- today
Mrs Barbara Truscott stands accused of theft.
Gwen Watford, perhaps best known as Dolly Bantry in the Joan Hickson versions of "Miss Marple", appears as the defendant. Jan Harvey (prosecuting counsel) many will recognise her from her role in "Howard's Way". Anthony Bate, who plays Barbara's husband, is perhaps best known for his role in the BBC version of "Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy" with Alec Guinness.
Gwen Watford, perhaps best known as Dolly Bantry in the Joan Hickson versions of "Miss Marple", appears as the defendant. Jan Harvey (prosecuting counsel) many will recognise her from her role in "Howard's Way". Anthony Bate, who plays Barbara's husband, is perhaps best known for his role in the BBC version of "Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy" with Alec Guinness.
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TVTranscript
00:00:00The
00:00:23case you're about to see is a fictional one, but the procedure is legally accurate.
00:00:27The characters are played by actors, but the jury is selected from members of the general
00:00:31public.
00:00:32Anyway, we'll soon have this little lot sorted out.
00:00:44Right old pantomime, isn't it?
00:00:56Please stand.
00:00:57Are you Barbara May Truscott?
00:01:00Yes.
00:01:01Barbara May Truscott, in this indictment you stand charge with theft, contrary to Section
00:01:061 of the Theft Act, 1968.
00:01:08The particulars of this offence being that you, on the 18th day of February, 1977, in
00:01:13the area of Greater Fulchester, stole a tin of salmon, the property of Paradise Supermarkets,
00:01:18limited.
00:01:19To this indictment do you plead guilty or not guilty?
00:01:25Oh dear.
00:01:27Not guilty?
00:01:28Yes, Mrs. Truscott.
00:01:29You may sit down now.
00:01:30Some water, Mr. Carrigan?
00:01:31You might at least have waited until the jury got in.
00:01:35Will you tell the court, please, Mrs. Waterman, where you were at the time of the alleged offence?
00:02:00I was walking through the supermarket, trundling one of those store trolleys and dressed as
00:02:04an ordinary housewife.
00:02:05And what, in fact, were you doing?
00:02:07I was on duty as a store detective.
00:02:09Now, Mrs. Waterman, you are the area security officer for Paradise Supermarkets, are you not?
00:02:15Yes, sir.
00:02:16You see, before we get into any further detail, I'm sure the thought going through the minds
00:02:19of the members of the jury is why a case like this, the theft of a small item not worth
00:02:24more than a few shillings, should result in a...
00:02:27It was a seven and a half ounce tin of red salmon, sir.
00:02:29I know that, Mrs. Waterman.
00:02:31Fancy grade.
00:02:32Fancy grade.
00:02:33The price was £1.16p, not just a few shillings.
00:02:36It is the most common form of shoplifting, the smallest item with the highest price.
00:02:41Yes, but even so, I'm sure the members of the jury will be wondering why such a large organisation
00:02:45as Paradise Supermarkets should think it worthwhile instituting a prosecution which
00:02:50can only result in expense to themselves and distress to others, out of all proportion
00:02:56to the theft of a small, albeit relatively expensive, tin of salmon.
00:03:01In 1973, sir, a Home Office report criticised firms like ours for failing to prosecute shoplifters.
00:03:09They recommended that the police be notified of all future cases, including those involving
00:03:14the very young and the very old.
00:03:16We simply followed those Home Office recommendations.
00:03:20I wasn't criticising you, Mrs. Waterman, merely seeking some idea of your policy in a matter
00:03:25which might interest the jury.
00:03:27You have to remember that it's thefts like these, sir, that contribute towards the figure
00:03:31of goods worth £550 million being stolen each year from shops throughout the country.
00:03:38Quite so. And this must add to the price of the goods in the shop, no doubt.
00:03:41It increases the housewife's shopping bill by at least twopence in the pound.
00:03:45Two P in the pound.
00:03:51Mr. Carrigan, is your client seriously ill?
00:04:03No, sir. Although, unfortunately, this trial is causing Mrs. Truscott more than a little anxiety.
00:04:10Yes.
00:04:14Miss D'Alvenport.
00:04:17Mrs. Waterman, during the course of your duties on the morning of Friday the 18th of February,
00:04:22was there a time when you saw the defendant in the supermarket?
00:04:25Yes, there was.
00:04:26Can you tell the court, in your own words, please, what you saw?
00:04:30I saw Mrs. Truscott walking along the tinned meat and fish section of the supermarket.
00:04:34She was carrying a wire basket with some other items of food in it, and she stopped in front of the week's special offer.
00:04:41Which was?
00:04:42Pilchards.
00:04:43Pilchards?
00:04:44Yes, sir.
00:04:45Not salmon?
00:04:46No, the salmon was just to the left of the Pilchards.
00:04:49Oh, yes, the red salmon.
00:04:52Both red and pink, sir.
00:04:54Yes.
00:04:56Mrs. Truscott stopped in front of the Pilchards, looked over each shoulder in turn.
00:05:01I was standing about six feet away from her, to her left at the time, moved towards the shelf of salmon, and put one of the tins into her shopping bag.
00:05:09And could you see all this quite clearly?
00:05:11Yes.
00:05:12And what did you do next?
00:05:13I followed Mrs. Truscott to the checkout till, where she paid for all the articles in the wire basket, but made no attempt to pay for the tin of salmon.
00:05:21I apprehended her after she had left the supermarket, and told her I was a store detective from Paradise, and that I had reason to believe she had stolen a tin of salmon.
00:05:30And did Mrs. Truscott say anything at that time?
00:05:33Yes.
00:05:34She said, don't speak so loudly.
00:05:37Then what happened?
00:05:38I asked her to open a shopping bag, and inside it was a seven and a half ounce tin of Paradise red salmon.
00:05:44May she be shown exhibit one?
00:05:51Is that the tin of salmon?
00:05:53Yes.
00:05:54And when you found that tin of salmon in Mrs. Truscott's shopping bag, what did you do?
00:05:58I asked her to accompany me to one of the offices where a member of the staff kept an eye on her while I phoned the police from another room.
00:06:05Now, Mrs. Waterman, was there anything about Mrs. Truscott's behaviour at any time, either in the supermarket when you saw her pick up the tin of salmon and put it in her shopping bag,
00:06:16or later outside when you apprehended her, to suggest that she might not be in full control of her faculties?
00:06:22No.
00:06:23She seemed perfectly normal.
00:06:25It was a simple case of premeditated theft.
00:06:28Thank you, Mrs. Waterman.
00:06:29Will you wait there, please?
00:06:31Thank you, Mrs. Waterman.
00:06:32Before you gained employment with Paradise Supermarkets as a security officer, you served as a detective constable with the Fullchester Police Force, did you not?
00:06:51That's right.
00:06:52How long a period was this?
00:06:54Just over six years.
00:06:56Now, what considerations persuaded you to abandon the Fullchester Police Force, Mrs. Waterman?
00:07:01My husband thought I'd be better off in a less demanding and dangerous job.
00:07:07Yes, and doubtless one which also had the additional attraction of being more financially rewarding.
00:07:14Yes.
00:07:15Mrs. Waterman, was not your decision to resign from the Fullchester Police Force occasioned by the fact that there had been complaints of corruption against you?
00:07:26Certainly not.
00:07:34There were no complaints?
00:07:37There was one complaint, but it did not influence my decision to leave the police force.
00:07:42What was the complaint, Mrs. Waterman?
00:07:45A poor landlord claimed I'd demanded money from him in return for not pursuing charges in a case of underage drinking.
00:07:54There was a full police inquiry, and I was completely exonerated.
00:07:59There was a full police inquiry.
00:08:01Yes.
00:08:10Now, this was before the recent legislation which now requires civilians as well as police to be involved in investigation of complaints against the police?
00:08:21Yes.
00:08:22Mr. Carrigan, I think you've gone quite far enough in that direction, don't you?
00:08:26you? As you wish, sir. And in view of the fact that you apparently find it necessary to consult
00:08:30your instructing solicitor about almost every question you ask, I would willingly grant you
00:08:34a short adjournment that you might learn the details of your client's case. I appreciate
00:08:39your concern, sir, but that won't be necessary. Very good. Well, let's get on then, shall we?
00:08:44I'd like to return to the morning of the alleged theft. Sir? When you chance to inspire Mrs.
00:08:49Struscott lurking in the vicinity of the special offer of Pilchard. Do you see she looked over
00:08:54both shoulders? Yes, sir. Would you be so good as to demonstrate to the court, Mrs. Waterman,
00:09:00the manner in which Mrs. Struscott performed this manoeuvre? And I put it to you, Mrs. Waterman,
00:09:10that the movement you saw was not that of a villain with criminal intent, but more like this.
00:09:17The movement of a somewhat anxious, middle-aged lady trying to clear her head.
00:09:22Didn't look like that to me. And I also put it to you, Mrs. Waterman, and this is no criticism of
00:09:26you, since you had no way of knowing at the time, my client was suffering from the effects
00:09:30of tranquilizers prescribed to her by her family doctor. Oh, dear. Sir? Every time a case of
00:09:37shoplifting comes before me, the defendant appears to be a person who claims to be either drunk,
00:09:42congenitally absent-minded, or whose mind is befuddled with the use of tranquilizers. Now,
00:09:47there are more and more of these drugs being prescribed every year, so perhaps that could
00:09:51explain their involvement in shoplifting. As with alcohol, they could be implicated in other cases
00:09:57as well. Now, will you, Mrs. Waterman, tell me, were you aware that Mrs. Struscott was being
00:10:06prescribed tranquilizers by her doctor? Not at the time, no. In fact, far from deliberately putting the
00:10:13timid of salmon into her shopping basket, it was an act of which she had no conscious knowledge
00:10:19whatsoever. I've no idea. As I said before, Mrs. Struscott was in full control of her faculties.
00:10:29Miss Fenton, you work at Paradise Supermarket as a shelf filler. Is that correct?
00:10:35Yeah.
