 From Hollywood, it's time now for Johnny dollar Don Hancock Johnny surety mutual. Hi, and I'm what's on your mind qui bono qui who it's latin kiddo Qui bono who benefits all right. I'll bite who does a little doll named Louanne Parker down in Green Pass, Virginia $100,000 worth Johnny double indemnity Wow, what did she do answer the question? She sure did with a 38 two bullseyes right in her foster papa's heart Well, and if it's an open and shut case you don't know it's that all right She's the gal what done it she admits it, but the coroner is about to call it an unavoidable accident Seems little old Magnolia Blossom thought Papa was a prowler. What do you think just what I said? Qui bono, so I think you'd better put yourself on the payroll Tonight and every weekday night Bob Bailey in the transcribed adventures of the man with the action-packed expense account America's fabulous freelance insurance investigator goes truly Johnny dollar Expense accounts submitted by special investigator Johnny dollar to the home office surety mutual insurance limited Hartford, Connecticut The following is an accounting of expenditures during my investigation of the qui bono matter Item one seventy eight dollars and forty five cents transportation and incidentals Hartford to Green Pass Which was a village of some twelve thousand people hidden among quiet wooded hills and located as I discovered on arrival some three Miles from the railroad station nice weather. We're having yeah, it's fine you from New York Well near there Hartford that you ain't been having weather like this up there. No, no, it's been pretty cold You say your name was dollar. Yeah, Johnny dollar. I'm Jake digley You here on business. That's right. Well, I wouldn't count on finding much here Green Pass is what you might call a one horse town One hotel one bank one taxi. That's me One newspaper and one county attorney. Yep, just one And you've heard about our tragedy about Dan Parker getting shot. That's why I'm here. I'm an investigator for an insurance company I see Well, it was a terrible thing. It was If old man Holly don't fix up them fences He's going to be sure to cow one of these days. That's a third time this week. They've been out the road How do people around here feel about Dan Parker was he well liked well He'd been reelected for five straight terms. No personal enemies not a one. There ain't a man in Green Pass that What difference does it make whether he was well-liked? You know how he was killed, don't you? Yeah, I understand he was shot accidentally by a stepdaughter. That's right And what difference does it make whether he had any enemies? Well, none probably But one an insurance company holds a policy as large as the one they carried on Dan Parker They want to know the full circumstances surrounding the death. Well, there ain't no mystery about it. Mr. Donna That poor girl took him for a burglar and shot him that's all and it might have near broke her up So what about her Jake? Is she well liked? Well, let me put it this way I'm 52 years old. I got a grandson 17 and we're both in love with Lou Ann Parker I see and there's 5000 other males in Green Pass. It feels the same way She get along all right with a stepfather. They worshiped each other She was all Dan had since Mrs. Parker died nine years ago They were thicker than thieves them to Road horseback together went fishing took trips together. Well, and it's understandable that she'd be pretty broken up It was terrible for her She went clean out of her mind when she realized what she'd done. So tell me was Dan Parker a wealthy man No Fairly well to do for these parts, but no way is wealthy where you'd think of it in New York, for instance Then I imagine the Parker girl would think of a hundred thousand dollars as being a pretty sizable fortune Mr. Dollar, let me give you a little advice. Oh You got a job to do fine But if I was you I'd be mighty careful how I went about doing it. Why so? Well people up here in the hills are kind of standoffish at best And if you go around hitting what you seem to be hitting that You're going to get yourself a mess of trouble. I Don't deal in hints shake All I'm trying to do is dig up all the information possible. Let the company know exactly what happened. That sounds fair enough, mr. Dollar But you take my advice dig easy Jake Diggly's one-man taxi service dropped me off at the town's one-man hotel I signed in left my bags and did a quick resume of the case which Don Hancock had given me in New York I Try pumping the hotel proprietor, but when he found out who I was he frosted up like a mid-julep on a selfie day But he did tell me I could find the sheriff across the square at the town's one-pool room It turned out to be a one-man place, too And at the moment Sheriff Jim Peterson was the one man. Oh Glad you know he missed a dollar just a second now watch me get that third three ball down there Good shot. No, I was a setup. You couldn't miss one like that if you wanted to That's something on your mind, sir. Yes. I'm an insurance investigator. I'm here in connection with the Parker case. I'll see Don't Well, I don't think I'd call it a case exactly was accident. There ain't no mystery about it for as I can see I didn't mean to imply that there was sheriff as it stands now. This is a routine investigation nothing more I just like to get the facts find out exactly what happened in order to furnish my company with the report They need to pay the claim. I'd appreciate your cooperation if you've got the time. Oh, I got the time. All right, sir How much you know about it well not much Dan Parker as I understand it was your county attorney here is stepdaughter Lou Ann Parker Who is the beneficiary under our policy you mistook him for a prowler shot him and killed him? That's about it. Oh, well a thing happened three nights ago Dan been up to Richmond on business. He come back in on a midnight train. He walked down from the state Three miles at that time of night. Well, it's a little over two to his place. It's outside of town a ways Well, that's still quite a walk. Why didn't