automatically
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sent to your Kindle by going through the Kindle Store and you can try that
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service out free for two weeks. All right, Well, now it's Tom
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for today's episode of Dragnet. A new day in Tom for the show.
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So here from September third of nineteen forty nine is the Dragnet episode eric kelby
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Pet milk Shaw, usually heard at this time, has moved to a new
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time period on Sunday nights. Be sure to hear Larry Douglas and Kay Arman
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on the new Pet Milkshaw tomorrow night on NBC. And now here's another in
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NBC's great parod of new shows. Gentlemen, the story you were about to
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hear is true, only the names have been changed to protect the innocent.
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NBC brings you Dragnet. You're a detective sergeant. You're assigned a homicide detail.
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A man's wife has suddenly dropped from sight. On the surface, it
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appears only as a routine missing person's case. You start to investigate, suspicion
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grows, there is evidence of possible foul play. Your job find the woman
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or find her murderer. Dragnet the documented trauma of an actual crime, investigated
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and solved by the men who unrelentingly stand watch on the security of your home,
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your family, and your life. For the next thirty minutes, in
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cooperation with the Los Angeles Police Department, you will travel step by step on
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the side of the law through an actual case transcribed from official police files,
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from beginning to end, from crime to punishment. Dragnet is the story of
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your police force in action. It was Wednesday, September fifteenth, was warm
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in Los Angeles. We were working the day watch out a homicide. My
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partner's Ben Romero. The boss has had backstrand Chief of Detectives. My name
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is Friday. I was on the way back from lunch and it was twelve
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fifty six when I got the room. Forty two homicide. Hi Joe Waiting
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boyd Hi Ben Hell. Here he got something for us. Here's a report
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right here. Gardener by the name of Eric Kelby called in dayfore yesterday said
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his wife disappeared from their home out in the valley Sunday night. Says he
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thinks she left him. What happens every day, bar getting not this way,
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It doesn't Walsh and I went out yesterday's interview. The guy story doesn't
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add when none of her clothes are missing a number luggage. She even left
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her pocket book behind full of money. Found out from the neighbors. A
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missing woman as a seventeen year old boy by a former marriage. So what
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an only child mother dots on the kid shouldn't even say goodbye to him under
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this Saric Kelby impression pretty grouchy with Walsh and me no cooperation. Wants to
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find his wife, doesn't he. I don't know if he does or not.
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There's no help. I'll tell you that when I see that report him
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in an now here. Yeah. Agnes Trumbled Kelby, aged thirty nine.
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Kelby's a second husband. The freshman died little after the boy was born.
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Disappeared Sunday night from her home by forty six Blasco Road, beween seventy o'clock.
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What did Kelby call him? Monday afternoon? Said he thought his wife
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might be spend the night with her sister. He found out she wasn't called
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us. Did you meet the boy while you were out there? Borghari?
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Yeah, that's another thing. Kid came riding in on a bike while we
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were talking to one of the neighbors, trying to talk to him, but
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the old man came out, hustle him inside the house. Then he starts
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eating us out what to say? Told us was our job to find his
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wife, not to go prying into his step son's affairs. It's a new
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slant. How about her friends and relatives? Run here? Yeah, besides
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your assistant m. Walsh located a couple of ranch I think he's checking me
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at him. I tell you, boys, this is one I bet on.
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Maybe you got the names of missus Kelby's relevant. Oh yeah, right
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over here, we had a chance to talk to that boy. Yeah,
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how does it feel to you? Ben? I don't know. Not there's
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anything else funny about the guy? Yeah, I don't know. Here's those
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names. Joe Kelby was upset, all right. For some reason. He
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didn't strike me as reacting the way a normal guy reacts when his wife disappears.
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All right, el how would you react? Bargetti's worrying again? Oh
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now, listen, boys, it's no fooling matter. This is one I'll
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bet on it's a homicide, all right. How about to copy this report?