00:10:36Have you ever met Mrs. Struscott, the lady over there? I sometimes seen her walking around the
00:10:41supermarket, yeah. Did you ever speak to her? Only about the weather, price of coffee, stuff like
00:10:47that. Did you see her on the morning of Friday, February the 18th this year? Yeah. Where did you
00:10:54see her? I was filling the pet foods, and she asked me if I had anything else apart from what was on the
00:11:00shelves, and I told her we hadn't. Did she appear any different from usual?
00:11:04No. Now, was there a time on that morning, apart from the time when you talked to Mrs.
00:11:11Truscott by the pet foods, when you found yourself alone with the defendant? Yeah.
00:11:16When was that? Mrs. Waterman asked me to keep an eye on her while she felt law.
00:11:21Did you have a conversation with Mrs. Truscott? Yeah. It was getting near dinner time,
00:11:26so I asked her if she wanted a corned beef butter. And what did Mrs. Truscott say?
00:11:30She said, as long as the bread was fresh, could she have marge, not butter, and no mustard.
00:11:38Did there come a time when she asked you for something from her handbag?
00:11:43Yeah. When we had a cup of tea, she asked for her pills, because she had to tech one three times a day.
00:11:48And did you give them to her? Yeah.
00:11:51Did you read the name of the drug on the label?
00:11:54Didn't have to, did I? Modry and Weren't, they know them anywhere.
00:11:57Well, what makes you say that? We live on Brentwood Estate. The windows is always getting busted.
00:12:04Me dad's on dull and there's rats in the kitchen. And me mam couldn't stand it no more, so she went to the doctor.
00:12:10Couldn't give her no money or a better house, so he'd give her them Modryum instead.
00:12:15Did Mrs. Truscott take any of these tablets? Yeah. She took one.
00:12:20Just one? Yeah.
00:12:21And did her behaviour change in any way for the rest of the time you were with her?
00:12:27No.
00:12:28No.
00:12:30Did Mrs. Truscott make any remark about whether or not she deliberately stole the tin of salmon?
00:12:36Yeah.
00:12:37What remark did she make?
00:12:39It was when I asked her about her old man.
00:12:41Her father, you mean?
00:12:43No, her husband.
00:12:45Oh, I see.
00:12:46What did she say about her husband?
00:12:48She said, I expect he'll try to bully me into pleading not guilty.
00:12:54But, Miss Fenton, that remark tells us nothing about whether or not Mrs. Truscott committed a deliberate act of theft, does it?
00:13:01Of course it does.
00:13:03She wanted to plead guilty and get it over with, but she knew her old man won't let her.
00:13:06But it's ridiculous. The girl's expressing an opinion.
00:13:09Mr. Truscott.
00:13:09Mr. Truscott.
00:13:39That your instructing solicitor is, in fact, the husband of the defendant.
00:13:44Now, I have so far assumed, Mr. Carrigan, and I trust that I have assumed correctly,
00:13:49that it is not your intention to call Mr. Truscott to give evidence as a witness for the defence.
00:13:54Yes, sir. Your assumption is quite correct.
00:13:56And we should also like the court to understand that we do not feel that our case has been in any way harmed by your unintentional revelation.
00:14:07Good. Let's get on, then.
00:14:09Now, Miss Fenton, your earlier description of Mrs. Truscott's behaviour was that it was fussy, I believe.
00:14:16Yeah. Dead fussy.
00:14:18Have any further dimensions you could add to that, perhaps somewhat sparse description?
00:14:23What like?
00:14:24Well, her speed of movement, for example.
00:14:27Would you describe that as lively or lethargic?
00:14:29What's lethargic?
00:14:30Well, sluggish. Slow-moving.
00:14:36Yeah, that.
00:14:37Depart from being lethargic and dead fussy whenever you conversed with her in the supermarket,
00:14:42did she appear to you to be a woman with a clear, sharp mind or a somewhat vague mind?
00:14:48I know what you're trying to say.
00:14:50Now, just answer the question, please, Miss Fenton.
00:14:53Was her manner clear and sharp or was it vague?
00:14:56All right. Vague.
00:14:58Good.
00:14:58Good. So, you were described, Mrs. Truscott, as being a lethargic, fussy and somewhat vague sort of woman.
00:15:06Yeah.
00:15:07And she was no different on the morning she took that tin to any other time I've seen her.
00:15:12You say your mother was prescribed modrium?
00:15:15Yeah.
00:15:16How many did she take each day?
00:15:18Same as her, one three times a day.
00:15:20And I suppose, like most people, when she was feeling particularly bad, she perhaps took another couple to cheer herself up, hmm?
00:15:31Sometimes she did, yeah.
00:15:32Did you ever notice any difference in your mother's behaviour?
00:15:36Dunno, really.
00:15:37Well then, Miss Fenton, if you're unable to tell the difference when your mother takes an extra tablet or two of modrium,
00:15:43how can you possibly be expected to tell the difference when Mrs. Truscott does so?
00:15:47I don't know, do I?
00:15:50I don't know, do I plead guilty?
00:15:52Yes.
00:15:54Now, Miss Fenton, you said that when you talked to Mrs. Truscott about her husband,
00:15:59she made some remark to the effect that he might advise her to plead not guilty.
00:16:04She said he'd bully her into pleading not guilty.
00:16:08Yes, well, you see, my client has no remembrance of uttering such a remark.
00:16:13Can't help that, she still said it.
00:16:15So you claim.
00:16:16You also claim that Mrs. Truscott told you it was her intention to plead guilty.
00:16:22Not in so many words, no.
00:16:24No.
00:16:26It was just your interpretation of a remark which my client denies having made in the first instance.
00:16:32Dr. Morton, you are the defendant's GP?
00:16:35Yes.
00:16:36Did you prescribe tranquilizers for Mrs. Truscott?
00:16:39Yes.
00:16:40For how long?
00:16:44Dr. Morton?
00:16:46Approximately five years.
00:16:49And for what condition were these tranquilizers prescribed?
00:16:52Your Honor, this is the first time I've been called to give evidence at a trial.
00:16:57There's a first time for everything, Dr. Morton.
00:16:59I hope I'm right in my belief that I won't be expected to answer questions which would involve revealing confidential information about one of my patients.
00:17:08You are a witness for the prosecution, Doctor.
00:17:10I think so.
00:17:11In fairness to the witness, I should point out that Dr. Morton has been subpoenaed for the prosecution.
00:17:16Ah.
00:17:17You did not wish to give evidence of this trial?
00:17:19No, sir, I did not.
00:17:20Well, now that you are here, Doctor, I must point out to you that whatever power to induce silence the Hippocratic Oath may have in the groves of academic medicine, it certainly has no such power in this court.
00:17:31Although, of course, you will not be called upon to reveal information about Mrs. Truscott that is not strictly germane to the facts of this case, I must ask you to answer all counsel's questions unless I rule otherwise.
00:17:43Miss Davenport.
00:17:44Dr. Morton, you say you've been prescribing tranquilizers to Mrs. Truscott for the past five years?
00:17:53Yes.
00:17:54For what condition were these drugs prescribed?
00:17:57Mrs. Truscott suffers from situational stress.
00:18:01Situational stress?
00:18:02Yes.
00:18:03That's a minor anxiety state brought about by her personal circumstances.
00:18:07A minor anxiety state?
00:18:10Yes.
00:18:10Not sufficient to warrant her being sent to see a psychiatrist, for example?
00:18:14No.
00:18:15No.
00:18:16And for this minor anxiety state, you prescribed?
00:18:20Uh, Modrium, a minor tranquilizer.
00:18:23At what dosage did you prescribe the drug?
00:18:25Five milligrams, three times a day.
00:18:27And what effect does Modrium have at this dosage?
00:18:30Well, in common with other drugs of the benzodiazepine group, when you first start taking Modrium, you experience a certain amount of drowsiness, lightheadedness, but these effects wear off after a week or so.
00:18:42So if Mrs. Truscott had been taking these drugs over a five-year period, she would have become acclimatized to the drug, so to speak?
00:18:50In most respects, yes.
00:18:53Although there is evidence that the ability to drive a car continues to be impaired.
00:18:57And I advise Mrs. Truscott to be very careful when she drove.
00:19:01I see.
00:19:01Now, would someone, taking Modrium at this dosage for a number of years, be in a sufficiently drowsy or absent-minded mental condition to put a tin of salmon into her shopping bag and walk out of a supermarket without paying for it?
00:19:17Well, that would vary.
00:19:19The effect of the drug can change from one week to the next.
00:19:23And why would that be?
00:19:24Well, the drug's only one factor in the equation.
00:19:28In any case of situational stress, the personal circumstances of the patient are an equally important factor.
00:19:34In that case, Dr. Morton, what are these personal circumstances?
00:19:41Well, for example, is the continuing stress bound up with the defendant's change of life?
00:19:46Oh, no.
00:19:47Mrs. Truscott isn't suffering from menopausal depression.
00:19:49Her change of life had been completed some time earlier.
00:19:51Then what were the circumstances when she came to you as a patient?
00:19:55Well, she complained of a feeling of panic and that she couldn't cope with life anymore.
00:20:03Yes, well, we all have those feelings at some time or another, Dr. Morton.
00:20:06There must have been more to it than that, surely.
00:20:13Are those Mrs. Truscott's medical notes you have there, Doctor?
00:20:18Yes, sir, they are.
00:20:20May I glance at them, please?
00:20:21For example, did you prescribe tranquilizers to the defendant to alleviate anxiety caused by bad housing?
00:20:34Or poverty?
00:20:36Maybe vandalism?
00:20:39Hardly.
00:20:39Mrs. Truscott's husband had just been adopted as parliamentary candidate for Forchester North.
00:20:47And she found the role of political hostess rather beyond her.
00:20:52As I assessed the situation as only being a temporary one,
00:20:55I prescribed Modrim, five milligrams, three times a day, just to tide her over.
00:21:00And you continued to prescribe these tranquilizers for Mrs. Truscott to help her cope with this demanding new role in her husband's life?
00:21:08Yes.
