The story you are about to hear is true.
The names have been changed to protect the innocent.
Dragmets.
You're a detective sergeant.
You're assigned to homicide detail.
You get a call to investigate unknown trouble.
The caller gives no indication of what's wrong.
Your job, check it out.
It was Saturday, July 18th.
It was warm in Los Angeles.
We were working the day watch on a homicide detail.
My partner is Frank Smith.
The boss is Captain Warman.
My name is Friday.
We were on our way back from questioning a suspect and it was 10 56 a.m. when I got back
to our car.
You look 1k 80.
Did you get me a pack too?
Yeah, here you are.
Thanks.
Hey Joe.
Hmm?
I wonder if you'd do me a favor.
I just did.
I bought you a pack of cigarettes.
No, something else.
Well, I've been thinking about taking a sergeant's exam.
See if I can crack it this time.
Yeah.
I figure I got about six months before they're going to hold them again.
Gives me plenty of time to get ready.
It's a lot of work.
You're going to have to really hustle the books, you know.
Yeah, I know.
I talked to Fay about it last night.
Got it all squared away.
The in-laws aren't going to come out this year.
That's what loused me up last year.
It is, huh?
Sure, Joe.
You know our house.
We had army cops all over the place, kids running around screaming.
Nobody can study like that.
You going to be able to work out the classes?
Well, I'm going to have to.
I can sure use the extra money.
The plan, me and Mike, to do some work on the house.
I thought the only way we could do it was a climactic sergeant.
Well, what do you want me to do?
Well, I wonder if you can kind of help me out along the way.
You made it.
Tell me what to do and what to watch out for.
Well, I'll do what I can for you.
But there's anybody who can make it for you besides yourself.
Yeah, I know that.
But as long as you're in my corner, old buddy, I'll be in your corner.
Attention all units.
We better get the hell out.
All units, at 52-91 La Miranda Street, investigate unknown trouble.
Car 11F-93, take the call.
Code 3, KMA-367.
This is Miranda now, isn't it here?
Yeah, 6100 block.
We must have just passed the place.
I didn't see anything.
Did you?
Me either.
Code 3, it's important.
Make a U and we'll go back and check it out.
All right.
It should be up here on the right.
Mm-hmm.
5800, a couple blocks up ahead.
Okay.
We'll go back and check it out.
All right.
We'll go back and check it out.
All right.
We'll go back and check it out.
All right.
We'll go back and check it out.
All right.
We'll go back and check it out.
All right.
We'll go back and check it out.
5800, a couple blocks up there.
Take it easy.
It should be in here.
Yeah.
Doesn't look like there's any trouble.
I think this is it.
You want to pull up?
Yeah.
At the back of the court, 5291.
There's nothing going on.
Yeah.
Well, maybe I better verify that address, huh?
Yeah.
1K80 to Control 1.
Control 1 to 1K80, go ahead.
Would you repeat the address on the call to La Miranda Street?
Stand by, 1K80.
Excuse me?
No.
It's probably some kids having a time.
Yeah.
Control 1 to 1K80, that address is 5291 La Miranda.
5291 La Miranda.
Roger, Control 1.
1K80, code 6 at that address, KMA367.
Well, this is it.
We better check it out, huh?
There's nothing wrong here.
Doesn't look like it, does it?
There's somebody back there, Joe.
See them at the window?
Get down, Frank.
How about it?
I don't know.
One thing's sure.
Yeah?
They didn't send for us.
The five units of the cork were arranged in the shape of a U.
5291 was the building at the far end.
In the center, running between the two wings, was a grass area.
Large palm trees were growing at either end, and there was a wrought iron table and four chairs in the center of the area.
And what we could see of the building the shot had come from, the only door was the one facing us.
Frank and I ducked over to the left side of the cork that the unit occupied by the manager.
We waited on the porch until the felony car that had been assigned to the call arrived.
While the officers from the unit covered the house, Frank and I went to the manager's place and talked to him.
He identified himself as Marshall Rice.
He appeared to be nervous and upset.