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Yeah? Where do I get the phone? Missing? Person's Barghetti,
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who's that? Oh yeah, yeah about why? Oh sure, all right,
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sir, four o'clock. Yeah, but that was Kelby's steps. What
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do you want? I think something's happened to his mother. In police work,
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missing person's detail is not a department separated in himself that is organized as
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a part of the homicide bureau. According to Bargetti, who took the call,
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the boy said he suspected his stepfather and he didn't want him to know
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of any meeting between him and the police officers. He would meet the officers
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that afternoon at four pm in a restaurant on the corner of Hollywood Boulevard and
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Fairfax Avenue. At three point fifteen, Ben and I left the officer and
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drove out to the meeting place, the dairy Land Fountain and Coffee Shop.
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We arrived there at three forty five. At eight minutes to five, the
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Kelby boys still had not arrived. Youngsters not very prom Let's wait a little
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while longer. Yeah, well yeah, thanks, more coffee? No thanks,
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I guess the boy isn't going to show. I think symptoms happened.
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Fifteen minutes after we left the coffee shop, we drove up in front of
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the gate of the Kelby Nursery on Belasco Road. The house itself was set
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well back on the property was covered about four acres. The entire nursery was
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surrounded by a six foot steel wire fence. It looked like almost every available
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foot of ground inside was planted with some kind of a flower or shrub.
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Kelby met us at the gate. Yes, what do you men want?
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Police officers? Are you, mister Kelby? Yes? What do you want?
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Well, if you'll shut those dogs up for a minute, we'd like
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to ask you a few questions. I'm missing now. Can't you come back
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tomorrow? Pretty important, mister Kelby. I think we're better talk right now?
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All right? We have to bread giant down, you too, hote
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me? Fine? All right? Now? What do you want mine?
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If we come inside? These watch dogs of mine are pretty vicious. We
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can talk here at the gate, all right, mister Kelby. There's a
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SiGe of Romero. My name is Friday. We've been assigned to look into
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your wife's disappearance. Do you find anything yet? Nothing definite? Maybe you
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can help us. Would you tell us exactly what happened to not your wife
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disappeared? What do you mean? What happened? Well? When did you
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last see her? When you first noticed she was gone? You finished up
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Sunday night dinner about seven o'clock, and I laid down for a nap.
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Agnes went out on the front porch for some mayor. Woke up a little
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before eight and went outside to look for her. She was gone. Nobody
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saw her leave, mister Kelby, not that I know of. Maybe some
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of our nosy neighbors. I don't know. How about your step son?
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Wasn't he around Sunday night? Bruce No went off to a show some other
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kids. When did he get back from the show? About ten? I
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think, why where's your step son? Now? Who are you looking for?
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My wife and my step son both, mister Kelby? Where's your step
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son gone? I took him over to my sister's now hambler and feeling bad
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since his mother disappeared, figured the changel doing good? Why did you take
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him over your sister's Kelby this afternoon? What's that got to do with it?
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We'd like to talk to Bruce No, No, I can't allow.
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The boy is too upset. I can't allow. I'm graid you're gonna have
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to allow. Listen, mister, you can get off this property right now.
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No CoP's giving me sad. Nobody's giving you sass. Kelby. We
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want to talk to your steps on. That's all. You might give us
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a clue to the whereabouts of your wife, and I say, you can't
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see the boys all. You cops couldn't find phones in a rose patch.
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I'll get somebody else to look for Agnes. It's my business anyway, nobody
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else is. It's our business too, if anything's happened to him. What
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are you talking about? You better get your coat, mister Kelby. We're
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taking in for questions. You come through that gate, and I'm gonna let
10:24
these dogs go accidentally. I'd hate to shoot the dogs. I go in
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the house and get your coat. Harry Kelby turned and made his way up
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the path and into the house. Five minutes later he came out without a
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word to either of us. He came down the path, closed the gate
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behind him, and got into our car. On the way back to headquarters,
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he chatted pleasantly about the weather, the nursery business, and his dogs.
