I gave it a nine because the legal, and courtroom drama trumps the story's somewhat bleak presentation. Some delicate legal points are qualified here, and it is good to see that the finely meshed wheels of justice can be governed by weight of the law, and not by prosecutorial expedience. The actors in this episode save it from being a total washout. James Shigeta's usual fine acting skills are in high form as he tries to make his part believable; he almost succeeds. The other actors, several of whom have been players in other episodes in this normally fine series, all do their best, but they barley hold it above water in this soggy melodrama of the sea. It is the acting, and the courtroom action that pull this story back on board. Perry's last line is very good.
6 Reviews
Lots of Nomenclature
Hitchcoc26 February 2022
This case depends on the naive good will of the eventual defendant. He is a benevolent man, living his father's record of kindness. He believes a shipment of farm equipment is being sent to Siam. He soon realizes that some messing around is taking place, including a side trip to Yokohama, Japan. There are other forces, including the first mate who acts suspiciously from the beginning and is suspected by the defendant. There is a lot of citing of legal precedent and serious questions that we mere mortals have to wade through.
Jurisdiction
bkoganbing4 April 2012
This particular Perry Mason episode concerned the question of which court had jurisdiction over James Shigeta who is charged with the murder of a guy who made a monkey out of him in a con game. As Shigeta is also a lawyer as well as running a family exporting business the jackpot he finds himself in could get him disbarred.
The deceased is a first mate on a tramp freighter captained by Peter Whitney and owned by Katherine Squire. For a lawyer Shigeta is rather dumb as he agrees to put his family name to a shipment of 'farming implements' that aren't farm implements. The first mate who is played by Douglas Henderson said he was a secret agent and Shigeta believed him. In the word of Bugs Bunny, 'what a maroon'.
Still Perry Mason brings a case in federal court that the deceased was in fact killed on the high seas and that it is their jurisdiction not Hamilton Burger's. Of course he demolishes the case be it state or federal.
Nice bit of legal legerdemain but talk about having a fool for a client.
The deceased is a first mate on a tramp freighter captained by Peter Whitney and owned by Katherine Squire. For a lawyer Shigeta is rather dumb as he agrees to put his family name to a shipment of 'farming implements' that aren't farm implements. The first mate who is played by Douglas Henderson said he was a secret agent and Shigeta believed him. In the word of Bugs Bunny, 'what a maroon'.
Still Perry Mason brings a case in federal court that the deceased was in fact killed on the high seas and that it is their jurisdiction not Hamilton Burger's. Of course he demolishes the case be it state or federal.
Nice bit of legal legerdemain but talk about having a fool for a client.
This episode suffered from a weak script.
kfo94942 January 2013
For many reasons this story did not play out too well for the viewers as we get a high seas murder that Perry defends. The problem was not in the acting but seemed to be a script that played too many angles that left the viewer somewhat confused on who-was-who in the story.
The story plot is that a young lawyer named Ward Toyama is approached by a man named Frank Jones who advised that he worked for the US government and wanted Ward's help for a shipment to an Asian country. Yhe government official knew that Ward's father had export license and it would be easy to help people in foreign lands. However,the problem was that Frank Jones was not a government official and tricked Ward into shipping contraband abroad.
When Frank Jones is murdered, Perry will defend Ward as evidence mounts against him. Perry will have a trick for Hamilton Burger as after the preliminary hearing, Perry will petition the court saying they did not have jurisdiction as the murder was outside the scope of LA boundaries. The hearing moves into US District Court as we hear Perry examine witnesses to finally get to the truth.
The best thing about this episode in the exchange between Perry and Hamilton. Too bad the exchange did not last long as we went back to the story that just seemed an odd account and too strange really to comprehend. It is not really a bad episode but one that looked tired with a weak script as we quickly head to the end of season eight.
The story plot is that a young lawyer named Ward Toyama is approached by a man named Frank Jones who advised that he worked for the US government and wanted Ward's help for a shipment to an Asian country. Yhe government official knew that Ward's father had export license and it would be easy to help people in foreign lands. However,the problem was that Frank Jones was not a government official and tricked Ward into shipping contraband abroad.
When Frank Jones is murdered, Perry will defend Ward as evidence mounts against him. Perry will have a trick for Hamilton Burger as after the preliminary hearing, Perry will petition the court saying they did not have jurisdiction as the murder was outside the scope of LA boundaries. The hearing moves into US District Court as we hear Perry examine witnesses to finally get to the truth.
The best thing about this episode in the exchange between Perry and Hamilton. Too bad the exchange did not last long as we went back to the story that just seemed an odd account and too strange really to comprehend. It is not really a bad episode but one that looked tired with a weak script as we quickly head to the end of season eight.