I know why it should be so tough.
You get him out of there, that's all I care about, just get him out.
What did you say the man's name was?
Dudley Gray.
You're the one who called the police?
Yeah, I called him right after he took the first shot.
I wasn't going to wait around for no repeat performance.
Do you have any idea why he's doing this?
Only one that makes any sense.
What's that?
He's wigged.
Sir?
Flip, though. He's gone straight up.
Did you talk to him this morning?
Yeah, I went back there about 8.30, wanted to get some things straightened out.
I sat and had a cup of coffee with him and Charlotte.
Who's Charlotte?
His wife.
Real dial, she sure don't deserve to come up with a flip like him.
How'd he seem then?
You mean when I talked to him?
That's right.
All right, I didn't notice anything.
If I had, I'd have called you then instead of waiting for this to happen.
And what'd you talk about?
Different things.
We've been planning on doing a little remodeling, you know, painting papers.
Yeah.
Dudley's been helping me.
Lost his job a couple of months ago.
Since then he's just been sitting around watching the TV.
I've been doing all liquor work.
So I asked him to give me a hand with a redecorating.
Guy's already six weeks behind on his rent.
Just go to the show.
Huh?
Well, you try to be nice to a guy, try to give him a hand.
What happens? He kicks you.
He's no good. He's no good at all.
You'll find out when he comes out. You'll see then.
How long have they lived here?
It's been a couple of years.
Do you need the exact date they moved in?
No, sir, not right now.
You ever had any trouble with them before this?
Nothing like this, that's for sure.
But you have had trouble, huh?
Well, sure.
I just try to live together and not have a little beef now and then.
What were the disagreements about?
Different things.
Sounds kind of silly when you talk about them.
Well, it might help us get them out if we know what caused this.
Well, like he likes one baseball team, I like another.
He don't like the fish, I don't like the hunts, things like that.
Lay them out in the sun, they just dry right up.
Silly little thing.
Anything else?
Well, I guess I might as well tell you.
You'll find out anyway.
What's that?
Well, Dudley thought there was something between Charlotte and me.
Of course there wasn't, but you just couldn't convince him he was off base.
Wasn't anything could convince him.
He said something about that this morning, did he?
Yeah, we were just sitting there talking about how he ought to help me out with the paint.
And Charlotte said he should.
All of a sudden he got this kind of wild look in his eye.
Told me he knew all about me and his wife.
That I wasn't fooling anybody.
Well, we just sat there, didn't know what to think.
Picked up his coffee cup and flung it across the room.
Smashed against the wall, coffee all over the place.
Streaming down the walls, ruined the paint.
Told me to get out of the house and leave Charlotte alone.
Said if he ever saw me talking to her again, he'd make me sorry I did.
Well, what about his family now? Are they in the house?
Pretty sure they ain't.
Charlotte took the kids and left right after I did.
I saw them walk out.
You know where they went?
I can't help you there.
Did she have any people or friends in the neighborhood here?
Nothing I ever heard.
Got a sister down in National City, but I don't think she went there.
Why'd you say that?
She didn't have no grips.
She'd go on there, she'd be taking clothes for the kids.
Didn't have no grips when she left.
Pretty sure she didn't go in National City.
But you don't know where we can find her, huh?
At least.
Might have gone to a show, it'll deadly calm down.
How do you figure to get him to come out?
Well, we'll try to talk to him first to reason with him.
That ain't gonna do it.
He hasn't got any reason left to do a thing like this.
Well, we gotta try.
You're gonna have to kill him. You just wait and see.
That's the only way you're gonna get him out.
Shoot the house full of holes and hope he gets in the middle.
That's the only way.
We hope so.
You'll see.
Something else you ought to know.
Yeah, what's that?
That gun he's got, the.22 rifle.
He's got a real thing about guns.
He's got a real collection of rifles, pistols, automatics, a whole bunch of them.
Yeah.
And they all work.
We got a description of Dudley Gray and we called it into our N.I.
We found that he had no record in our files.