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When we pulled up in front of the city Hall, we met the
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reason for his sudden change and temperament. His lawyer was waiting for us at
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the door. We took Kelby to one of the interrogation rooms. His lawyer
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tagged along. We tried to question him, but the lawyer objected. The
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two out of every three questions we asked was hopeless, and we knew it,
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so did the lawyer. We released Kelby, but we did get the
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name and address of his sister where the step son, Bruce was staying.
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After they left, Ben and I got back in the card drove out to
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alamber to check on the boy. Forget he had this in peg right,
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Joe real sleeper. Yeah, I'd like to know how the step son missed
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that date with us this afternoon. I e. If the kid called us
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from the house his stepfather could overheard him. It's possible sister's house. I'll
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be longest blotching. Yeah, let's see fourteen o fourteen oh six, all
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right, he's Joe, a great cottage fourteen oh two. Bright. It's
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a nice looking little person and well kept. It's a nice neighborhood. I
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wonder how the locked prices run out here. Somebody's coming, Yes, what
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is it? Police officers, ma'am? Are you miss Kelby. Bertha Kelby,
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Yes, that's my name. Why we talked to your brother earlier today,
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Miss Kelby. He said that you brought his steps on Bruce here to
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stay for a while. We'd like to see him Bruce. Yes, he
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was here till about an hour and a half ago. I went to the
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store and when I came back, he was gone. Have you any idea
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where he might be, Miss Gilbery. When I telephoned my brother Eric's place
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just before you came to the door, He's not there. I don't know
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where he might be. Worried about him. He seemed so upset. It's
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business about his mother's disappearance, you know. Would you mind if we came
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in and looked around, Miss Kelby, No, not at all. We
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went in and looked the house over from one end to the other. It
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wasn't a trace of the boy. We drove back to Kelby's nursery and satisfied
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ourselves the boy wasn't there. Then we came back to al Hamburn. We
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kept an eye on Miss Bertha Kelby's home until midnight. No one came or
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went. At five minutes past midnight, the lights went off in the living
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room and a few minutes later in the back of the house. The next
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morning, when Ben and I checked in for as usual at eight o'clock,
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we met with Captain the Homicide Frank Kearney. What makes you too so positive
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there has been any foul play in this Kelby thing? Much just did cap,
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but not positive. It's a whole setup. It smells bad. For
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instance, that lawyer. A man's innocent. He doesn't need a lawyer to
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sit with him in the interrogation room and tell him not to answer questions number
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two. That kid's telephone call. Maybe he doesn't get along with his stepfather.
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It happens, you know, maybe he's trying to get back at him
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for something or other. Maybe then why is Kelby hiding him out? You're
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sure he's hiding him out? No other way to take it? Can The
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Calby woman walked away from her home Sunday night. Nobody saw her. She
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took nothing with her, no clothes, no luggage, no money. You
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checked with a family doctor yesterday. He told us missus Kelby was in perfect
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health. We double checked the wanderer's file and the repeaters file and missing persons
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couldn't find a name in either one. How about her relatives in town.
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I haven't had a chance to talk to him yet. CAM won't check him
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this morning. Well, one thing's certain. The woman couldn't have gone very
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far. We checked the sheriff's officer, jails, the hospital sent out a
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teletipe up in an APB. Every cop in the city has her description.
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She's been going almost four days, but nobody's seen her. How does that
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add up to you? It doesn't, You better move on it. Check
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every one of missus Calby's friends and relatives right then, try the neighbors.
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As long as I've been a cop, neighbors have been able to tell everything
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about anyone. All that day, Ben and I made the rounds. First
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stop was the Western National Bank, where Missus Kelby maintained her account. Her
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saving statement showed a total balance of thirty one, five hundred and sixty four
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dollars and seventeen cents. Her separate checking account had a balance of eight hundred
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and forty two dollars and seventy one cents. At the Farmer's Mutual we found
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the record of an insurance policy issued at Agnes Trumbull Kelby. It was a
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twenty pay life policy covering the insured and the amount of thirty thousand dollars.
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The beneficiary was listed as the insured sun Bruce Trumbull Kelby if living upon the
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receipt of sex do proof if not, the insurance husband Eric J. Kelby.