00:21:09For five years?
00:21:10Yes.
00:21:12Yes.
00:21:15Do any of your patients ever say to you,
00:21:17Doctor, will it be all right if I take an extra tablet or two if ever I feel particularly bad?
00:21:22Yes, quite often.
00:21:23And did Mrs. Truscott ever say this to you?
00:21:24Yes.
00:21:25And what did you tell her?
00:21:26I told her it was most unwise that she'd start feeling drowsy, lightheaded again, as if she'd had a few drinks too many.
00:21:33So all your prescriptions to Mrs. Truscott over this five-year period have been for five milligrams of Modrim three times daily?
00:21:42Yes.
00:21:43In that case, Dr. Morton, to return to my original question.
00:21:48Would someone who had become acclimatized to Modrim at this dosage over a number of years
00:21:53be in a drowsy or sufficiently absent-minded mental condition to put a tin of salmon into her shopping bag
00:22:01and walk out of a supermarket without paying for it?
00:22:04And as I said before, the effect of the drug can change if there are significant changes in the patient's personal circumstances.
00:22:13Had there, immediately prior to the morning of the 18th, been any such changes in Mrs. Truscott's personal circumstances?
00:22:21Not as far as I know. But then Mrs. Truscott hadn't been to consult me for...
00:22:26Well, I haven't got my medical notes at the moment. I think it was about three weeks.
00:22:32Yes, that's correct. Three weeks.
00:22:35Thank you, Dr. Morton. Will you wait there, please?
00:22:41Yes, Doctor, was Mr. Truscott violent towards his wife on more than one occasion?
00:22:47Sir?
00:22:48Look, your entries are somewhat epigrammatic, but there is one here for September last year which says
00:22:54Am I dealing with the right patient?
00:22:56And another one for November the 30th which says quite clearly
00:22:59Violent episode with the husband.
00:23:02Well, there was no violence on the part of Mr. Truscott.
00:23:04Then how do you explain this entry?
00:23:06On the 30th of November last year, Mrs. Truscott came to see me and said I would have to prescribe something stronger for her.
00:23:29I asked her what was the matter and she said things were getting on top of her.
00:23:34I told her I was very reluctant to change her treatment and that she said that something had happened which was causing her great concern.
00:23:43Yes?
00:23:48A few days earlier she'd flown into a fit of uncontrollable rage during which she'd first kicked the cat and then thrown a tin opener across the room at her husband.
00:24:03It hit Mr. Truscott causing a gash in his cheek which required treatment including five stitches at the casualty ward of Fultester General Hospital.
00:24:13Tomorrow you can join us again when the Queen against Truscott will be resumed in the Crown Court.
00:24:43The case you're about to see
00:25:13is a fictional one but the procedure is legally accurate.
00:25:16The characters are played by actors but the jury is selected from members of the general public.
00:25:22Mrs. Barbara Truscott is accused of stealing a tin of salmon from a branch of Paradise Supermarkets, Fultchester.
00:25:28Her husband is a solicitor who has instructed her counsel that at the time of the alleged theft
00:25:33Mrs. Truscott was taking tranquilizers on prescription from her doctor
00:25:37and that she was not fully aware of her actions.
00:25:40Yesterday, Dr. Avril Morton, Mrs. Truscott's GP, gave evidence for the prosecution
00:25:45and today she'll be cross-examined by counsel for the defence.
00:25:50Well, Dr. Morton, as you know, we have taken the extra precaution of having Mrs. Truscott examined by our own specialist
00:25:56and you'll no doubt be interested to learn that he has in fact confirmed your diagnosis of situational stress to be correct.
00:26:07Now, Dr. Morton, I wonder if...
00:26:12No, no, no, later, later. I'll use it later.
00:26:16Now, I'm sorry, Dr. Morton, I was just mulling over with my instructing solicitor
00:26:20a point concerning your earlier evidence in relation to the unfortunate accident with the tin opener.
00:26:29I shall probably return to that point later on
00:26:31but, um, for the moment, just tell me this, will you?
00:26:36You've been issuing repeat prescriptions for tranquilizers to Mrs. Truscott
00:26:40regularly for the past five years, since the autumn of 1972, is that right?
00:26:46Uh, yes, since November the 14th, 1972, to be exact.
00:26:50Yes, now on that date, when Mrs. Truscott first came to you for help about her feelings of anxiety,
00:26:57she didn't demand to be put on tranquilizers, did she?
00:27:00No.
00:27:01Now, that was your decision.
00:27:03Yes.
00:27:05Taking the overall situation into account,
00:27:08I thought that a four-week course of Modrium was the best way to tide her over for the time being.
00:27:13Then why did you issue any further prescriptions for this drug?
00:27:16Well, shortly before the four weeks were up, on December the 8th, 1972,
00:27:23Mrs. Truscott returned to say that the pills were helping her,
00:27:27and please, could she have some more?
00:27:28And so you promptly wrote her out a repeat prescription?
00:27:31No.
00:27:32I told Mrs. Truscott that I didn't think tranquilizers were a continuing solution to her problem.
00:27:38And she then explained to me that it wasn't just the problem of her husband's political career
00:27:44that was causing the anxiety.
00:27:46Her daughter had just left home to study at one of the London Polytechnics,
00:27:51and Mrs. Truscott felt that part of her life was finished forever.
00:27:54I see. And then you wrote out a repeat prescription?
00:27:58Yes.
00:28:00Yes.
00:28:01I suppose you had a full waiting room that morning.
00:28:05I've no idea.
00:28:06But I do remember spending a great deal of time talking to Mrs. Truscott.
00:28:10I told her that she should only take tranquilizers when she was going through a bad patch,
00:28:16and that she shouldn't start taking them regularly as a sort of safeguard against a bout of anxiety which might not occur.
00:28:22Yes, but over the years, Dr. Morton, you must have known that Mrs. Truscott was using these drugs regularly.
00:28:27Yes, and over the years, Mr. Carrigan, I made many attempts to stop Mrs. Truscott taking tranquilizers.
00:28:34But she showed great resistance to this.
00:28:36Well, if you thought that the correct procedure was for her to be taken off, Morton,
00:28:40why did you not simply stop the prescription?
00:28:42She was very unhappy.
00:28:44Her daughter, by this time, had finished her course at the Polytechnic,
00:28:48and had taken up a teaching post in South Africa.
00:28:52Mrs. Truscott's whole life now revolved around her husband,
00:28:55and she felt that without tranquilizers,
00:28:58she could not continue to support him in the way she wished to do.
00:29:02I was left with very little alternative in terms of treating the overall situation.
00:29:07Oh, really?
00:29:09Those repeat prescriptions were as much for your benefit as for Mrs. Truscott's.
00:29:14Yes, yes, all right, Dr. Morton, all right.
00:29:16Mr. Truscott, do not let me have to warn you again about that sort of provocation.
00:29:20Now, Dr. Morton, you've just been talking about consultations which took place in September 1976.
00:29:30Yes, sir.
00:29:31Now, this is the time when you jotted the query down in Mrs. Truscott's medical records.
00:29:35Let me see.
00:29:36Am I dealing with the right patient?
00:29:39Yes.
00:29:40Quite often, in a partnership, one of the partners will present for treatment,
00:29:46when it is really the other one that needs the help.
00:29:49Are you saying that Mr. Truscott should have been on tranquilizers rather than his wife?
00:29:55Well, I've no idea.
00:29:56But, um, I'm not his doctor.
00:29:58But it's no secret that he'd just been defeated in the parliamentary by-election,
00:30:02and his predecessor had held a seat with a majority of two or three thousand, I believe.
00:30:07Yes.
00:30:09Mr. Carrigan.
00:30:10Yes, in any event, Dr. Morton, you continue to issue repeat prescriptions to Mrs. Truscott.
00:30:15Yes.
00:30:16And all of these prescriptions were for five milligrams three times a day.
00:30:19Yes.
00:30:20You said earlier, Dr. Morton, that even with someone who had become acclimatized
00:30:25to taking Modrium at this level for some years,
00:30:28the effect of the drug might change from week to week according to the personal circumstances.
00:30:33Yes.
00:30:34And that you'd not seen Mrs. Truscott for three weeks prior to the alleged theft?
00:30:38Yes.
00:30:39Yes.
00:30:40And you also told us that the effect of taking an extra tablet or two of Modrium
00:30:44would be to make Mrs. Truscott feel drowsy, lightheaded,
00:30:48as though she'd had one or two drinks too many.
00:30:50Yes.
00:30:50Now, suppose Mrs. Truscott had undergone a disturbing experience
00:30:57during the evening immediately prior to the day of the alleged theft,
00:31:03and that she'd slept scarcely at all during the night,
00:31:07and she'd felt so irritable and anxious the next morning
00:31:11that she'd felt it necessary to take an extra couple of tablets of Modrium
00:31:15simply to get herself out of the house.
00:31:18What exactly are you asking me?
00:31:20Well, under those circumstances,
00:31:22wouldn't Mrs. Truscott have been sufficiently drowsy,
00:31:24lightheaded, prepossessed,
00:31:26as to slip a tin of salmon accidentally into her shopping bag?
00:31:32Sir.
00:31:33Yes, Mr. Amport, Mr. Carrigan,
00:31:35you know perfectly well that question
00:31:36in the way in which you have framed it
00:31:38is not for the witness but for the jury to decide.
00:31:48Yes, now, Dr. Morton,
00:31:49apart from your repeated warnings to beware taking Modrium
00:31:53while driving a motor car,
00:31:55did you proffer Mrs. Truscott
00:31:57any more comprehensive information?
00:31:59What do you mean?
00:32:00Well, for example,
00:32:02did you tell her that over 19 million prescriptions
00:32:04of tranquilizers are prescribed by doctors like you every year,
00:32:08costing the country nine and a half million pounds,
00:32:12and that doctors like you are also under constant sales pressure
00:32:15from the manufacturing companies to prescribe these drugs?
