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History Recap / MurderSheWroteS2E13TrialByError

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* RightForTheWrongReasons: All the jurors convinced that Mark Lee Reynolds are correct that he is guilty. But turns out, it's for a [[ConfessToALesserCrime different crime]].

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* RightForTheWrongReasons: All the jurors convinced that Mark Lee Reynolds are correct that is guilty of ''A'' crime (and those who believe he is guilty.NOT guilty of ''THIS'' crime) are correct. But turns out, it's for a [[ConfessToALesserCrime different crime]].
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* UnwittingPawn: The prosecution contends that Johnny Detweiler (the man who called Cliff due to feeling he should know his wife was cheating on him was meant to do that (to that some friend of Cliff's was) to lure him to his death. Subverted though, as since there was no plan to kill Cliff, Detweiler was actually a SpannerInTheWorks.

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* UnwittingPawn: The prosecution contends that Johnny Detweiler (the Detweiler, the man who called Cliff due to feeling he should know his wife was cheating on him him, was meant to do that (to by Cliff and Becky (or that some ''some'' friend of Cliff's in the bar was) to lure him to his death. Subverted though, as since there was no plan to kill Cliff, Detweiler was actually a SpannerInTheWorks.
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* TheFundamentalist: Mr. Bentley one of the initial jurors to vote guilty seems somewhat biased by Mr. Anderson's adultery, saying it's a sign that he's capable of further sin.

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* TheFundamentalist: Mr. Bentley one of the initial jurors to vote guilty seems somewhat biased by Mr. Anderson's adultery, saying it's a sign that he's capable of further sin. Turns out, [[JerkassHasAPoint he was right]].
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* ActorAllusion: Sally Conover asks Thornton Bentley if he's ever been on a murder trial. Bentley's actor, Creator/BrockPeters, is best remembered by many as the defendant Tom Robinson in Literature/ToKillAMockingbird. Bentley is also, [[PlayingAgainstType ironically]], the one most convinced of the Defendant's guilt.
* ArtisticLicenseMedicine: Basic EMT protocol is to never move a victim of trauma without first installing a cervical collar (neck brace). This is always done before placing victims on a backboard. However, Mrs Reynolds wasn't fitted with one.


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* RightForTheWrongReasons: All the jurors convinced that Mark Lee Reynolds are correct that he is guilty. But turns out, it's for a [[ConfessToALesserCrime different crime]].


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* SlutShaming: A.D.A. Tom Casselli questions Becky Anderson on the stand and insinuates that she has brought home many men. The Defense and the Judge call him out on it.
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* UnwittingPawn: The prosecution) contends that Johnny Detweiler (the man who called Cliff due to feeling he should know his wife was cheating on him was meant to do that (ro that some firmed of Cliff's was) to lure him to his death. Subverted though, as since there was no plan to kill Cliff, Detweiler was actually a SpannerInTheWorks.

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* UnwittingPawn: The prosecution) prosecution contends that Johnny Detweiler (the man who called Cliff due to feeling he should know his wife was cheating on him was meant to do that (ro (to that some firmed friend of Cliff's was) to lure him to his death. Subverted though, as since there was no plan to kill Cliff, Detweiler was actually a SpannerInTheWorks.

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* CoolOldGuy: Fenton Harris, the witness played by Alan Hale Jr. of ''Series/GilligansIsland''.

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* CoolOldGuy: Fenton Harris, the amiable, observant witness played by Alan Hale Jr. of ''Series/GilligansIsland''.



* TheFundamentalist: not said out loud, but one of the initial jurors to vote guilty seems somewhat biased by Mr. Anderson's adultery.

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* FieryRedhead: "Guilty" juror Jackie [=McKay=] who gets irritated by people bad-mouthing herself and/or Jessica easily and snaps back with retorts.
* TheFundamentalist: not said out loud, but Mr. Bentley one of the initial jurors to vote guilty seems somewhat biased by Mr. Anderson's adultery.adultery, saying it's a sign that he's capable of further sin.



* {{Jerkass}}: Juror Mark Lord, who is pretty condescending, abrasive and impatient towards Jessica and anyone else voting not guilty for almost the entire trial. Largely subverted with Ally Collins and Lee Callahan, two other jurors who are initially of this frame of mind, but become more thoughtful and open as the debate continues.



** Also zigzagged in that Jessica is undecided, and coming to the solution as they work through the evidence together, while two other jurors voted guilty from the start.