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By the time we finished checking her natal status, the odds were piling
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up fast. From only casual reports, we knew that Eric Kelby was apprrougal
15:05
man. Maybe he was greedy as well. If he wanted or needed money
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badly enough to kill, then he had all the motives necessary to murder his
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wife. Maybe his stepson too. Then and I started to make the rounds
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of missus Kelby's friends and relatives. Our first stop was at the apartment of
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Agnes Kelby's sister, a talkative maiden lady in her early sixties. Agnes,
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just isn't that kind? Oh? I'm worried sick about this, I really
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am. And Bruce supported that he must be hot sick. And Eric,
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what does Eric say about all this? He says he thinks his wife left
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him, left him? Why that's ridiculous? How strange? Can you think
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of any good reasons why your sister would leave mister Kelby? I why,
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No, they had TIFFs, of course, small ones. But of course
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there was that argument about Bruce. The two of them always seemed to be
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arguing about Bruce. What do you mean, man, oh well, raising
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the boy and all. You know, last time I talked to him,
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they were tipping about whether or not Bruce should be paid for working in the
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nursery for Eric. And the strangest thing, Eric seemed to be so upset
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about it all. Imagine all on account of dating the boy a few dollars
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for good, honest work in that silly nursery. Well, you know,
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I'm the outspoken kind, and I just told Eric Eric, I said,
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don't be an old meany hey the boy. That was the extent of the
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information in which Missus Kelby's sister had to offer. Next, we call on
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an aunt, missus James D. Trumbull, eighty three years old. She
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could hardly understand our questions, let alone answered him. She hadn't seen her
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niece Agnes in a year. After that, we paid a visit to one
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of missus Kelby's friends, a Missus Lillian Humble. Well, I'm sorry,
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sergeant, but I can't think of any good reason why she would leave him.
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Miss that silly business about Bruce got out of hand. You know,
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maybe Eric is just a little jealous bond. Next we call on Daisy McLeod,
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who worked as a day maid for missus Kelby. Officer. What mister
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and missus Kelby thought, what they said, what they did is none of
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my business. I come in the morning, I do my work. I
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do it well. I'm not the nosy type, and I don't cry.
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I take half an hourful lunch, and when I'm through, I take my
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pay and I don't expect tips, and I take the bus home. I'm
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not the picking to the keyhole kind sneaking round corners listening. But what I
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couldn't tell you about that man exactly? What do you mean, miss mccla
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Oh, he's a hard man. They're always arguing about the boy, Bruce,
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this Bruce, that he's a nice boy. I think, never done
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anything to me. Oh, but the argument him and her all the time.
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Should the boy be paid for working? Shouldn't we? Why? Why
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not? When Ben and I finished with the list of missus Kelby's friends,
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relatives and employees, we started out on the neighbors. None of them saw
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missus Kelby after six pm. The nights she disappeared. Two of the neighbors
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said they saw the ports light burning after seven pm, but both said the
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ports was empty. Missus Kelby was not sitting in her chair at the usual
17:57
time after dinner. According to them, that was one of her habits.
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It was ten minutes to six. For the time Ben and I got back
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to the office, the light was still burning in Captain Kearney's office. Old
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day, Joe. Lot of money. Yeah, I don't know what the
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Captain's hanging around for. That's fine, Now get anything pretty good luck,
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Cam good, I've got some more for you. Just walked in five minutes
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ago. What do you mean, Frank, who walked in? Bruce Kelby?