00:32:18No, but I did tell her that one out of every four middle-aged women
00:32:23is taking tranquilizers for one reason or another,
00:32:26and that doctors, like me,
00:32:28are under great pressure from patients like her to prescribe them.
00:32:33Now, apart from drowsiness and lightheadedness,
00:32:37did you warn Mrs. Truscott in advance about any of these side effects?
00:32:41Blurred vision, dry mouth,
00:32:44garrulousness, together with slurred speech.
00:32:47Those side effects are relatively uncommon,
00:32:50but yes, I did warn Mrs. Truscott about them,
00:32:52and I advised her not to step up the prescribed dose.
00:32:55Now, you didn't at any stage say, Mrs. Truscott,
00:32:57you must never exceed the prescribed dose.
00:32:59I told her it would be unwise for her to do so.
00:33:02Mrs. Dr. Morton,
00:33:04did you ever instruct Mrs. Truscott never to do so?
00:33:07I warned her not to do so.
00:33:08In the same way that you warned her about the possibility
00:33:10of a paradoxical rage reaction.
00:33:14Well, you can't warn patients about every possible side effect in advance.
00:33:18Well, they might be too frightened to take the drug in the first place.
00:33:21Nevertheless, at the risk of scaring everyone assembled here today,
00:33:26would you like to explain this medical phenomenon to the court?
00:33:31Well, as I say,
00:33:36the simplest way to understand the effect of a drug like Modrim
00:33:40is to substitute for the word tranquilizer the word alcohol.
00:33:46Now, there are times when an intake of either of those drugs can calm you down,
00:33:51and other occasions on which it can make you feel very aggressive.
00:33:54It depends on the situation in which you find yourself.
00:33:59We have had some reports recently of mothers taking tranquilizers
00:34:03who've attacked their children
00:34:05due to an inability to cope with a baby's endless crying.
00:34:09And one report of a tranquilized husband
00:34:12who beat up his wife for the first time
00:34:14after nearly 20 years of marriage.
00:34:16But, in any case, it's only over the last sort of couple of years
00:34:22that the medical profession has taken the incidence
00:34:25of tranquilizer-induced aggression at all seriously.
00:34:28And it's still probably a very, very rare occurrence.
00:34:31Yes, but on these rare occasions,
00:34:33a mother or a loving spouse
00:34:35can be transformed into a dangerous aggressor
00:34:37merely by taking these drugs.
00:34:39No, not merely by taking these drugs.
00:34:42It is a combination of the drug,
00:34:44the personality, and the situation.
00:34:47In the case of Mrs. Truscott,
00:34:49she lost her temper
00:34:51because her cat would not eat a new brand of cat food
00:34:54that she'd bought for it.
00:34:55She kicked the cat,
00:34:56and she threw the tin opener across the room.
00:34:59It bounced off the wall,
00:35:00and it caused a gash in Mr. Truscott's cheek.
00:35:02Yes, and that was an involuntary reaction
00:35:05for which the tranquilizers
00:35:06were directly responsible, Dr. Morton.
00:35:08And as you've said,
00:35:09Mrs. Truscott could not be held to blame in any way.
00:35:12Well, the tranquilizers may have been directly responsible,
00:35:15and that is how I put it to Mrs. Truscott.
00:35:18I also told her
00:35:19that she mustn't feel
00:35:20that a paradoxical rage reaction was her fault.
00:35:23And I told her that I thought
00:35:25she should come off tranquilizers for a while.
00:35:28Mrs. Truscott disagreed
00:35:29with my interpretation of the events.
00:35:31She felt that she'd really intended
00:35:33to harm her husband.
00:35:34That is why she felt guilty,
00:35:36and that is why she wanted stronger tranquilizers.
00:35:38But it's perfectly natural, isn't it,
00:35:40to feel a sense of guilt
00:35:41when you've injured someone you love
00:35:43and to worry about whether or not
00:35:45the act might have been intentional.
00:35:47Possibly.
00:35:48It doesn't follow from that,
00:35:49does it, Dr. Morton,
00:35:51that Mrs. Truscott
00:35:51had intended to injure her husband
00:35:54or that she'd intended to steal
00:35:56the tin of salmon?
00:35:58Because that was, surely, as you say,
00:36:00the result of an unfortunate
00:36:01conjunction of circumstances.
00:36:04Like the cylinders of a combination lock
00:36:07clicking into place.
00:36:09I'm afraid only Mrs. Truscott
00:36:10can answer that question for you.
00:36:42Church of England.
00:36:43Would you remove your gloves, Mrs. Truscott?
00:36:47My gloves?
00:36:48Yes, please.
00:36:53Just that one will do.
00:36:56Take the Bible in your right hand
00:36:57and read aloud the words on the card.
00:37:00I swear by almighty God
00:37:01that the evidence I shall give
00:37:03shall be the truth,
00:37:04the whole truth,
00:37:05and nothing but the truth.
00:37:06Is your full name
00:37:12Barbara May Truscott?
00:37:14Yes, sir.
00:37:15And do you live at 25
00:37:17Hurstman-Sow Court
00:37:19Wentworth-Fulchester?
00:37:21Yes, sir.
00:37:22Are you a lady
00:37:23with no previous convictions
00:37:24whatsoever?
00:37:25No.
00:37:26What was that, Mrs. Truscott?
00:37:29I said no, sir.
00:37:30And when you say no,
00:37:31Mrs. Truscott,
00:37:32you mean you have
00:37:33no previous convictions.
00:37:34Is that correct?
00:37:35Yes.
00:37:36Now, when you give your evidence,
00:37:38Mrs. Truscott,
00:37:38I would like you to speak
00:37:39as loudly and distinctly
00:37:41as you can.
00:37:42Because if I have difficulty
00:37:43hearing you,
00:37:44the members of the jury
00:37:45must be having
00:37:46even greater difficulty.
00:37:48Yes.
00:37:48Yes, sir.
00:37:51Mrs. Truscott,
00:37:52a somewhat un-chivalrous
00:37:54question perhaps,
00:37:55but would you object
00:37:56if the court
00:37:57were to be told
00:37:58your age?
00:37:59No, I wouldn't object.
00:38:00And you are?
00:38:0251.
00:38:0352,
00:38:04next January.
00:38:06And now, uh...
00:38:06Philip never forgets
00:38:07my birthday.
00:38:08Oh, does he not?
00:38:09Or our wedding anniversary.
00:38:11I see.
00:38:12And when were you married,
00:38:13Mrs. Truscott?
00:38:15February the 23rd, 1952.
00:38:18I'd given up teaching
00:38:19at the infant school
00:38:20at the end of the term before.
00:38:22How would you describe
00:38:23your marriage?
00:38:25Very happy.
00:38:26I've always tried
00:38:30to do my best
00:38:31for my husband
00:38:31and my family.
00:38:32Yes.
00:38:33Now, Dr. Morton
00:38:34has told us,
00:38:35hasn't she,
00:38:36how you first approached her
00:38:37for assistance
00:38:38in coping
00:38:39with the additional
00:38:40wifely duties
00:38:41necessitated
00:38:42by your husband's
00:38:43involvement
00:38:44with politics.
00:38:46Yes.
00:38:47I don't think
00:38:48she really understood
00:38:49what I wanted, though.
00:38:51She just put me
00:38:52on to tranquilizers.
00:38:53That wasn't
00:38:53what you wanted?
00:38:54No.
00:38:56Dr. Morton
00:38:57has said
00:38:58that you refused
00:38:58to stop taking
00:38:59tranquilizers.
00:39:02Dr. Morton
00:39:02was very understanding.
00:39:04I told Philip that.
00:39:06She was very sympathetic
00:39:07to everything
00:39:08that I told her.
00:39:11It's just
00:39:12that I needed
00:39:13something more positive.
00:39:15Tranquilizers
00:39:16don't solve anything.
00:39:17They just
00:39:17keep you going
00:39:19from day to day,
00:39:20don't they?
00:39:20In other words,
00:39:21Mrs. Truscott,
00:39:22you weren't happy,
00:39:23were you,
00:39:23to be on a perpetual
00:39:24regime of five milligrams
00:39:26of modrium
00:39:26three times a day?
00:39:28That was all
00:39:28she ever prescribed
00:39:29for me.
00:39:29Yes.
00:39:30Now, you heard
00:39:31Dr. Morton
00:39:32say earlier on,
00:39:33when talking about
00:39:34the incident
00:39:35with the tin opener,
00:39:37that you told her
00:39:37you were worried
00:39:38you might have
00:39:39intended to harm
00:39:40your husband.
00:39:42Do you still have
00:39:42that same worry now?
00:39:43No.
00:39:45I see now
00:39:45that it was all
00:39:46caused by the drugs.
00:39:47Yes.
00:39:48Dr. Morton said
00:39:49it was a paradoxical
00:39:50rage reaction,
00:39:51didn't she?
00:39:53Yes.
00:39:54And something else
00:39:55you heard Dr. Morton
00:39:56say earlier
00:39:56was that she warned
00:39:58you not to take
00:39:59more than one tablet
00:40:00three times a day,
00:40:02otherwise you might
00:40:03start to feel drowsy,
00:40:04lightheaded,
00:40:05as though you'd had
00:40:05one or two drinks
00:40:06too many.
00:40:07Yes.
00:40:08Did she warn you
00:40:09to that effect?
00:40:10Only in relation
00:40:11to driving.
00:40:12And?
00:40:13I told her
00:40:14I don't drive.
00:40:16But did she give you
00:40:17a general warning
00:40:18not to exceed
00:40:20the prescribed dose?
00:40:21No.
00:40:22So you sometimes
00:40:23took an extra tablet
00:40:24or two of Modrium
00:40:25in an emergency,
00:40:26so to speak?
00:40:26Yes.
00:40:27And Dr. Morton
00:40:28has said,
00:40:29hasn't she,
00:40:29that the effect
00:40:30of even your
00:40:31normal regular dosage
00:40:33can be exaggerated
00:40:34depending upon
00:40:35the immediate
00:40:36circumstances?
00:40:38Yes.