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** Also zigzagged subverted in that Jessica is undecided, and coming to the solution as they work through the evidence together, while two other jurors voted guilty from the start.start.
* UnwittingPawn: The prosecution) contends that Johnny Detweiler (the man who called Cliff due to feeling he should know his wife was cheating on him was meant to do that (ro that some firmed of Cliff's was) to lure him to his death. Subverted though, as since there was no plan to kill Cliff, Detweiler was actually a SpannerInTheWorks.
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* The Fundamentalist: not said out loud, but one of the initial jurors to vote guilty seems somewhat biased by Mr. Anderson's adultery.

to:

* The Fundamentalist: TheFundamentalist: not said out loud, but one of the initial jurors to vote guilty seems somewhat biased by Mr. Anderson's adultery.
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* CoolOldGuy: Fenton Harris, the witness played by Alan Hale Jr. of ''Series/GilligansIsland''.


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* The Fundamentalist: not said out loud, but one of the initial jurors to vote guilty seems somewhat biased by Mr. Anderson's adultery.


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** Also zigzagged in that Jessica is undecided, and coming to the solution as they work through the evidence together, while two other jurors voted guilty from the start.
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* ConfessToALesserCrime: Mr. Reynolds claimed he had been sleeping with Mrs. Anderson when her husband burst in with intent to kill, meaning hitting him with the poker was self-defense. If everyone thought he had been with Mrs. Anderson at the time of his wife's death, no one would suspect him of killing her.


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* DisabilityAlibi: Inverted; Jessica finds it suspicious that a man injured and hurting from a collarbone injury could win a hand-to-hand struggle to keep an uninjured opponent from shooting him with a gun.


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* IllKillYou: Mr. Anderson says he'll kill his wife on hearing that she has taken home another man.
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Jessica finds herself running her own version of ''Theatre/TwelveAngryMen'' when she ends up as jury chairman in a murder trial. When the jury retires to deliberate, most of them are ready to believe the story that the defendant killed to protect himself from an enraged husband. However, Jessica feels that some of the pieces don't fit, and she is determined to see that justice is served, even if she must drag her mostly-reluctant fellow jurors with her every step of the way.
!!This episode includes examples of the following tropes:
* ADeadlyAffair: Mr. Reynolds faked a car accident to kill his wife so he could keep her money and still be with Mrs. Anderson, his lover. When Mr. Anderson found out his wife had taken another man home (or so he thought) he came storming in and threatened to kill her and Mr. Reynolds. She grabbed the poker and killed him.
* FalseReassurance: The defendant, still pretending to be innocent, thanks Jessica for clearing him in the current case and says he'll never forget her. Jessica, who has already told the rest of the story to the district attorney and gotten Mrs. Anderson to act as a witness, says it contents her that justice was done and she's sure he won't.
* ImprovisedWeapon: Mrs. Anderson picks up a poker to whack her husband with after he threatens her.
* IsTheAnswerToThisQuestionYes: One of the lawyers asks a friend of Mr. Anderson's if Mr. Anderson had a HairTriggerTemper. He laughs and asks if week-old fish bait smells.
* KillingInSelfDefense: The defense's story says that Mr. Reynolds killed Mr. Anderson when he burst into Mrs. Anderson's house and tried to kill him for getting romantic with his wife. In reality, that was the story Mr. Reynolds and Mrs. Anderson came up with after Mrs. Anderson killed him in defense of herself and her lover.
* MakeItLookLikeAnAccident: Mr. Reynolds faked a car accident to get rid of his wife, ramming her side of the car into a pole and knowing that she never wore her seatbelt and would sustain worse injuries. It fails because the jury foreperson is Jessica Fletcher, who wonders how a former racecar driver could wipe out so badly.
* NoTellMotel: The Bide-a-Wee Motel's owner says in his business, it's not smart to remember clients' faces.
* RogueJuror: Jessica is forewoman in a murder trial. Her fellow jurors are generally sure that the defendant killed in self-defense, while Jessica asks them to take some time to review the facts. In a subversion of the usual plot, the jury acquits, because while the defendant did commit murder (disguised as an accident), he is not guilty of the murder he's on trial for, and convicting would've allowed the real killer to go free.
* VorpalPillow: Mr. Reynolds used his wife's pillow to smother her, which worked because of her previous injuries.

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