In the Heat of the Night

I feel like crying.

Now, that would be a spectacle, wouldn't it?

A police officer crying on a public street.

Why is this happening?

Listen, the Bible says

there's a time for everything.

The Bible never said, 'bye, bye, bill.'

What can be done about it?

The answer to that, sugar child, is nothing.

The city council hired me,

and they can quit hiring me,

or, in other words,

they can fire me.

But, see, your job is different

because you're under the new civil service plan.

Chief, stick to the subject, which is you,

not me.

You could fight this thing.

You could get a lawyer.

It's a new kind of discrimination.

Fighting these people would be like fighting shadows.

You could name them, but you'd never touch them,

and there they all sit up there

in heavy consultation...

All the shadows.

Good name for that place. The house of shadows.

You are a liar, and you're out of order.

Miss delong, this committee has the power.

To renew a contract or not.

Gillespie's out. Forbes is in.

Those votes were taken

when chief Gillespie's supporters were away.

I move we vote again.

I second the motion.

No. A quorum was present.

It was a perfectly legal vote.

Ask Marcus here.

The vote's legal and binding.

And done.

Forbes will be driving in

from Memphis tomorrow,

ready to take over next week

when Gillespie's contract expires.

I want the reason chief Gillespie was ousted

stated for the record.

For the record,

the people of this town

wanted a change.

Why don't you say what you really mean.

Fine.

For the record, crime skyrocketed

during Gillespie's administration.

We had rapes,

we've had burglaries,

and we've had more violent murders than ever.

Culver, sparta's crime rate

has grown with the population,

same as everywhere else.

That's right.

Well, miss delong,

our job is to see that sparta, Mississippi,

does not grow like everywhere else.

Not in any way.

You really are despicable.

Go get 'em!

I don't see how I'm going to stop it.

There isn't anything to stop.

My contract has expired.

The civil service committee refuses to renew it,

and that's all there is to it.

That vote didn't have anything to do with ability.

It was all about our relationship.

Well, sure,

but those people never liked

the way I operated as chief.

You were the best chief they ever had.

Well, thank you, but maybe it's time I did retire.

It's a lot of hard work.

Virgil will be back soon.

Yeah. He'll be back with a law degree,

wanting to move on to other things.

Uh, chief,

oh, excuse me.

No, come in, Parker.

Uh, chief, I just got off the phone

protecting you from Arlo Bailey.

Again?

Yes, sir. He was raising the devil about some kids,

demanding to talk to you.

How lucky I wasn't here.

Yes, sir.

Chief, he sounded real crazed,

uh, even for him,

so I sent a car

out his way to check things out.

Listen, tell Jamison I want to see him

as soon as he arrives.

Yes, sir, chief.

Something else wrong?

Uh, no, sir.

Not... not really,

'cept I'm really going to miss calling you chief.

Oh.

Can you call a man chief even after he's gone?

After he's gone, you can call him anything you want.

Let's go!

Those dogs of yours are little darlings.

Not if you trespassing, they ain't.

What did you call about this time, Arlo,

the kids again?

Yeah, about the 10th time.

Keep those suckers off my property,

or I'll handle them myself.

Like you handled Ben rogerson?

Rogerson attacked me.

My lawyer's going to prove it was self-defense.

Yeah.

Well, who was the kid bothering you this time?

Billy caton and his friend.

Tell his mama he needs to be whooped.

He's only a little kid.

Yeah, I know that.

If he weren't, I'd shoot him.

And now in national news,

here's Jerry Sanders.

The case of the alleged 13-year-old killer

Ken Wallace, continues to grip the community

of purewater, Florida.

Earlier today, Bonnie Baxter was outside

the claxton county police headquarters.

Jerry, I'm here with the claxton county

district attorney Chester Quinn.

Mr. Quinn, we've heard reports

that the juvenile stalked his victim.

Can you confirm that?

We believe the boy watched the man

with binoculars,

entered his house through a window,

and shot him.

How did he come into possession

of a .44 Magnum?

He found it at home.

Why did the boy take such drastic action?

I guess he wanted revenge.

Jerry, citizens here in Florida

are still stunned

by the recent escalation of violence.

Billy ray?

Oh, Billy Ray's just fine.

Yeah.

Now, I want to know...

Yeah. I want you to take me

to that place you took me to the other night.

Well, we could go tomorrow night.

I will not.

No.

What?

Now, come on.

Well, now you stop talking like that.

Oh...

The committee refused to take another vote.

I can't believe it's over.

Harriet, it's time to move on.

That's why I asked you

to come and meet me here now.

To look at this house again?

No, no.

I wanted to ask you to help me decorate it.

You bought it?

My offer was accepted just a while ago.

Congratulations.

That means you'll help me, huh?

Of course I will.

It would be a joy.

Can I really?

Well, you the only one that knows what you like,

and the way you like it,

uh, that's what I want.

Hey, Dee.

How's your mama and them?

Oh, getting by.

Lydia, this is lieutenant Jamison.

We're here because your son's been playing

on Arlo Bailey's land.

You talking about that nut case

who lives across the woods?

Bailey's not a man to be messing with.

He's awaiting trial for manslaughter.

Why don't you do something about him?

You just keep your boy off his land.

Nobody wants to see Billy ray get hurt.

Thanks for the tip.

That wasn't a tip, ma'am.

That's a serious warning.