00:40:40How many tablets
00:40:41did you take
00:40:41on the morning
00:40:42of the 18th?
00:40:46Three.
00:40:47That's two
00:40:48extra tablets.
00:40:50Yes.
00:40:52Why did you do that?
00:40:54Well,
00:40:55when I woke up
00:40:56I was still
00:40:57feeling upset
00:40:58about the reporters.
00:41:00I'd hardly slept
00:41:01at all.
00:41:02The reporters,
00:41:02Mrs. Trusquid?
00:41:04Yes,
00:41:04from the
00:41:06Fulchester Gazette.
00:41:07It was our
00:41:08silver wedding
00:41:09anniversary
00:41:10the following week
00:41:11and they'd been
00:41:12round to interview
00:41:13us the night before.
00:41:14The night before
00:41:16the 18th that is.
00:41:17Yes.
00:41:18Now why should
00:41:19an interview
00:41:19about your silver
00:41:20wedding cause
00:41:21you so much
00:41:22distress that
00:41:23you couldn't
00:41:23sleep?
00:41:25Well,
00:41:25it didn't at
00:41:26first.
00:41:27I told them
00:41:28that Philip
00:41:28was planning
00:41:29a special
00:41:29surprise.
00:41:31Every other year,
00:41:32you see,
00:41:32we'd gone to a
00:41:33concert at the
00:41:34city hall,
00:41:34that was where
00:41:34we first met,
00:41:35just after the
00:41:37war,
00:41:37when I was
00:41:38playing with
00:41:39the Fulchester
00:41:39Youth Orchestra
00:41:40and Phil was
00:41:42home on leave
00:41:42from his
00:41:43national service.
00:41:45They've pulled
00:41:46the building
00:41:46down now,
00:41:47as you know.
00:41:49Then one of
00:41:50the reporters
00:41:51asked me what
00:41:51instrument I
00:41:52played with
00:41:53the Youth
00:41:53Orchestra
00:41:54and I said
00:41:59the cello.
00:42:01Yes,
00:42:01Mrs. Trusquid?
00:42:02They asked me
00:42:05if I'd still
00:42:05play it and I
00:42:06said that I
00:42:07didn't really
00:42:08get much time
00:42:09to play now.
00:42:10Then the young
00:42:13reporter in the
00:42:13glasses and
00:42:14the T-shirt,
00:42:16he asked if he
00:42:16could take a
00:42:17picture of me
00:42:17with the cello
00:42:19and everybody
00:42:22seemed to think
00:42:22that that was
00:42:23a good idea.
00:42:23So I went up
00:42:25to the spare
00:42:25room and there
00:42:27was my cello
00:42:28propped up
00:42:28against the wall
00:42:29in its battered
00:42:30old canvas case.
00:42:31Did you bring
00:42:31the cello
00:42:32downstairs?
00:42:34Yes.
00:42:36Then they
00:42:36asked me what
00:42:37was my favourite
00:42:38piece of music
00:42:39for the cello
00:42:40and I told
00:42:41them one of
00:42:42the Bach
00:42:42unaccompanied
00:42:43sonatas.
00:42:46And then the
00:42:48other reporter
00:42:48asked me if I
00:42:49would play a
00:42:50little of it
00:42:50for them.
00:42:51Did you do
00:42:52so?
00:42:54I was reluctant
00:42:55to at first
00:42:55but eventually
00:42:57I...
00:42:58I hadn't played
00:43:00for some time
00:43:01you see
00:43:01and I knew
00:43:02that the
00:43:03soft skin
00:43:04on the top
00:43:04of the fingers
00:43:06of my left
00:43:06hand would
00:43:07be bound
00:43:07to hurt
00:43:08a little
00:43:08at first.
00:43:09You see
00:43:10you have to
00:43:10press quite
00:43:10heavily on
00:43:11the strings
00:43:12as you change
00:43:14from one
00:43:14position to
00:43:15the next.
00:43:17I struggled
00:43:18away for a
00:43:19few minutes
00:43:19like an
00:43:20idiot.
00:43:23All those
00:43:24years of
00:43:24practice and
00:43:25lessons from
00:43:26the age of
00:43:26eight and
00:43:27now.
00:43:27I kept
00:43:30thinking what
00:43:31a fool I
00:43:31was to
00:43:32allow myself
00:43:32to be
00:43:33persuaded
00:43:33imagining
00:43:35that I
00:43:35should still
00:43:36be able
00:43:36to play.
00:43:39After a few
00:43:40minutes I
00:43:40stopped.
00:43:43The skin
00:43:44on the tops
00:43:44of my fingers
00:43:45was raw
00:43:45and torn
00:43:46and...
00:43:47painful
00:43:50and everything.
00:43:51I'm sure
00:43:57that everybody
00:43:58here will
00:43:58understand how
00:43:59disturbing it
00:44:01must all have
00:44:02been for you.
00:44:03No I felt
00:44:04somehow that I
00:44:05it was another
00:44:06way I failed.
00:44:10After the
00:44:11reporters had
00:44:12left Mrs.
00:44:12Truscott did
00:44:13you then go
00:44:13to bed?
00:44:15Yes I did
00:44:15but it
00:44:16wasn't really
00:44:17any use.
00:44:18I hardly slept
00:44:18at all.
00:44:19And then what
00:44:19happened in the
00:44:20morning?
00:44:21Mrs.
00:44:21Truscott?
00:44:23Well when I
00:44:23woke up I
00:44:24felt having
00:44:25been alright
00:44:25at first
00:44:25and then
00:44:26just before
00:44:27Philip left
00:44:28for work
00:44:29I...
00:44:32It was
00:44:32panic session
00:44:33so all I
00:44:34could do
00:44:34was take
00:44:34a couple
00:44:35of extra
00:44:35tablets
00:44:36to give
00:44:36me the
00:44:37courage
00:44:37to go
00:44:37out of
00:44:37the house.
00:44:38Yes and
00:44:38later that
00:44:39morning you
00:44:39did go
00:44:39out of
00:44:40the house
00:44:40didn't you?
00:44:41Do you
00:44:41remember
00:44:42arriving at
00:44:42the
00:44:42paradise
00:44:43supermarket?
00:44:45No.
00:44:47But you
00:44:47went there
00:44:48that morning
00:44:48Mrs.
00:44:49Truscott?
00:44:49Yes.
00:44:50I don't
00:44:51remember
00:44:51arriving
00:44:51though.
00:44:52Do you
00:44:53remember
00:44:53taking any
00:44:54items from
00:44:55the shelves
00:44:55and placing
00:44:56them in
00:44:56one of
00:44:56those little
00:44:57wire baskets?
00:44:58No not
00:44:59really.
00:44:59I know I
00:45:00must have
00:45:00done but
00:45:01I was in
00:45:03a sort of
00:45:03daydream
00:45:04all the
00:45:04time.
00:45:04I was
00:45:06thinking about
00:45:07the questions
00:45:08the reporters
00:45:08asked and
00:45:10things we
00:45:11talked about
00:45:11from the
00:45:12past and
00:45:12wondering what
00:45:14Philip had
00:45:15planned for
00:45:15me and
00:45:16Philippa she
00:45:17wouldn't be
00:45:18able to join
00:45:18us this year
00:45:19because she
00:45:19was living so
00:45:20far away
00:45:20all that
00:45:21kind of
00:45:22thing.
00:45:22Philippa is
00:45:23the name of
00:45:23your daughter
00:45:24is that
00:45:24right?
00:45:25Yes.
00:45:26Do you
00:45:27remember
00:45:28standing in
00:45:28front of
00:45:29the shelves
00:45:29with tin
00:45:29fish?
00:45:32Yes I
00:45:32think so.
00:45:33And do you
00:45:33remember
00:45:33turning your
00:45:34head from
00:45:35side to
00:45:35side either
00:45:36to see if
00:45:36anyone was
00:45:36looking at
00:45:37you or
00:45:38else to
00:45:38clear your
00:45:39mind?
00:45:39No.
00:45:40Do you
00:45:41remember
00:45:41putting a
00:45:42seven and a
00:45:43half ounce
00:45:43tin of
00:45:44fancy grade
00:45:45paradise red
00:45:46salmon priced
00:45:47at one
00:45:48pound sixteen
00:45:49p into your
00:45:50shopping bag?
00:45:51No.
00:45:52Do you
00:45:53remember Mrs.
00:45:53Waterman stopping
00:45:54you outside in
00:45:55the street?
00:45:56Yes.
00:45:57Yes she was
00:45:58shouting at me.
00:45:58Now why was
00:45:59that?
00:46:01Well I suppose
00:46:01it's because I
00:46:02wasn't really
00:46:02listening to what
00:46:03she was saying.
00:46:04Is that why
00:46:05you said
00:46:05don't speak so
00:46:06loudly to her?
00:46:08Yes I
00:46:08expect so.
00:46:09Do you
00:46:10remember a
00:46:10conversation
00:46:10taking place
00:46:11with Miss
00:46:12Fenton in
00:46:12one of the
00:46:13offices?
00:46:14Yes.
00:46:15Do you
00:46:15remember
00:46:15anything you
00:46:16said to
00:46:17her?
00:46:18I'm not
00:46:19sure.
00:46:20You're not
00:46:20sure?
00:46:21Well I've
00:46:22been listening
00:46:22to her in
00:46:23the witness
00:46:23box and
00:46:24what I
00:46:25remember and
00:46:26what she
00:46:26said and
00:46:27all jumbled
00:46:27up together.
00:46:28Yes I
00:46:29remember she
00:46:30said how
00:46:32will your
00:46:32old man
00:46:33react to
00:46:33this?
00:46:34Why do you
00:46:35remember that?
00:46:36Because I
00:46:37thought she
00:46:37was talking
00:46:38about my
00:46:38father and
00:46:39he died in
00:46:401955.
00:46:41Now when
00:46:42Miss Fenton
00:46:42asked you that
00:46:43question about
00:46:44your husband
00:46:45Mrs.