We got in touch with Captain Lorman and filled him in.
We requested that additional teams of men be dispatched with tear gas equipment and shotguns.
The men from the felony unit covered the back of the house while Frank and I covered the front.
All of the other tenants of the court were instructed to stay indoors.
11, 14 a.m. So Frank standing by, I went up to the porch to try and talk to Gray.
Gray?
Gray, I want to talk to you.
I got nothing to say to you.
Why don't you put the gun down and come on out here.
You try to take this place, I'll kill you all.
No reason for that.
I know who you are.
You don't have to try to kid me. I know you.
The police officer is Gray. We want to help you.
Yeah, you don't have to lie.
You just want me to open the gates and let you and the rest of men in here.
Well, you go back and tell the chief I won't do it.
All right, come on out here, Gray. Put the gun down. Let's talk it over.
I'm telling you, I got nothing to say.
Come sneaking around here trying to get me to let you in.
As soon as you're inside, you bring the place down, run off all the horses.
Run off what?
Yeah, I chew the cage you won. Well, it won't work.
I told you, I know who you are. You go tell the chief that it didn't work.
Now, one Indian is getting in here, not one.
I'm going to defend this fort till the cavalry gets here.
Hell show you. Division on the way right now.
Gray, come on out here.
We're on your side. We want to help you.
That's a lie. You got different clothes on, but I still recognize you.
You were scouting around here last week, I remember. Now you get out of here.
Come on, Gray. Give us a break. Let's talk it over.
Go.
Right with you.
What about it?
I don't know. He thinks he's in a fort.
He told me he thought I was an Indian. You heard him.
Yeah, I heard him.
From what the landlord says, he can hold out in there as long as he wants.
Yeah.
Maybe if we could find his wife, we might be able to come up with the answer.
All right, I'll check with the rest of the neighbors, see if they can tell us anything.
Yeah, I'll go on back and try to talk to them.
Wait a minute. Take it easy, Joe. He sounds pretty sick.
Yeah.
Check the boys in the back, William. See if there's any way of getting to them from there.
Right.
I see you out there. I see you. Now, don't try anything. I'm ready for you.
Sure you are, Gray. We couldn't put anything over on you.
You bet you can. I'm too smart for you.
How long do you think it'll be before the cavalry gets here, Gray?
They'll ride in a couple of days. Left Tucson. Day before yesterday.
Should be here day after tomorrow.
You're gonna fix up the Indians then, won't you, Gray?
Yeah, I'm gonna make them sorry they ever tried this.
Gray, how about letting us fight on your side? We'd sure like to be with you.
You mean that?
Sure, we'd like to be with a smart fellow like you.
I couldn't.
No?
I'm not gonna know if I can trust you.
Well, you can. I couldn't do anything that would hurt you.
I suppose not.
Okay, come on in. I can use somebody to watch if the Indians start using fire arrows.
Come on in.
Okay, I'll keep you covered.
As soon as you get here, I'll take the bar off the gate.
All right.
Now, hurry up. Them Indians see you. They'll be all in here.
Want to open the gate?
Wait till you get a little closer.
Can't take any chances.
Almost there, Gray. You better open the door.
Yeah, just a little closer.
Thought you'd go full, man. Well, it didn't work, did it?
It didn't work. You found out. It didn't work.
When Gray fired at me, I dropped to the ground while Frank and the other officers returned the fire,
driving the man away from the window.
1147 a.m. The additional men arrived from the office with tear gas equipment.
It was distributed and we worked out a plan to take Gray.
It was decided that two men would cover the right side of the house while another team covered the back.
Frank and I would go around to the left side and fire tear gas shells into the building until Gray had to leave.
1158 a.m. All of the officers were in position and Frank and I started to move in to use the tear gas gun.
All right. That's enough of that. Just get out of there.
Other building, Joe. Yeah, I see her.
Just get out of that garden. Go on now. Out.
Would you get back in my house, please? We don't know when to get hurt here.
Then you just better get right out of my azaleas. You knock down one more bush and you're in trouble.
