FELONY SQUAD, THE: THE LAW AND ORDER BLUES {SERIES FINALE} {PART 1 OF 2} {CROSSOVER EPISODE WITH "JUDD, FOR THE DEFENSE"} (TV)
Summary
The finale of this series of police dramas set in Los Angeles and focusing on the Felony Squad detectives. The police respond to an alert, finding an African man having ensnared local businessman Charles Fennerman in a trap and asked for fifty thousand dollars. The man claims he is a diplomat from a small African nation and therefore has diplomatic immunity, but the Felony Squad arrests him regardless. The diplomat, Marcel Nburu, is held for questioning. Fennerman asserts that Nburu contacted him about creating a charity organization to raise money for starving children in his home country, but he was unable to do so, prompting Nburu's threats. Sergeant Briggs finds out that while Nburu is a Deputy Cabinet Minister of his country, Washington has yet to recognize the nation and thus he does not have diplomatic immunity. Clinton Judd is sent to represent Nburu is court; Nburu tells him that he raised the fifty thousand dollars for Fennerman to start up his charity, but it never materialized and he believes Fennerman simply pocketed the money for himself. Nburu mistrusts all policemen, and thus did not take the matter to them. Detective Briggs and Judd interview Phil Deacon, Jr., a musician who played in Nburu's home country and met him there. Nburu gave Deacon the money to pass on to Fennerman upon his return to the United States, and Decaon insists that Fennerman spent the money. Briggs asks Judd to get Nburu to plead guilty in court so that he can be deported back to Africa, but Judd refuses. During the trial, Judd introduces enough doubt that Nburu was physically threatening Fennerman to get the case dismissed. Stone worries that Nburu might pose a danger if released, but Judd tells Stone about Nburu's mistrust of policemen. Stone asks Detective Briggs to accompany Nburu, but he manages to evade them by hiding in a patch of bushes. Later, Stone questions Fennerman, pointing out that some of the spending for Nburu's charity was of a suspicious nature. Detective Briggs discovers that Fennerman has a criminal record for swindling and gambling-related charges. Stone demands that Fennerman return Nburu's money but Fennerman refuses, and Stone vows to bring the matter to court. Nburu, however, remains unconvinced that Stone will actually help him, still suspicious of the police due to his experiences with the colonial police force in his own country. He indicates that he is not content to simply wait for the matter to be resolved. Stone infiltrates Fennerman's card game looking for evidence to use against him. He gets into an altercation with Fennerman and his guards, but manages to expose several devices in his card tables which allow him to cheat. Fennerman points out that Stone cannot use the evidence he's found in court, but relents when Stone threatens to expose his cheating methods to several mobsters who gamble with him. He again asks Fennerman to return Nburu's money to him by the following day. However, the next day Stone and Detective Briggs find that Nburu has killed Fennerman, even though Fennerman was in the process of returning the money. Judd is called in again to represent Nburu, but finds that the legal philosophy of Nburu's tribe is incompatible with the United States justice system, and no longer blames Stone and Nburu for mistrusting each other. The episode ends with Judd and Nburu alone in his cell, his fate uncertain. To be continued. Includes commercials. (Part two of this story, also entitled "The Law and Order Blues," was telecast on the ABC series, "Judd, for the Defense," on January 31, 1969; episode is not available at this time.)
Details
- NETWORK: ABC
- DATE: January 15, 1969 8:30 PM
- RUNNING TIME: 0:29:00
- COLOR/B&W: Color
- CATALOG ID: B:04378_002
- GENRE: Drama, police/private detective
- SUBJECT HEADING: Drama, police/private detective
- SERIES RUN: ABC - TV series, 1966-1969
- COMMERCIALS:
- TV – Commercials – Alka-Seltzer antacid
- TV – Commercials – Listerine mouthwash
- TV – Commercials – Tiparillo cigars
CREDITS
- Walter Grauman … Executive Producer
- Philip Saltzman … Producer
- William Kayden … Associate Producer
- George McCowan … Director
- Richard Murphy … Created by
- Harold Gast … Writer
- Peter Rugolo … Music by
- Howard Duff … Cast, Det. Sgt. Sam Stone
- Ben Alexander … Cast, Desk Sgt. Dan Briggs
- Dennis Cole … Cast, Det. Jim Briggs
- Brock Peters … Cast, Marcel Nburu
- Carl Betz … Cast, Clinton Judd
- Hal Frederick … Cast, Ray Hendrix
- Larry McCormick … Cast, Phil Deacon, Jr.
- Edward Kines Crawford … Cast, Josh
- Mimi Dillard … Cast, Mrs. Hendrix
- Morgan Sterne … Cast, Charles Fennerman