00:46:45Truscott did
00:46:46you respond by
00:46:47saying I
00:46:48expect he'll
00:46:49try to bully
00:46:50me into pleading
00:46:51not guilty?
00:46:52No.
00:46:53Did you at
00:46:54any time intend
00:46:56to plead guilty?
00:46:58No.
00:47:00Did you place
00:47:01the tin of
00:47:01salmon in your
00:47:02shopping bag with
00:47:03the intention of
00:47:04not paying for
00:47:05it?
00:47:06No.
00:47:07No.
00:47:07No.
00:47:07No.
00:47:07No.
00:47:07No.
00:47:07No.
00:47:07No.
00:47:07No.
00:47:07No.
00:47:09No.
00:47:09No.
00:47:09No.
00:47:11No.
00:47:11No.
00:47:11No.
00:47:13No.
00:47:13No.
00:47:15No.
00:47:15No.
00:47:17No.
00:47:17No.
00:47:18No.
00:47:19No.
00:47:19No.
00:47:20Join us again
00:47:37tomorrow when
00:47:38the Queen against
00:47:39Truscott will be
00:47:40concluded in the
00:47:41Crown Court.
00:47:501 2 2 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 3 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 2 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 6 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 2 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 2 1
00:48:20The case you're about to see is a fictional one, but the procedure is legally accurate.
00:48:26The characters are played by actors, but the jury is selected from members of the general public,
00:48:31who will retire at the end of the trial to reach their own unrehearsed verdict.
00:48:36Mrs. Barbara Truscott is accused of stealing a tin of salmon from Paradise Supermarkets,
00:48:40Fulchester. Her husband, a solicitor, has instructed her counsel that at the time of
00:48:45the alleged theft, Mrs. Truscott was taking tranquilizers on prescription from her doctor.
00:48:50And that she was not fully conscious of her actions.
00:48:52Mrs. Truscott is being cross-examined by counsel for the prosecution.
00:48:56Oh, I think I should.
00:48:58And you heard Mrs. Waterman say that you appeared to be in full control of your faculties at the time she apprehended you.
00:49:05Yes.
00:49:06And you also heard Miss Fenton say that she had often seen you in the Paradise Supermarket,
00:49:12and that you did not appear to her to be behaving any differently on that day to any other day.
00:49:17Yes.
00:49:17Then I put it to you, Mrs. Truscott, that you were not in a particularly distressed state of mind
00:49:24on the morning of the 18th, and that you did not take any extra tablets of Modria.
00:49:30No, I did.
00:49:32But Dr. Morton had warned you, hadn't she, when you asked her if it would be all right for you
00:49:37to take an extra tablet or two when you felt particularly bad, that that would be an unwise thing to do.
00:49:43Yes.
00:49:43Yes.
00:49:45But only in relation to driving.
00:49:47And I told her that I don't drive.
00:49:50Yes.
00:49:51You keep on saying that, don't you, Mrs. Truscott?
00:49:54Do I?
00:49:55I'm sorry.
00:49:57Mrs. Truscott, however Dr. Morton phrased her warning to you,
00:50:01she did tell you that if you occasionally took an extra tablet or two,
00:50:05you would feel drowsy and lightheaded as though you'd had a few drinks too many.
00:50:11Yes.
00:50:11So, on the occasions that you did take extra tablets, against Dr. Morton's advice,
00:50:17you knew the effect they would have on you.
00:50:20Yes, but I only took an extra tablet if I was particularly anxious about something.
00:50:26You claimed earlier, Mrs. Truscott, that you took two additional tablets on the morning of the alleged theft
00:50:32to give yourself the courage to go out of the house.
00:50:36Yes.
00:50:37Do you often take extra tablets to give yourself the courage to do things you might want to do,
00:50:45but which otherwise you might be afraid to do?
00:50:48Yes.
00:50:50Acts which might include intentionally throwing a tin opener at your husband,
00:50:54or intentionally stealing a tin of salmon from the...
00:50:57Sir, yes, Miss Davenport, I think that question is a matter for your address to the jury, don't you?
00:51:01Sir, Mrs. Truscott, when you told Dr. Morton about the incident with the tin opener,
00:51:09you said that in spite of her reassurances that it was a paradoxical rage reaction,
00:51:15you were still worried about the fact that you might have intended to harm your husband.
00:51:20Yes.
00:51:21Yes.
00:51:22But you told my learned colleague that now you felt these worries were unfounded.
00:51:27Yes.
00:51:27When did you change your mind?
00:51:32I'm not sure.
00:51:34Did you change your mind as a result of anyone saying anything to you during the course of this trial?
00:51:40No, I didn't.
00:51:43Mrs. Truscott, this trial is not an enjoyable experience for you, is it?
00:51:49No.
00:51:49No.
00:51:50Have you at any stage at all during this trial wished that you had opted to plead guilty at the magistrate's court
00:51:58so that everything could be over and done with, so to speak?
00:52:03No.
00:52:04Mrs. Truscott, I put it to you that on the morning of the 18th of February,
00:52:10if you did take any extra tablets of Modrium,
00:52:12you did so deliberately in order to give yourself the courage to commit an act of theft?
00:52:19No.
00:52:20And I further put it to you that when you were apprehended,
00:52:23your original intention was to plead guilty.
00:52:26No.
00:52:27But you've heard Miss Fenton say in court and on oath
00:52:30that you said to her,
00:52:32I suppose my husband will try to bully me into pleading not guilty.
00:52:37Did you say that?
00:52:38No.
00:52:40No.
00:52:42But since you claim to have taken two extra tablets of Modrium that morning,
00:52:47and after all you say you can't remember even picking up a tin of salmon
00:52:52and putting it into your shopping bag,
00:52:54or very much else for that matter,
00:52:56it is possible, isn't it, Mrs. Truscott,
00:52:59that you made that remark to Miss Fenton,
00:53:02but that you simply don't remember making it?
00:53:06I don't know.
00:53:08Was it, as Miss Fenton said,
00:53:09the case that you wanted to plead guilty,
00:53:12but that your husband has bullied you into pleading not guilty?
00:53:15Sir.
00:53:15Yes, Mr. Carrigan.
00:53:17With the best will in the world, sir,
00:53:18my client cannot be required to answer that question.
00:53:21Since Mr. Truscott is her solicitor,
00:53:23any conversations that took place between Mr. and Mrs. Truscott
00:53:26after her arrest
00:53:28are the subject of solicitor-client privilege?
00:53:30Yes.
00:53:31Mr. Havenport, I'm afraid Mr. Carrigan is absolutely right.
00:53:34I shall not allow that question.
00:53:36Yes?
00:53:41Mrs. Truscott,
00:53:43does your husband ever bully you?
00:53:47Philip?
00:53:49No, of course not.
00:53:50You live in a state of utter and complete connubial bliss.
00:53:55It is possible.
00:53:58Several times during the course of this trial,
00:54:01you have said that you do not drive, Mrs. Truscott.
00:54:04No, I don't.
00:54:06Why is that?
00:54:08Well, I've always been afraid that if I should start to learn,
00:54:11I might scrape the car or have a bump or something.
00:54:15Is that what Mr. Truscott says?
00:54:17Yes, it is.
00:54:18And I agree with him.
00:54:20I'm sure you do.
00:54:22Mrs. Truscott, tell me,
00:54:24where did you go for your holiday last year?
00:54:27To Corsica.
00:54:28Was that your idea?
00:54:30No, it was Philip's.
00:54:32Does Mr. Truscott always decide where you go for your holiday?
00:54:36Yes, of course he does.
00:54:37And the outfit that you're wearing today, Mrs. Truscott,
00:54:43is that your choice?
00:54:45No, I always rely on Philip to select my clothes for me.
00:54:48He has far better taste.
00:54:50And even your daughter is called Philippa, is she not?
00:54:54Yes.
00:54:56Another choice of your husband's, no doubt.
00:54:58No.
00:55:00That was my choice.
00:55:03Mrs. Truscott,
00:55:04did your husband ever tell you
00:55:07to stop using tranquilizers?
00:55:10No.
00:55:12Now, are you really saying, Mrs. Truscott,
00:55:14that you have never felt any resentment at all
00:55:16towards a man who has encouraged you
00:55:19to subjugate your personality to his,
00:55:22probably throughout the whole of your married life,
00:55:25and who has allowed you,
00:55:27over the last few years,
00:55:28to become dependent on tranquilizers
00:55:31simply because it makes things easier for him that way?
00:55:35You're talking just like Philippa now, you know.
00:55:38Am I?
00:55:39Yes.
00:55:40She used to go on and on.
00:55:42You've no idea about how old-fashioned I was
00:55:44and how I must be a throwback
00:55:47to the age of Queen Victoria or something.
00:55:50She used to say that I ought to stand up
00:55:52and take a deep breath and say,
00:55:54stop.
00:55:56And what was your reply to that?
00:55:59I told her, Miss Davenport,
00:56:00that I thought she ought to wait until she was married
00:56:04before she started trying to tell me how to run my life.
00:56:09Yes.
00:56:11The interview in the Fulchester Gazette,
00:56:14Mrs. Truscott,
00:56:16was that your choice?
00:56:18No,
00:56:19but I was quite happy that there should be something
00:56:21printed in the paper to mark the occasion.
00:56:24I see.
00:56:26There's nothing wrong with being sentimental, is there?
00:56:29No.
00:56:30No, not at all.
00:56:31In fact, the reporter,
00:56:32who will remain nameless,
00:56:34writes here,
00:56:35Mrs. Truscott numbers among the happiest days of her life
00:56:39those just after the end of the war
00:56:41when she would cycle down to the old Swallowpool ground
00:56:44to watch her latest boyfriend playing cricket.
00:56:48In those days, she recalls,
00:56:50Phil used to believe he was the natural successor
00:56:52to Dennis Compton at number four for England,
00:56:54even though he was only playing
00:56:56for Fulchester Grammar School Old Boys,
00:56:58second eleven.
00:56:58Did you say all that, Mrs. Truscott?
00:57:07Yes.