You don't understand, ma'am. There's a man in that house and he's got a gun.
I don't care about Mr. Gray. What he does is his own business. I'm just telling you to get out of my flowers.
All the year I've been worrying over trying to cope the blossom out of them.
Now you come around here with your big feet and ruin it all.
We're sorry about that, but we have to get Gray out of that house.
Then do it without stepping all over my flowers.
You're a cop. You're supposed to know how to handle things like this.
Look what you've done to my two breast begonias.
Three months I've been working with them.
Just put them out last week and now look, they're all broken.
You just ought to be ashamed of yourself, big men like you, doing a thing like this to my flowers.
Look, ma'am, if we hurt your flowers, we're sorry. As you did.
Do you think you'd better get inside now, lady?
Are you telling me what to do? Yes, ma'am.
That's a direct order? Yes, ma'am.
All right. I'll go, but you just remember, you ordered me to go.
You're going to hear about this young man. What's your number?
What's the number on your badge?
I intend to report you for this. You find out.
Poor two-breast begonias. You find out. Now, what's your number?
Frank, you want to handle it? Yeah.
Come on, ma'am. We can talk right over here.
Oh, you don't think you can soft-soak me out of it?
I'm going to cause a lot of trouble, a lot of it.
Nothing you can do to stop me.
If you'll just go on inside, well, I'll talk to you later.
All right, but I'll be watching you. I'll be right here watching you.
Well, there's one for you.
Well, let's get on with it. Right.
Think we'll need the mask?
Well, we shouldn't out here.
How's it look out front?
It's all right. Glendale and Lamonica are out there.
Yeah.
Whenever you're ready.
I should bring them out. I'll get another one ready.
Better hold it up until it comes, McCready. Right.
Hey, hold it up, Joe. What do you got, Jack?
Just found out. Yeah?
Gray's wife and kids are in there with him.
Sergeant Jack McCready was standing by in the manager's office
when Mrs. Gray had telephoned from the house.
With the possibility that innocent people might be hit,
we were unable to fire into the home.
We met with Captain Warman and Dupont.
We discussed the methods we could use to get the woman and children out of the place.
We worked out a plan.
It would depend entirely on being able to talk to Mrs. Gray
and explain what we were trying to do.
Frank and I went to the manager's place and put in a call to the house.
How about it? Just starting to ring.
Figure it'll work? I don't know.
The only way we can make it go is to talk to the woman.
Explain the setup to her.
Did you get in touch with the ops about the doctor?
Yeah. They're sending a psychiatrist out.
You might be able to talk to Gray. I hope so.
Anything? No.
Looks like we're in trouble.
Yeah. She won't answer the phone.
You are listening to Dragnet, the authentic story of your police force in action.
Without being able to talk to the woman, there was little chance that the plan for getting her and the children out of the house would work.
1 14 p.m.
A large crowd of people had gathered on the street in front of the court.
Additional policemen from Metro Division had to be called in to control them.
From time to time, Dudley Gray would scream something at the bystanders and fire into the crowd.
So far, we've been able to keep the curious citizens back far enough so that none of them were hurt,
but it was only a matter of time before our luck ran out.
Meanwhile, we were still faced with the problem of first getting the wife and children out of the house
before we could attempt to take the man himself.
1 29 p.m.
While Frank and Sergeant Jack McCready went around to the back of the house to ascertain the possibility of removing the family from that side,
I again attempted to talk to Gray.
Gray? Gray?
Come on, Gray, we want to talk to you.
That's why I killed you, Ennion.
Come on, Gray. We're police officers. We're trying to help you if you'll give us the chance.
You expect me to believe that? The truth.
No, that's what you say. I'll give you something.
What's that?
You better get out of here and take your friends with you.
As soon as the cavalry gets here, you're all comfy and troubled.
Now, come on, Gray. There isn't any cavalry. You're in Los Angeles.
You're sick, Gray. We want to help you if you'll give us the chance.
I don't need nothing from you.
What about your wife and kids? Are you going to have them hurt?