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He's waiting in the next room. We went in the next room and
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met Bruce Kelby, who was small for a seventeen year old, dark haired,
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and a little on the sickly side. He told us that he couldn't
18:38
keep the date he made with us on the phone because his stepfather apparently did
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overhear the conversation and drove him directly to his sister's home in Alhambra. We
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asked him why I was so sure that his stepfather was responsible for his mother's
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sudden disappearance for one thing. All three of us usually go to the early
18:53
show on Sunday night, Eric, Mom and me. But last Sunday Eric
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said he wasn't feeling good and he wanted him to stay home and take care
19:00
of him. Then he told me to go on ahead to the show,
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so I did. What time did you get home, son, About nine
19:07
thirty eight, quarter to ten. What was your step father doing when you
19:10
got home, sitting in the living room reading the paper. Do you notice
19:14
anything unusual about the way he acted? Well, he was nervous and jumpy,
19:17
more than usual. I think anything else, yes, sir. When
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I came in through the front yard, I noticed the dogs had mud all
19:23
over their paws. They'd been out somewhere in the nursery plots, and they
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won't go out in the pots unless Eric's with him. He doesn't want him
19:30
to trample the seedlings. What would you step father be doing out in the
19:33
nursery at night? Does he usually do some work at night? No,
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sir, None of the plots are even lighted, only the greenhouses, and
19:40
the paths in the greenhouses are usually graveled, aren't they? No mutter on
19:44
it's my job to see that the greenhouse paths are kept graveled. I know
19:48
they're not muddy. I fixed them the day before Saturday. What do you
19:51
think it means, son right, I don't know. I don't want to
19:56
think about it. I just know he's done something. He's done something to
20:00
her. Did your stepfather give me any reason for keeping you away from the
20:03
police officers the other day? No, sir, he said people were getting
20:07
nosy, and he said it might be better for me over at aunt Bertha's.
20:11
She's his sister. Do you think your aunt Bertha might know where your
20:15
mother is? No, we hardly ever see her. We don't know her
20:18
well at all. We've heard your mother and your stepfather argued about whether you
20:22
should be paid for your work in the nursery. When I started to work
20:25
for him, he promised he'd pay me. I was saving up to buy
20:27
a thirty one model A. And then after a couple of months, when
20:30
he didn't pay me, I asked him. He told me how to be
20:33
glad to work for him for nothing, and your mother argued with him over
20:37
that. Sure it was her money that bought the nursery. Anyway, how'd
20:41
you get away from your aunt's place last night. Well, Bertha had some
20:44
shopping to do and she left me alone. She locked the door to my
20:48
room. Even the screen over the window in my room was nailed down,
20:52
but I kicked it out and got away. I stayed at a friend's house
20:56
last night. Thought about where you're going to stay to night. I don't
20:59
know, but I'm not going home, and I'm not going back to Birth's
21:03
place either. I'll get a room. I would you like to stay at
21:07
my house a few days? Sure? Nice of you, sir. Maybe
21:11
i'd burn not Mom might not like it. Oh, I'll take care of
21:15
that. Now. Let's hop out and get some dinner. Sure durn nice
21:18
of you, sir. All right, son, done with me? What
21:26
do you think, Joe? He could be lying, Yeah, now what
21:36
cap? Did we bring Kilby in again? No? Not yet. He's
21:40
found out by now from his sister that the boy's gone. He probably figures
21:44
the police station is the first place he'd come. Wouldn't do much good pulling
21:47
him in now, Ben, we couldn't even question him, tend to want
21:48
his lawyer's be waiting for us when we got back. That's the problem.
21:52
How do we get to this Calby without his lawyer finding out. Well,
21:55
what about ther in the morning, cap, say tomorrow about five or six
21:57
am. I think you'd be looking for us man, Yeah, I might
22:02
do it. You can just get by that pack of hounds he owns without
22:04
waking the whole neighborhood. Might work. If we could just question him alone,
22:10
I got night. It wouldn't take much to make him copy. All
22:12
right, give it a try. Get out there in the early morning and
22:15
bring him in for questioning as quietly as possible. I'll be in at six
22:19
am. If you want me before, then call me at home. All
22:22
right. Frank Kelby's got a smart lawyer. It's going to be plenty hard
22:26
to convict him without a body and corroborating evidence. He's got four acres out
22:30
there camp. He can hid a lot of buddies and four acres. Well,
22:33
that's what I mean. This case isn't ending, it's just beginning.
