Under normal circumstances, Friday (Jack Webb) and Smith (Ben Alexander) would have had suspected holdup man Tom Stanford (Robert Crosson) dead to rights: Stanford has confessed to robbing a grocery store, and the storekeeper has identified him of the culprit. But Friday can't shake the feeling that Stanford is innocent--despite his fervent and almost manic protestations of guilt. The solution to the mystery is determined by the strained relationship between Tom Stanford and his father Arthur (Bill Johnstone), whom his son contemptuously dismisses as a "nobody". Curiously, future Andy Griffith Show costar Frances Bavier is billed in the closing credits by her character name "Hazel Howard" rather than her real name. This final episode of Dragnet's third season is based on a radio broadcast of May 17, 1953.
by Hal Erickson
synopsis
