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Elderly Mr. Marino (Eduardo Ciannelli) begs famous attorney Vernon Wedge (Brian Keith) to clear Marino's son Benjy (Rod Lauren) of a murder charge. This proves difficult in that the police have an airtight case against Benjy. But Wedge proceeds with his defense, demanding that a special forensic test be made of the murder weapon -- in full view of the jury. (Trivia note: in the original script, the accused murderer's last name was Bleeker, but this was changed when celebrated Italian-born character actor Eduardo Ciannelli was cast as the boy's father.)