The Case of the Fenced-In Woman (18 page)

"And there was a spring so that the lid came up when the wire was pulled?"

"Yes, sir."

"And how could this tile, this hinged tile you have referred to, be closed?"

"Only by physical pressure sufficient to overcome the tension of the spring."

"Was this tile arranged so that it was virtually impossible to detect that it was different from the others?"

"It was a very cunning piece of work," Tragg said. "Even after we knew that there was a hinged tile there it was possible to stand on it or walk on it and have no inkling of what lay beneath. The hinge was so carefully constructed and the spring catch was so mechanically perfect that there was absolutely no give or sway to the tile or anything to indicate that it wasn't embedded firmly in cement."

"And the receptacle was waterproof?"

"It was waterproof."

"How was this waterproofing arranged?"

"By a piece of sponge rubber covered with tape which surrounded the lower side of the lip of the hinged tile."

"So that any person pushing this hinged tile back into place would be very apt to place fingertips on this tape?"

"Yes, sir."

"And, once raised, the tile had to be pushed back into place in order to close it. Is that right?"

"Yes, sir."

"Now then, did you find any latent fingerprints on this tape which surrounded the lip of the tile or did you find any fingerprints on the interior surface of the tile-now mind you, Lieutenant, I am asking you about the interior, not the exterior- or in the interior of the steel – lined receptacle?"

"I did."

"Did you discover latent fingerprints which could be deciphered?"

"I did."

"And you developed those latent fingerprints and photographed them?"

"I did."

"You subsequently took the fingerprints of various persons whom you felt might have had access to this receptacle or to the premises on which the receptacle was located?"

"Yes, sir."

"And, by making comparison, were you able to determine who had made some of these fingerprints?"

"Yes, sir."

"Whose fingerprints were they?"

Tragg swiveled in the witness chair so that he was looking straight at the jurors. "Two of the persons who had made fingerprints on the inside surface of the tile and on the tape were the defendants, Vivian Carson and Morley Eden."

"You mean that you found both of their prints there?"

"I found both of their fingerprints."

"Do you have photographs of those latent prints, and photographs of the fingerprints of the defendants?"

"I do."

"Do you have those photographs with you?"

"I have."

"Will you produce them, please?"

Tragg produced the photographs and they were introduced in evidence, a series of photographic enlargements which stood on easels while Tragg pointed out the points of similarity.

Ormsby turned from the photographs to the witness and said, "You stated that the other defendant, Vivian Carson, was present at the scene?"

"That is right. She was present at her side of the house."

"Did you go to call on her?"

"I did."

"You questioned her?"

"Yes, sir."

"And did you ask her where she had been and what she had been doing?"

"Yes, sir. She said she had been shopping and had just returned."

"Let's see if I understand the situation," Ormsby said, glancing at the jury to make sure they were following him. "The fence divided the house, running through a part of the living room and out over the swimming pool. Now, which side are the bedrooms on, the Morley Eden side or the Vivian Carson side?"

"The bedrooms are on the Eden side."

"And the kitchen?"

"That is on the Vivian Carson side."

"And as I understand it from your testimony, you went over to question Mrs. Carson, one of the defendants here?"

"That's right."

"Where did you question her?"

"In the kitchen, and later on the patio."

"And while you were in the kitchen did you have occasion to notice a magnetic bar on which knives were attached?"

"I did."

"Do you have the murder weapon in your possession?"

"I do."

"Will you produce it, please?"

Tragg produced the wooden – handled knife, and Ormsby asked that it be introduced in evidence. "No objection," Mason said.

"Directing your attention to the time when you were in the kitchen, did you discuss the murder weapon with Mrs. Carson?"

"I did. I asked her if any knife was missing from the bar where the knives were kept, the magnetic bar just to the right of the electric range."

"And her answer to that question?"

"That there was nothing missing."

"Then what?"

"I directed her attention to a wooden – handled knife and asked her if that had been there all the time and she said it had. I then got the knife and found that it had never been used; that is, that it still had a crayon price mark on the blade."

"Did you direct her attention to that?"

"I did, yes, sir."

"And what was her answer?"

"She said that it had never been used to her knowledge; that she had only been in the house a short time."

"Do you have that knife with you, that second knife?"

"I do."

"Will you produce it, please?"

Tragg produced the second knife and it, too, was introduced in evidence.

"I call your attention to these black crayon marks on the blade of this knife, Lieutenant. Were those same marks on the blade of that knife when you took possession of it?"

"They were."