Hide the corpse
sol121821 April 2013
Warning: Spoilers
***SPOLIERS*** Utterly confusing Perry Mason episode that has Perry Mason, Raymond Burr, defend a good friend and admirer of his the not too bight in legal matters lawyer Ward Toyama who's played by James Shigeta who made a splash a few years earlier as the love sick and suicidal dishwasher at a downtown Manhattan Chinese restaurant in the "Naked City" episode "The Contract". it's here that Toyama screws not only himself but his father's import export company by falling for con artist and gun runner Frank Jones, Douglas Henderson, who claimed to be a top secret US government agent for the CDIB, whatever that means, who's involved in a mission to save the free world and wants Toyama to join him in this great and noble venture. The the great noble venture turns out to be shipping through Toyama's father's import-export company crates of illegal weapons headed for an unfriendly as well as unknown, very probably Communist China, country in the Far East.
When Toyama who's a passenger on the boat with the illegal weapons finds out that he's been had he confronts Jones, who's real name is Jensen, on deck and a violent fight ensues. In what looks like a dream sequence Jones is knocked overboard and is later found dead flouting in the Pacific Ocean. Perry seeing something no one noticed decides to have the case tried in federal court to the both shock and surprise of prosecuting D.A Hamilton "Ham" Burger, William Talman, using a habeas corpus technicality! This makes no sense at all since it's later proved by Perry himself that Jones or Jensen was killed where he was found, below deck and in L.A waters, not the the middle of the Pacific Ocean as Perry claimed.
***SPOILERS*** The unbelievably contrived ending has the killer reveal himself by calming that the murder of Frank Jenses aka Jones was a pure act of revenge. It was Jones aka Jensen who pulled the same trick on him some time ago that resulted in a shootout that his killer lost someone dear and near to him or her! And as he told a shocked Perry Mason and us in the audience, who were still around and conscious watching, it was payback time and Jones aka Jensen got all that was coming to him! By now Perry Mason or actor Raymond Burr looked both tired and bloated, from the good and rich life the show provided for him, in his role and was about to call it quites and go on to bigger and better things. As things soon turned out the bigger and better things, like brainless and forgettable films like "P.J" that he stared in, didn't turn out to be that big and successful at all. Raymond Burr ended his career going back to playing Perry Mason in some 25 made for TV movies until he passed away at the age of 76 in 1993.
When Toyama who's a passenger on the boat with the illegal weapons finds out that he's been had he confronts Jones, who's real name is Jensen, on deck and a violent fight ensues. In what looks like a dream sequence Jones is knocked overboard and is later found dead flouting in the Pacific Ocean. Perry seeing something no one noticed decides to have the case tried in federal court to the both shock and surprise of prosecuting D.A Hamilton "Ham" Burger, William Talman, using a habeas corpus technicality! This makes no sense at all since it's later proved by Perry himself that Jones or Jensen was killed where he was found, below deck and in L.A waters, not the the middle of the Pacific Ocean as Perry claimed.
***SPOILERS*** The unbelievably contrived ending has the killer reveal himself by calming that the murder of Frank Jenses aka Jones was a pure act of revenge. It was Jones aka Jensen who pulled the same trick on him some time ago that resulted in a shootout that his killer lost someone dear and near to him or her! And as he told a shocked Perry Mason and us in the audience, who were still around and conscious watching, it was payback time and Jones aka Jensen got all that was coming to him! By now Perry Mason or actor Raymond Burr looked both tired and bloated, from the good and rich life the show provided for him, in his role and was about to call it quites and go on to bigger and better things. As things soon turned out the bigger and better things, like brainless and forgettable films like "P.J" that he stared in, didn't turn out to be that big and successful at all. Raymond Burr ended his career going back to playing Perry Mason in some 25 made for TV movies until he passed away at the age of 76 in 1993.
A Dull Lawyer
baumannchancery6 August 2023
There is no doubt this story is one of the weakest, if not the worst in the Perry Mason. I enjoyed Oerry Mason, the plots and twists. However, this is not the story of Case Wrongful Writ.
A Lawyer and he was not a young one was triked by criminals to perform some export. The writer reduced the role of James Shigata to a dumb gullible lawyer. In the end, Tokayama ( Shigata) was accused of murder. Entered Perry Mason invoked the Law of Jurusdiction. This is the saving grace to the Episode. Shigata had a poor performance. It was a nadir on his career.
Talmann had a good petformance in this show.
A Lawyer and he was not a young one was triked by criminals to perform some export. The writer reduced the role of James Shigata to a dumb gullible lawyer. In the end, Tokayama ( Shigata) was accused of murder. Entered Perry Mason invoked the Law of Jurusdiction. This is the saving grace to the Episode. Shigata had a poor performance. It was a nadir on his career.
Talmann had a good petformance in this show.
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