The Trial

Originally Aired: March 22, 1959 Gunsmoke #363, "The Trial," presents a compelling case of circumstantial evidence and witness testimony against an unlikely suspect. When Homer Tisdale, a starved-out homesteader, is caught stealing a handful of potatoes from Van Walcott's store, Matt Dillon refuses to jail him for such a desperate act, instead arranging for him to work at the Long Branch. Days later, while Matt and Chester are away at Fort Leonard, the stage office is robbed of ten thousand dollars and Charlie Reynolds is murdered in cold blood. Both witnesses, Walcott and stage manager Jay Buford, identify the masked gunman as Homer Tisdale. Upon his return, Matt finds Homer still in Dodge, with no alibi except his claim that he was sleeping in a shed behind the Long Branch at the time of the crime. Despite Homer's gentle nature and Matt's doubts, two witnesses are prepared to swear under oath that he's the killer. When Circuit Judge Stokes arrives in town, showing more interest in corn liquor than justice, a jury trial begins in an old dance hall to determine Homer's fate.