They're all right. Nothing's going to get to them. They're all right.
They aren't going to stay that way with you shooting that gun.
Well, you let me worry about it. They're my family. No concern of yours. They're mine.
And you're going to have them killed, are you?
That's a lie. Why do you think I'm doing all this? It's for them. So they can get out of here.
I want to put the Indians swarming all over the place. It's for them I'm doing this.
It's kind of hard to buy, Gray.
It's hard to see what you're trying to protect them from.
Who do you think you are to tell me that? Don't you think I know what's going on?
All the time sitting in here looking at two people trying to take things away from me.
You don't think I know what's going on, huh?
Well, you just save your breath. Save everything. I know what's right. I know it and I'm doing it.
Tell you what, we'll make a deal with you, Gray.
What kind of deal can you make?
Let your wife and kids come out. Let us take care of them.
Give us a chance to prove that we're on your side.
You can't catch me with that one again. You tried once before and it didn't work, remember? You tried once before.
We didn't cause you any trouble.
I don't believe anything you say.
I won't save your breath. All you Indians are tricky. You're not fooling me.
What about all the people out there in the street?
Oh, what about us?
You want to hurt them too?
Be real honest with you. The one you got coming, but I'll be honest.
All right.
I don't much care. They're dumb enough to get caught in the middle of an Indian war. It's their tough luck.
You've come close to shooting a couple of them, you know.
Then tell them to go back to their homes. Leave the biting of the man.
Come on, Gray. Let's get together and talk things over out here. What do you say?
Nothing doing. You get me out of the fort and you try something. I'm not falling for that.
What? And what are you trying to do?
I don't know what you're talking about, Gray.
Don't try that with me. You're trying to break into the back of the plate wall. It won't work. I'll take care of you all.
Joe, Joe, get out of there.
All right.
How about it?
We're getting the gas equipment ready now.
Yeah. We got his family out.
While I'd kept Gray busy in front of the house, Frank and Jack McCready had gone around to the rear.
They'd found the room where Mrs. Gray and the children were hiding.
By breaking a window, they'd been able to remove them from the house.
The children were taken to one of the neighbors and Mrs. Gray was waiting for me in the manager's place.
Outside, the members of homicide detail were making preparations to get Dudley Gray out of the house.
Thank God you got us out of there. I don't know how to tell you.
It's all right now, Mrs. Gray.
The children, where are they?
They're next door. Don't worry about it.
What about Dudley? What are you going to do about him?
Well, we're trying to get him to come out of the house.
I'm going to have to shoot him?
Well, that depends on how he wants it.
Oh, he's sick, Sergeant. He doesn't know what he's doing.
Sure, we know it, but your husband's in there taking pot shots at anybody who comes near him.
Only a matter of time before somebody gets so close he can't miss.
Isn't there some way to get him to give up?
You're a policeman. To fit things like this before seems like it'd be your job to get him out without hurting him.
Well, we're trying. What caused this to happen?
A lot of things, Sergeant.
Well, Mrs. Gray, if we knew what's wrong with him, it might help.
Could you give us some kind of an angle on him?
I don't know how long it's been built, and maybe a year, maybe longer, it's hard to say.
He's trying to take care of the family, keep it together.
Sometimes you don't see the signs.
Yes, ma'am.
It might be my fault. I guess it is.
Just all of a sudden things got too heavy for him to carry.
He lost his job. We couldn't pay the bills.
God, so I wouldn't answer the phone because I knew it was somebody wanting their money.
I'll try to take it easy, ma'am.
He didn't have any way to get the pressure off.
No way at all. It finally got him.
All right, go ahead.
You're sure the children are all right? They're being taken care of?
Yes, ma'am, they're fine.
Are they having lunch? I couldn't think of anything they haven't eaten since this morning.
I'm sure they'll be fine.
Alice is kind of picky with her food, needs coaxing to eat.
They'll be all right, Mrs. Gray. Would you go on, please?
Well, it finally broke this morning.
Once it started, there wasn't anything we could do. Marshall came over.