22:41
The next morning, Ben and I met at the office about a few minutes
22:44
past four am. We had a cup of coffee in a doughnut at an
22:47
all night restaurant, and then we started for the Kelby place out on Blasco
22:49
Road. We took four pounds of fresh horse meat with us to keep the
22:52
dogs quiet if they raised a fuss. It was twenty eight minutes past four
22:56
when Ben pulled the car to a stop a few hundred feet from the gate
22:59
to the ky. He'll be nurse me. We got out of the car
23:07
and made our way down the road to the gate. I reached in and
23:11
tried the latch was padlocked. The dogs started in. Okay, Ben,
23:17
looks like we'll have to jump the fence. Talk some of that horse meat
23:18
over to him. Yeah, yeah, here, that's it. Come on,
23:22
let's climb. Keep an eye on those sounds. Looks like they could
23:26
chew your leg off. Yeah, there comes a third when Ben's aws some
23:30
more meat. Yeah, there you are, boy, Go get it,
23:33
go get it by Ben. Light's going on in my house. Come on,
23:37
let's make it fast. Who is it? Who's there? I'll set
23:41
the dogs on you police officers, mister Kelby, what what are you doing
23:45
out here this time of night? You're under the rest, Shelby, Get
23:48
your coat. You cops are asking for a pack of trouble. Get your
23:49
coat. Where's my steps on? What have you done with him? What
23:52
have you done with your wife? You're gonna pay for this. I'll have
23:55
your jobs. That's not the first time we heard that. Glby. Let's
23:57
go, let's burn and captain So yeah, all right, Kelby in here
24:12
and pray for they smart my words. Ben. Take him in the office
24:15
here and stay with him. I'll see if Frank's in yet, right,
24:18
Jim, come on Kelby inside, Friday, did you bring Inkelby? He's
24:30
down the interrogation room bends with him. Somebody saw you, don't think so
24:36
they must have Calby's lawyers sitting in the next room. Kelby again refused to
24:45
answer any questions without the advice of his attorney. We released him that day.
24:49
Captain Kearney sent out two men to keep an eye on the nursery and
24:52
report on all of Kelby's movements. Shortly after seven o'clock that night, just
24:56
after nightfall, we tried once again to bring in Kelby for questioning without his
24:59
lawyers knowledge. It didn't work. A little after we booked him, his
25:03
lawyer obtained a rid of habeas corpus. We had to release him again.
25:06
The two men assigned to stake out the Kelby place reported definitely that somebody was
25:10
tipping the lawyer. Whenever unknown visitor showed up at the nursery and drove off
25:12
with Kelby, there was nothing we could do about it. The next morning,
25:17
Kearney came up with a lead. I had a long talk with the
25:18
boy last night accidentally. I think he's given us a pretty good lead.
25:22
Yeah, there's only one way we'll ever get a conviction. That's by finding
25:26
the body and evidence to tie Kelby in. Yeah, that'll do it.
25:30
Where do we start looking? In a new rose bed next to one of
25:33
the greenhouses in Kelby's nursery. The kid came up with it last night.
25:37
I'll come first. Kelby's crazy about saving a dollar and making one. Yeah.
25:42
In the nursery trade, especially where you have a limited area to work
25:45
in, like Kelby, you cultivate every foot of ground. Every bit of
25:49
soil you got is planted with something. Kelby's not the type to waste anything,
25:55
especially, he is not the kind that would let ground life follow when
25:56
he could plant something that might bring in a few dollars next season. Bruce
26:00
tells me his stepfather has every inch of those four acres planted, every inch
26:06
except a six by nine foot plot of ground in that rose garden. It
26:10
sounds like a long shot to me, Frank, The boy said. He
26:11
prepared that piece of ground for planning late Saturday afternoon. His stepfather wanted it
26:15
ready for Sunday morning. The plot of grounds still vacant. Might have planned
26:19
it yesterday, camp when's the last time it checked Before I came to work
26:23
this morning? I called the men on steak out next to the nursery.
26:26
They told me the plot's still empty. It's worth a chance, Frank,
26:30
when do we look it over tonight? I don't want Kelby or his lawyer
26:34
to know a thing until we find that body. We haven't going to work.