00:57:09The reporter also writes,
00:57:11Mrs. Truscott,
00:57:13once the proud owner of many certificates
00:57:16for her prowess as a cello player,
00:57:18now has little time
00:57:19to indulge her former passion for music,
00:57:23but she loyally affirms,
00:57:25I'm happy to devote the whole of my life
00:57:27to helping my husband in his chosen career.
00:57:30Did you say all that as well, Mrs. Truscott?
00:57:32Yes.
00:57:35You'll forgive me for saying this, Mrs. Truscott,
00:57:38but surely a woman of your talents
00:57:41and sensitivity
00:57:42must have felt wounded, to say the least,
00:57:47at being reduced in front of those two gentlemen
00:57:50from the Fulchester Gazette
00:57:51to being a mere mouthpiece,
00:57:53almost a ventriloquist doll,
00:57:55an accessory to your husband's career
00:57:57like a cigarette lighter or a watchful.
00:58:00This is ludicrous.
00:58:01Truscott.
00:58:01With all respect,
00:58:02I've tried to get it to understand.
00:58:04You're doing your wife's case
00:58:05no good at all
00:58:05by continuing to behave in this fashion.
00:58:08At the risk of being accused
00:58:09of undue leniency
00:58:10towards a member of a legal profession,
00:58:11I will give you one last chance,
00:58:13but be warned,
00:58:15another interruption
00:58:16and you will leave this court.
00:58:18Now, Mrs. Davenport,
00:58:20I think I've allowed you
00:58:21a great deal of leeway.
00:58:22I do think you ought now
00:58:24to put whatever point it is
00:58:25you're seeking to make
00:58:26to Mrs. Truscott,
00:58:27don't you?
00:58:31Mrs. Truscott,
00:58:32is it not the case
00:58:34that during your 25 years of marriage
00:58:36you have suffered
00:58:37a great deal of humiliation?
00:58:39No.
00:58:40And is it not also the case
00:58:41that on many occasions,
00:58:43including the incident
00:58:44with the Tinopener,
00:58:45you have found yourself
00:58:46intentionally attempting
00:58:47to revenge yourself
00:58:48on your husband?
00:58:49No.
00:58:49And I put it to you
00:58:50that the interview
00:58:52on the evening
00:58:52before the 18th
00:58:53was the final degradation
00:58:55that broke even
00:58:56your loyal back.
00:58:58And that when you took
00:58:59that tin of salmon,
00:59:00you did so
00:59:01intending to steal it
00:59:02and intending
00:59:03to plead guilty
00:59:04in order to punish
00:59:06your husband
00:59:07by humiliating him
00:59:08publicly
00:59:09and in open court.
00:59:11No.
00:59:12That's not what it was at all.
00:59:17Strange.
00:59:19Hmm?
00:59:21Remembering that?
00:59:24Yes?
00:59:25Taking the tin of salmon
00:59:27from the shelf
00:59:27and the picture
00:59:29that flashed through
00:59:30my mind
00:59:31at that moment.
00:59:33Mrs. Truscott?
00:59:36No, they'll laugh
00:59:37at me again.
00:59:39Nobody will laugh,
00:59:40I assure you.
00:59:41No?
00:59:42No.
00:59:43It was the memory
00:59:46of a cricket match.
00:59:51A cricket match?
00:59:53Yes, I told the reporters
00:59:54about it
00:59:55only the night before.
00:59:57Then you must be referring
00:59:59to this passage,
01:00:00Mrs. Truscott.
01:00:02Mrs. Truscott
01:00:03remembers one particular day
01:00:05when she missed
01:00:05her husband's highest
01:00:06ever innings
01:00:07while she was chatting
01:00:08away in the pavilion
01:00:09helping the other girls
01:00:10prepare the sandwiches
01:00:11for tea.
01:00:12She recalls that
01:00:13in those bygone days
01:00:14of rationing
01:00:15and utility clothes
01:00:16they had to use
01:00:18chicken and salmon paste
01:00:19because real chicken
01:00:21and salmon
01:00:22were so difficult
01:00:23to obtain
01:00:23in those austere
01:00:24post-war years.
01:00:26She turns to her husband
01:00:28with a smile
01:00:29full of sad nostalgia
01:00:30and says,
01:00:31if only it were possible
01:00:33to bring back
01:00:34those days
01:00:35when we were first
01:00:36in love.
01:00:39Is that what you
01:00:40were thinking about,
01:00:41Mrs. Truscott?
01:00:45Yes.
01:00:47And then you took
01:00:49the tin of salmon?
01:00:52Yes.
01:00:54You took it
01:00:56to make him
01:00:58love you again?
01:00:59I'm sorry.
01:01:04Mrs. Truscott,
01:01:05did you take
01:01:06that tin of salmon
01:01:07because in some way
01:01:08or other
01:01:09you believed
01:01:09it might help you
01:01:11recapture the past?
01:01:14I've no idea.
01:01:17Mrs. Truscott...
01:01:18Sir,
01:01:33I find myself
01:01:35in a little
01:01:35difficulty here.
01:01:37Yes, Mr. Carrigan.
01:01:38I can understand that.
01:01:40Yes, I would like
01:01:41to call Mr.
01:01:42Philip Truscott
01:01:43as a witness
01:01:43for the defence.
01:01:45What?
01:01:45But you informed
01:01:47the court
01:01:48earlier on
01:01:48specifically
01:01:49would not be calling
01:01:50to give evidence
01:01:50for the defence.
01:01:51Yes, I realise that, sir.
01:01:53And Mr. Truscott
01:01:53has been sitting in court
01:01:54whilst all the other
01:01:55witnesses have given
01:01:56their evidence.
01:01:57Yes, I appreciate
01:01:58that too, sir,
01:01:59but the prosecution
01:02:00have made
01:02:01certain allegations
01:02:02which can only
01:02:03be dealt with
01:02:04by my calling
01:02:05Mr. Truscott
01:02:05to the witness box.
01:02:08I see.
01:02:08Well...
01:02:13Miss Durvenport,
01:02:15do you have
01:02:16any objection
01:02:16to Mr. Truscott
01:02:17being called
01:02:18as a witness?
01:02:19No, sir.
01:02:22Very well.
01:02:22I think that
01:02:23now would be
01:02:24a convenient time
01:02:24to adjourn for lunch
01:02:25and when we meet again
01:02:27you may proceed.
01:02:38And after both you
01:02:41and your wife
01:02:41had spent a sleepless
01:02:42night, Mr. Truscott,
01:02:44what happened
01:02:44in the morning?
01:02:46Well, just before
01:02:46leaving for work
01:02:47I noticed that
01:02:48instead of taking
01:02:49one tranquiliser
01:02:50with her morning coffee
01:02:51she took three.
01:02:53Now, to come to
01:02:54the incident
01:02:55of the tin opener,
01:02:57did your wife
01:02:57ever say anything
01:02:58to you about
01:02:59being afraid
01:02:59she might have
01:03:00intended to harm you?
01:03:02No.
01:03:03And I'm quite sure
01:03:04she did not
01:03:04intend to do so.
01:03:05Why are you so certain?
01:03:07Well, the whole manner
01:03:08in which the incident
01:03:08occurred.
01:03:10She simply lost
01:03:12her temper
01:03:12with the cat
01:03:13threw the tin opener
01:03:15across the room
01:03:15and it rebounded
01:03:16from the kitchen wall
01:03:17to catch me
01:03:18on the cheek.
01:03:19It was obviously
01:03:20quite accidental.
01:03:21Has your wife
01:03:22ever shown
01:03:23any signs of hostility
01:03:24towards you
01:03:25during the years
01:03:25of your marriage?
01:03:27No.
01:03:29She has been
01:03:29the perfect wife
01:03:32helping me
01:03:33in every possible way
01:03:35both in my career
01:03:36as a solicitor
01:03:37and my career
01:03:38as a politician.
01:03:40Now, before you decided
01:03:41that you would
01:03:41take upon yourself
01:03:42the burden
01:03:42of instructing solicitor
01:03:44in your wife's case,
01:03:45did your wife
01:03:46ever indicate to you
01:03:47at any time
01:03:48that she would prefer
01:03:50to plead guilty?
01:03:51No, quite the opposite.
01:03:53She has maintained
01:03:53from the very beginning
01:03:54that she's innocent.
01:03:55Thank you,
01:03:56Mr. Truscott.
01:04:01Mr. Truscott.
01:04:02Yes.
01:04:02Was your 25th wedding
01:04:04anniversary celebration
01:04:05an enjoyable one?
01:04:07Yes, thank you.
01:04:09What did you and your wife
01:04:10finally decide to do?
01:04:12Well, since the city hall
01:04:13was in the process
01:04:14of being demolished
01:04:15at that time,
01:04:16we went to Stratford-upon-Avon
01:04:17for the weekend
01:04:18and that is where
01:04:19we shall be going
01:04:20every year in future
01:04:21until we have a council
01:04:23back in power
01:04:24which does not take
01:04:25such a philistine attitude
01:04:26towards the arts.
01:04:27Mr. Truscott,
01:04:28just answer council's
01:04:29questions, will you?
01:04:30Do not endeavour
01:04:30to score party
01:04:31political points.
01:04:34Was Stratford-upon-Avon
01:04:36your idea
01:04:36or Mrs. Truscott's?
01:04:38Mine, of course.
01:04:40It was a surprise.
01:04:42I see.
01:04:44I think perhaps
01:04:45I should make it clear,
01:04:46young lady,
01:04:47that however committed
01:04:48to the ideals
01:04:49of women's liberation
01:04:50you might be,
01:04:51my wife was
01:04:52and is entirely happy
01:04:54with the working arrangement
01:04:55upon which our marriage
01:04:56is based.
01:04:58And I might add
01:04:59that we have always
01:05:00seen eye to eye
01:05:00on matters
01:05:01not just concerning
01:05:01the arts
01:05:02but politics as well,
01:05:05whether they be conceived
01:05:05within the microcosm
01:05:07of the family
01:05:08or the macrocosm
01:05:09of society.