he call this taxi driver Jake Diggly? Yeah, well, he probably did try to but Jake wasn't expecting anything Business, so he took the night off. He was out at happy Hollis. Yeah, that's a kind of a roadhouse about five miles up the highway Does Dan's daughter have a car? Yeah, she does But I figure he didn't want to bother at that time of night See he wouldn't do until the next afternoon But it appears like he finished up his business and decided to come on back at night without letting Lou Ann know or Anybody else now, let me see chair Was he in the habit of coming back unexpectedly from trips? No, I wouldn't say it was Go on, huh? Oh Well Dan didn't take many trips and when he did he most always made arrangements with Jake or Lou Ann to meet him at the station I see so anyway walked home that night and he took a shortcut through the lane and come on in the back way across the Terrace and right there was his fatal act. Oh, what do you mean? He bumped against the lawn chair Sound woke up Lou Ann Then she heard him fumbling with the lock of the back door and heard him come on in the house She took a 38 pistol from a drawer of her night table and went to the head of the stairs When she hit him start up she fired twice and killed him. Mm-hmm Were there any lights on in the house? No, she's afraid to turn on any light And I reckon Dan was trying to keep from waking her up Two shots two bullets in the heart firing down a stairway and pitch darkness That's pretty good shooting sheriff. Oh, well, she can do it. I'll shoot me mr. Dollars and I'm known as one of the best knee-shear parts. Hmm who taught her or dine taught her himself He figured a girl ought to be able to protect yourself. So tell me something sheriff Did she have any reason to think it might be a prowler? Have you have you had any trouble of that kind around town? Oh three weeks ago It was a house broke into a row on the south side and twice since then Dan called me in the night to come out and take a look around His place. Oh, hi. Well, she was Lou Ann. I thought she had somebody trying to break in and did you find anybody? No Was Lou Ann alone in the house the night of the shooting? Mary Jackson was there. Oh, well, she'd been housekeeper for the parker for the last 15 years What's her version same as I told you She had the shots for the lights in the hall come on and heard Lou Ann scream father How did the girl and her father get along? Well, I couldn't have been any closer. She pretty broke up about it Yeah, you talked to her yet, mr. Dollar. No, not yet. No, I didn't think so What's that supposed to mean? Well, I mean if you had you wouldn't be asking a lot of these questions Or at least you wouldn't be asking them in the way that you are What way sure like you figured the Parker girl was actually guilty of something Well, she did pull the trigger didn't she and with sufficient reason she was nervous She'd heard prowlers around before or at least thought she did which adds up the same thing She thought she had somebody break in she knew she couldn't count on Mary for any help She had a gun knew how to use it So she got up her courage and done a natural and normal thing. She used it And she'll regret her mistake the rest of her life Yeah That's the way the picture seems to work out At the moment at least you've got any reason to doubt it. I Get paid to doubt things sheriff until I satisfy myself if there's no reason to doubt them And that's all I'm trying to do. It's all the insurance company expects me to do I'm not out to pin anything on this girl or to get out of paying her claim Provided it's legitimate. It did. Well, and she's got nothing to worry about If the thing happened as you just told me it did then I have as much sympathy for her as you do It'll be a pretty rough memory to live with. I just want to be sure that's all alright, Miss Daughter you look around you talk to people ask any question you're mine too But you're gonna come out right back where you started that you're probably right Dan and me had been friends for years good friends Now if I thought there was a slightest doubt about this I would be the first one to kick up a fuss and go after the truth Even if the evidence pointed toward Lou Anne Parker no matter where it pointed to Well now look I want to talk to the housekeeper and a miss Parker herself And I'd like to attend the corners inquest if you don't mind. I don't mind, but you're a little late Huh? It was Hale this morning. Oh as a verdict death by misadventure Unaboidable accident with no recommendation for prosecution. I see Would it be possible for me to see a copy of the transcript it would now ring the corner and tell him to expect you But let me give you a little piece of advice mr. Dollar All right Folks in these here parts love that girl So when you start walking around asking questions Walk easy. I Went over the corners report and found nothing Lou Anne had been called as a witness and appeared to have answered all questions in a frank and a straightforward manner. I Checked her school record. She was regarded as an unusually bright girl and it stood at the head of a class all through high school She'd been elected cheerleader in her junior year won the lead in the class play have been chosen Queen of the senior prom She was the town's darling. They worshiped her and I could see that casting any aspersions on her would be like an attack on the crown jewels I Began to feel like a peeping Tom like a Laos like I was wrong And yet qui bono who benefits Two bullets in a man's heart and a hundred thousand dollar payoff. I Had to be sure Now here's our star to tell you about tomorrow's intriguing episode of this week's story tomorrow Beauty is as beauty does and an idol is found to be made of flesh and blood Join us. Won't you yours truly Johnny dollar? Yours truly Johnny dollar starring Bob Bailey is transcribed in Hollywood written by less crutchfield It is produced and directed by Jack Johnstone Be sure to join us tomorrow night same time and station for the next exciting episode of yours Truly Johnny dollar Roy Rowan speaking