26:37
We'll order up a crew from the crime lab. They can take probings
26:41
through that plot and all around it. They can tell us without any guess
26:45
work how deep that ground's been worked over lately. When do you want to
26:48
start? Be here in the office at eight thirty tonight. If my hunches
26:51
are any good, we'll find a body. Were was ten minutes past nine
27:02
that night when we got to the Kelby place, Lieutenant Lee Jones and his
27:04
assistants kearnye Ben and two other men from homicide. The men on steak I
27:08
told us that Kelby had left about twenty minutes before in a dark blue coop.
27:12
Ben brought along the usual supply of horse meat for the dogs, so
27:15
we didn't have any trouble. Air. We found the empty plot of ground
27:18
in the rosebed next to the greenhouse, exactly as Bruce described it to Kearney.
27:26
Ground's been worked over all right, boys, at least four to five
27:29
feet down. All right, Lee, let's start digging. Romero, take
27:32
care of the dogs. Watch and grab one of these shovels, right captain,
27:36
Hey, you aver said these dogs were vicious, didn't you? Yeah?
27:38
Why look at these hounds and no more vicious than laughly soul love higginy
27:44
keep that night over here, when you y what is it? Lee?
27:47
Let received teeth, set of false teeth. Been in the ground long,
27:52
don't think so, judging from the ship they're in. How far down?
27:55
We just say, yarley, a couple of feet grounds? They'll saw Lee's
27:59
mere minute? What is it? Buddy? Here's a shoulder? All right?
28:06
You men over here with Watson, get the dirt off the face.
28:10
Romero, you got a picture of the Calby woman. Yeah, let's see
28:15
he thanks, get the light down here a bunch paid off right. That's
28:21
her Men and I went back to the car and notified communications to broadcast a
28:30
want for murder on Eric Kelby. His description, together with a description of
28:34
the car and license number of the car he was driving, was rebroadcast every
28:37
fifteen minutes. Then we went back to check the house. We found the
28:41
front door unlocked. We went inside and looked around. In one bedroom,
28:45
we found clothes scattered over the bed and the floor. There was only one
28:48
old soup remaining in the closet. On the table next to the bed,
28:52
we found an airline's timetable. We got to the phone and notified communications to
28:56
alert all police details at railroad stations, bus terminals and airlines, and then
29:00
to send out an APB on the teletype. After that we checked with the
29:03
airlines. One of them told us that a man answering Kelby's description had book
29:07
passage for Mexico City. The plane was scheduled to take off at ten forty
29:11
that night from Burbank Airport. Ben's watched At four minutes past ten, We
29:15
called the detail at the airport and alerted them. Then we drove over to
29:18
check in person. There was ten thirty five pm when Ben and I took
29:22
up our positions just inside Gate three, where passengers were boarding flight seventy two
29:26
for Mexico City. He's cutting it close. Joe got about four minutes more,
29:30
might get flame. We waited. The crowd got thicker as departure time
29:34
came closer. At ten thirty nine, Eric Kelby came through the main entrance
29:38
across the terminal threw Gate three into a pair of hands. Touch gosh.
29:42
I don't understand. What does this mean? We found your wife's buddy kill
29:47
what? I don't know what you're talking about? In the roads patch next
29:49
to the greenhouse. Your lawyer cane help this time. Mexico City would have
29:55
been a nice trip. Expencer impleaded seventy I didn't know what I was doing.