01:05:11For example,
01:05:12my daughter Philippa
01:05:13would often quote
01:05:14Engels at me,
01:05:16within the marriage
01:05:16the husband is the bourgeois,
01:05:18the wife the proletariat.
01:05:19And my wife
01:05:20would spring to my defence
01:05:22saying,
01:05:23and no bad thing either.
01:05:24Yes.
01:05:27Your daughter
01:05:28would appear
01:05:29to be another young lady
01:05:30with committed ideals.
01:05:32I notice in the article
01:05:33the Fultz de Gazette
01:05:34mentions that she had
01:05:35then just given up
01:05:36her teaching position
01:05:37in South Africa
01:05:38to do voluntary work
01:05:40amongst the poor blacks
01:05:41in the Transkai.
01:05:42We're both very proud
01:05:43of Philippa.
01:05:45Idealism is a credit
01:05:46to the young.
01:05:47As long as it is exercised
01:05:49with responsibility
01:05:50and not employed
01:05:52willfully
01:05:53in courts of law
01:05:54in the attempt
01:05:55to make the whole
01:05:56of human behaviour
01:05:57fit one
01:05:58narrow set of beliefs.
01:06:00Do you think
01:06:01that you might,
01:06:02Mr Truscott,
01:06:02at any time
01:06:03have muffled
01:06:05or muted
01:06:05Mrs Truscott's
01:06:06abilities
01:06:07and personality
01:06:08by an overbearing
01:06:10application
01:06:11of your own
01:06:12narrow set of beliefs?
01:06:15Well,
01:06:15let me say this
01:06:16and let me make
01:06:17it quite clear.
01:06:19I have never
01:06:20at any stage
01:06:21forced my wife
01:06:22to do anything
01:06:23or forego
01:06:25anything.
01:06:27I'm sure the members
01:06:28of the jury
01:06:28are interested
01:06:29to hear your theories,
01:06:30Mr Truscott,
01:06:31particularly when applied
01:06:32to your wife's
01:06:33dreams and longings.
01:06:35Well,
01:06:35everyone has dreams
01:06:36when they're young.
01:06:38You might be surprised
01:06:39to hear it.
01:06:39I even had them myself.
01:06:42But maturity,
01:06:44as you will discover
01:06:46one day,
01:06:47is attaining an age
01:06:48when you come
01:06:49to realize
01:06:49that the only
01:06:52possible line of action
01:06:53is one of continual
01:06:54compromise
01:06:54between dreams
01:06:56and reality,
01:06:57between what is desired
01:06:59and what is possible.
01:07:03If there is a gap
01:07:07between the two
01:07:07and the individual
01:07:10human being
01:07:10cannot bridge
01:07:11the gap,
01:07:12then,
01:07:13and my wife
01:07:14and I have always
01:07:15been agreed
01:07:15upon this point,
01:07:17then one has
01:07:19to learn
01:07:19to accede
01:07:20gracefully
01:07:21to the inevitable.
01:07:24This realization
01:07:25has nothing
01:07:26whatsoever to do
01:07:27with any
01:07:28question
01:07:29of...
01:07:32Sir?
01:07:33Yes,
01:07:34what is it,
01:07:34Mr Carrigan?
01:07:35I'm afraid
01:07:35that I'm compelled
01:07:37to ask
01:07:37whether my client
01:07:38might be allowed
01:07:39to withdraw
01:07:39from the court.
01:07:40She's feeling
01:07:41too unwell
01:07:42to remain,
01:07:42is that it?
01:07:43She thinks
01:07:43she might have
01:07:44taken an overdose
01:07:45of modrium,
01:07:46sir.
01:07:46You mean
01:07:47she isn't sure?
01:07:48Well, sir,
01:07:49before lunch
01:07:49her bottle
01:07:50of tablets
01:07:50was half full,
01:07:52but now
01:07:53it seems
01:07:54to be empty.
01:07:55She can't
01:07:55recall what
01:07:56happened,
01:07:56but I don't
01:07:57think we can
01:07:58rule out
01:07:58the possibility
01:07:59that she
01:07:59might have
01:08:00taken them.
01:08:01I see.
01:08:02Dr Morton
01:08:02has said
01:08:03that the amount
01:08:04of drug involved
01:08:05will not be lethal,
01:08:06but she thinks
01:08:07Mrs Truscott
01:08:08ought to be taken
01:08:08to the
01:08:09Fullchester General
01:08:10Hospital
01:08:10so that the
01:08:11proper medical
01:08:11investigations
01:08:12could be carried out.
01:08:13Very well,
01:08:14Mr Carrigan,
01:08:14we'd better get
01:08:15there as quickly
01:08:15as possible,
01:08:16hadn't we?
01:08:16I think it
01:08:24might be advisable,
01:08:25Miss Davenport,
01:08:25if we broke
01:08:26at this point,
01:08:26don't you,
01:08:27and then you
01:08:27could continue
01:08:28your cross-examination
01:08:29tomorrow morning.
01:08:30In the light
01:08:31of what has
01:08:31just happened,
01:08:32sir,
01:08:32I don't think
01:08:33it will be
01:08:33necessary to put
01:08:34any further
01:08:35questions to
01:08:35this witness.
01:08:37Do you intend
01:08:38to re-examine
01:08:39Mr Carrigan?
01:08:40No, sir.
01:08:40Well, in that
01:08:41case, Mr Truscott,
01:08:42I think you may
01:08:42be permitted to
01:08:43leave the witness
01:08:43box and accompany
01:08:45your wife to
01:08:45hospital.
01:08:46I'm obliged to
01:08:47you, sir.
01:08:54Ah, Mr Carrigan,
01:08:55you're not proposing
01:08:56to call any more
01:08:57witnesses, are you?
01:08:58No, sir.
01:08:59In that case,
01:09:00perhaps the best
01:09:01course of action
01:09:01might be to proceed
01:09:03with the trial
01:09:04in Mrs Truscott's
01:09:05absence,
01:09:06provided, of course,
01:09:07that you both agree.
01:09:16and I would remind
01:09:18you, members of the
01:09:19jury, that although
01:09:20there have been
01:09:21moments in this
01:09:21trial which may
01:09:22have seemed to you
01:09:23to be somewhat
01:09:25dramatic, that you
01:09:26must not let such
01:09:27moments, nor any
01:09:29feeling either of
01:09:30anger or pity,
01:09:32influence your
01:09:32considerations.
01:09:33The question for you
01:09:35is for you to feel
01:09:36satisfied that you
01:09:37are sure that Mrs Truscott
01:09:39was aware of what
01:09:41she was doing, or
01:09:42whether, even if she
01:09:43was not aware, that
01:09:45she had previously
01:09:46made up her mind to
01:09:47do this thing and
01:09:48then had taken a
01:09:49couple of extra
01:09:50tablets of modrium to
01:09:52give herself courage.
01:09:54Unless you're satisfied
01:09:55on one of these
01:09:56points, your verdict
01:09:57must be one of not
01:09:58guilty.
01:09:59Now, where a person
01:10:01takes an article
01:10:02from a supermarket
01:10:04without paying for
01:10:06it, that is
01:10:07some evidence of
01:10:08theft, and that is
01:10:09undisputed in this
01:10:11case.
01:10:12And the question for
01:10:13you to decide is
01:10:14whether you think
01:10:14Mrs Truscott's
01:10:16explanation is
01:10:17satisfactory.
01:10:19Remember, if you
01:10:20have any reasonable
01:10:21doubt about it
01:10:22whatsoever, you
01:10:23must find the
01:10:24defendant not
01:10:25guilty.
01:10:26Now, ladies and
01:10:27gentlemen, I would
01:10:28ask you to retire,
01:10:30elect a foreman,
01:10:31and consider your
01:10:32verdict.
01:10:32Will your foreman
01:10:58please stand?
01:10:59Just answer this
01:11:00question, yes or no?
01:11:02Have you reached a
01:11:03verdict upon which
01:11:03you are all agreed?
01:11:04Yes.
01:11:05Do you find the
01:11:06accused guilty or
01:11:07not guilty?
01:11:08Not guilty.
01:11:09Very well.
01:11:11Now, in that event,
01:11:12it will not now be
01:11:12necessary to call
01:11:13upon Mrs Truscott to
01:11:14return to this
01:11:15court.
01:11:16Sir?
01:11:18Yes, Mr Carrigan.
01:11:19The verdict of the
01:11:20jury being in favour
01:11:21of my client, doubtless
01:11:23you will make the
01:11:23usual order that the
01:11:24prosecution should pay
01:11:26my client's costs?
01:11:27No, Mr Carrigan.
01:11:29That is the usual
01:11:30order, but this is
01:11:32not the usual case.
01:11:33I am of the opinion
01:11:34that your clients have
01:11:35brought this prosecution
01:11:36upon themselves, and
01:11:38therefore, they must pay
01:11:39their own costs.
01:11:40Thank you, Mr Carrigan.
01:11:41Thank you, Mr Carrigan.
01:11:43Thank you, Mr Carrigan.
01:11:44Thank you, Mr Carrigan.
01:11:45Thank you, Mr Carrigan.
01:11:45Thank you, Mr Carrigan.
01:11:46Thank you, Mr Carrigan.
01:11:46Thank you, Mr Carrigan.
01:11:48Thank you, Mr Carrigan.
01:11:48Thank you, Mr Carrigan.
01:11:48Thank you, Mr Carrigan.
01:11:49Thank you, Mr Carrigan.
01:11:50Thank you, Mr Carrigan.
01:11:50Thank you, Mr Carrigan.
01:11:50Thank you, Mr Carrigan.
01:11:51Thank you, Mr Carrigan.
01:11:51Thank you, Mr Carrigan.
01:11:51Thank you, Mr Carrigan.
01:11:52Thank you, Mr Carrigan.
01:11:53Thank you, Mr Carrigan.
01:11:53Thank you, Mr Carrigan.
01:11:54Thank you, Mr Carrigan.
01:11:55Thank you, Mr Carrigan.
Recommended
47:51
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