That's the manager?
Yes, he came over to ask Dudley if he'd help with the painting.
He mentioned that it'd be a way to pay some of the back rent.
Didn't mean anything. Dudley just took it the wrong way.
What's that?
Marshall told him about the rent. I said it was nice of him to give Dudley the chance to make it up.
I didn't mean anything by it.
No.
Then he got up from the table and went into the living room and turned on the television.
Didn't say a word to me. Just got up and walked out.
Uh-huh.
Sat there watching a picture. One of those cowboy things. Just sat there and watched it.
Yeah.
Kids went in, tried to talk to him, so did I.
Tried to bring him out of it. Didn't even know we were in the room. Just sat there and looked at the picture.
Has your husband ever been under the care of a doctor?
You mean for his mind?
That's right.
No, I was afraid to ask and I should have, but it just seemed that it didn't mean another bill.
That was causing all the trouble anyway.
I told you, I was trying to believe that it wasn't anything serious. That it would go away.
Yeah.
It would have been better to have the bill.
Anyway, he sat there for a while. Then he just got up and walked to the closet,
picked up the rifle and told me and the kids to get him to the back bedroom.
Said that they weren't going to take the place.
Did you know what he meant?
No, not at first. I knew there was something wrong, but I didn't know it would be as bad as this.
Is there anybody your husband's particularly fond of?
We've been married for eight years, Sergeant. I guess I could qualify as one.
That isn't what I mean, ma'am. Is there anyone that he'd listen to, a friend, maybe a minister or a priest?
No, any friends he had have gone. They didn't understand his moods. There isn't anybody.
All right, Miss Gray.
Chow, see you, ma'am.
Yeah. Excuse me.
Yes.
Yeah. We ran out of time.
Gray just shot a cop.
The officer was not seriously wounded.
He was removed to Georgia Street Receiving Hospital for treatment.
People in the adjoining units were evacuated.
The streets were cleared as much as possible and the men were in position to move in.
Frank, Jack McCready, and I were opposite the front door of the house.
From Mrs. Gray, we learned that her husband had several hundred rounds of ammunition for the rifle that he was using.
In addition to this, he had several handguns and ample shells for them.
She told us that the other guns were located in the closet in the rear of the place.
It was decided to pour tear gas into the back windows and try to keep Gray away from the other guns.
Frank was armed with a sawed-off shotgun loaded with double-arc buck.
McCready had a.45 caliber machine gun.
The officers were in position and the signal was given.
There go the gas guns.
Yeah. They should be coming out pretty quick.
Hope we can take them without killing them.
We'll try. Gas is starting to come through the front window.
Go in. I quit.
All right, throw the gun out, Gray. Throw the gun out.
I won't do it.
Come on, throw that gun out.
Lay it out. Lay it out.
He's down.
Come on.
He's still got the gun.
Is he dead?
No. He better get an ambulance.
I'll take care of him.
Is he dead? Did he kill him?
No, ma'am.
Oh, don't do this.
I should have known. I should have seen.
He's going to be all right, Mrs. Gray. The doctor's on the way.
He didn't know what he was doing. That's all. He didn't know what he was doing.
Yes, ma'am.
He knows we love him. That's all that counts.
We love him and want to take care of him.
He didn't think anybody cared for him. That's what was wrong. He just didn't know.
Yes, ma'am.
Maybe he wouldn't get well. You know everybody wasn't against him.
You know people care. Don't you think that's all that's wrong?
I wouldn't know, ma'am, but he took the hard way to find out.
The story you have just heard is true. The names were changed to protect the innocent.
On August 26, the preliminary hearing was held in the prison ward of the County Hospital in and for the county of Los Angeles, state of California.
Dudley Peter Gray was held to answer charges of assault with intent to commit murder.
He was examined by three psychiatrists appointed by the court and found to be insane.
He was confined to the state mental hospital at Camarillo for treatment.
You have just heard Dragnet, the authentic story of your police force in action and starring Jack Webb, a presentation of the United States Armed Forces Radio Service.