30:00
Be a nice vacation next year, Joe Mexico sitting. I want to
30:03
talk to my wife about I didn't mean it. She slapped me. We
30:06
were arguing about the boy. I didn't mean it. I don't know if
30:08
you did or not. Kelby, but you killed her. Come on,
30:11
you missed your plane. The story you have just heard is true, only
30:27
the names were changed to protect the innocent. Eric Kelby was tried and convicted
30:33
of murder in the first degree. He is now awaiting execution in the lethal
30:37
gas chamber at the State Penitentiary. You have just heard the fourteenth in a
30:47
new series of authentic cases, transcribed from Official Violence. Technical advice for Dragnet
30:52
comes from the office of W. A. Wharton, Acting Chief of Police,
30:56
Los Angeles Police Department. Tonight's program is dedicated to William J. Weston,
31:02
Junior of the Washington d C. Police Department, who, on the
31:06
evening of March fourth, nineteen forty five, gave his life so that yours
31:11
might be more secure. Dragnet came to you from Los Angeles. If you
31:26
enjoyed tonight's production of Dragnet, you'll want to listen to Richard Diamond, Private
31:30
Detective, as played by the screens Romantic Cup Guy Dick Powell. A Pet
31:38
Milk show usually heard at this time has moved to a new time period on
31:41
Sunday nights. Be sure to hear Larry Douglas and Kay Arman on the new
31:47
Pet Milk Show tomorrow night on NBC. This is NBC, the National Broadcasting
31:55
Company. Welcome by Well. I think that Kelby's very shrewd use of his
32:06
lawyer definitely would add to any doubt about the idea of an insanity defense,
32:12
and so certainly it's understandable the way it happened to him. And this really
32:17
is a typical dragnet case as opposed to say, a story that's a detective,
32:24
typical detective fiction where it takes something really clever to beat the criminal.
32:30
Here, it's just the fact that he violated his own character, which was
32:35
that he was a very cheap person and did not plant a patch of round,
32:39
which certainly gave a clue to his stepson. All Right, well,
32:45
on to some listener comments and feedback, and we start with a comment from
32:52
George. George says, enjoy your show. Has been listening to Johnny Dollar
33:00
instead of music. I listened to your program while I'm walking. Keeps my
33:06
focused and I love the five parters. Haven't gotten up to the singles yet.
33:09
Keep up the good work. Thanks Adam, Well, thank you so
33:13
much, George. I also received an email that's a Dragnet related and I'll
33:19
go ahead and share that. Karen says, I've been wanting to tell you
33:23
this story for a long time, but I haven't gotten around to it.
33:27
I wanted to tell you how Dragnet is still relevant today. I'm talking about
33:31
the crazy sixties, over costumed, overacted Dragnet myself. I become, thanks
33:37
to you, a big fan of the fifties web, and it's tougher yet
33:39
at times if you listen carefully, very understanding and sensitive incarnation. But I'm
33:45
talking about a nineteen sixty seven episode from Steveson two. My best girlfriend and
33:52
I were sitting around talking about how upset she and her husband were about her
33:55
daughter's boyfriends most likely spoken marijuana around her grandsons and my husband and I,
34:02
since we've known the girl since she was born, we were all livid about
34:06
the possibility. But just like forty years ago, there was nothing they could
34:08
do about it. Their hands were tied until something tragic happens. The law
34:14
can't do anything. Jack tried, but some thing's never changed. I saw
34:17
this episode, you know the one I mean, and I couldn't believe how
34:21
relevant it was today. We were sitting in the same situation as the man
34:25
who walked into the station to talk to Sergeant Friday. I'm telling you this
34:30
because I know you love Dragnet and Jack so did I. I think he
34:32
was a great man who had his faults and problems, but he meant well
34:37
and tried to do a lot of good and did. Thanks for showing that
34:39
to me, Adam. I think your book will be interesting and I can't
34:44
wait to read it. Well, thanks so much, Karen. And of
34:45
course the episode Karen is referencing is the Big High, but it's due to
34:51
its inane is one that a lot of people object to, but you know,
34:54
when you come right down to it, it was based on a true
34:58
story. All right, Well, that will do it for today. We
35:02
will be back on Monday with the Saint and then join us back here next
35:07
Saturday for Dragnett, and of course next week begins crime and Peter Chambers on
35:14
Tuesday. The meanwhile, send your comments to Box thirteen at Great Detectives dot
35:19
net, follow us on Twitter at Radio Detectives, and give us a call
35:22
to a weight not nine one four seven eight three From Boise, Idaho,
35:27
this is your host, Adam Grahamson and off