"Did you make an attempt to locate the car Loring Carson owned at the time of his death?"

"We did. We secured information from the motor vehicle department, and after we had a description we put out an all – points bulletin to pick up the car."

"Did you ever find it?"

"Yes. Some hours after the discovery of the body."

"Where did you find it, Lieutenant?"

"In a locked garage rented by the defendant, Vivian Carson, at the Larchmore Apartments in this city."

"Did the defendants, or either of them, make any explanation as to how this car happened to be in that garage?"

"No explanation. They refused to discuss it."

"I ask that that last remark of the witness be stricken from the record," Mason said. "The defendants are not required by law to make any explanation."

"Motion denied," Judge Fisk said. "The witness has testified to a refusal which is the equivalent of testifying to a statement made by defendants."

"Was there some conversation between you and Vivian Carson about Loring Carson's concealing assets in the divorce action?" Ormsby asked the witness.

"Yes. She stated several times that her ex – husband had secreted assets and had large sums of cash and securities which she had been unable to locate, and that Judge Goodwin, who had tried the divorce case, had been unable to locate. She said that Judge Goodwin had specifically stated that he was convinced that such assets existed."

"What time did this conversation take place, Lieutenant?"

"It started at about-oh, perhaps two o'clock and continued at intervals until around quarter to three o'clock."

"Did you find any assets on the body of Loring Carson?"

"We did. We found large sums of cash and-that is, they would be large in the eyes of a police officer-and we found traveler's checks in a large amount made to A. B. L. Seymour."

"Do you have those traveler's checks with you?"

"I do."

"Will you produce them, please?"

The book of checks was produced and marked in evidence and also the cash that had been found on the body.

"Now, using this name of A. B. L. Seymour on the traveler's checks as a clue, or I may say as a starting point, did you run down this A. B. L. Seymour?"

"Yes, sir."

"What did you find?"

"I found there was no such actual person as A. B. L. Seymour, that it was an alias that had been taken by Loring Carson for the purpose of concealing assets; that he had purchased large sums of traveler's checks; that he had purchased negotiable securities in the name of A. B. L. Seymour; and that he had an account in a Las Vegas bank in the name of A. B. L. Seymour; that the balance in the bank was something over a hundred thousand dollars."

"And did you check the signature of A. B. L. Seymour to make sure that it was in the handwriting of the decedent?"

"I did."

"Did you ever locate any securities in the name of A. B. L. Seymour?"

"I did."

"Where?"

"In Las Vegas."

"Where in Las Vegas?"

"In the room of a hotel bungalow which had been rented by Mr. Perry Mason."

"Indeed!" Ormsby said, pausing dramatically. "Mr. Perry Mason, eh?"

"Yes, sir."

"Were these securities in his possession?"

"Yes, sir. In a briefcase."

"A briefcase which he had been carrying with him from Los Angeles?"

"It was a briefcase which belonged to him. It was in his room in Las Vegas. I assumed he had brought it with him."

"Don't make any assumptions," Judge Fisk said. "Simply state the facts."

"I make no move to strike," Mason said. "Having made the statement as to his assumption in response to a leading question, I would like to have the entire answer remain in the record."

Judge Fisk looked searchingly at Perry Mason, then smiled. "Very well," he said, "there being no motion to strike, the answer will stand."

"And did Mr. Mason make any statement as to how he had come into possession of these securities?" Ormsby asked the witness.

"He did not."

"You took the briefcase with the securities?"

"We did."

"Was there any identifying mark on that briefcase?"

"Yes. The name of Perry Mason was stamped on it in gilt letters-that is, the name so stamped was 'P period Mason.'"

"You have that briefcase and the securities?"

"I have surrendered it to you. I believe you have it in your possession, but they have my identifying marks on them."

Ormsby produced a briefcase and the stock certificates and had them identified one at a time and introduced in evidence.

"I think," he said, "this concludes my direct examination of this witness, at least for the time being; but inasmuch as it is necessary to develop this case in episodes, so to speak, I may wish to recall the witness later."

"No objection," Mason said.

"Do you wish to reserve your cross – examination until the conclusion of the testimony?" Judge Fisk asked Mason.

"I would like to ask a few questions now and then I might ask other questions later on," Mason said.

"Very well, go ahead."

"You have intimated," Mason said, "that these securities and the briefcase which you found in my possession were taken by me from my clients here in Los Angeles and taken to Las Vegas, Nevada."

"I didn't know I had intimated it," Tragg said, smiling affably. "It's what I thought-of course."