Summary[]
Plot[]
Aunt Bee is called for jury duty and despite her misgivings, goes to the courthouse to see if she will be called. She finds herself on a jury for the trial of Marvin Jenkins who is accused of breaking and entering and stealing a TV from a local store. Jenkins’s story is that he brought a TV to the store for repairs and found the back door open. The list of items stolen is read by the prosecuting attorney: two typewriters, several toasters, a waffle iron, a stereo, and a TV set. When the jury retires to consider the verdict, the other 11 jurors - all men - vote to find him guilty and Aunt Bee is the only holdout. She simply isn't sure and is not convinced that Marvin is guilty.
During each recess in the trial, a young man observing the proceedings repeatedly asks for a match to light a cigarette, explaining that he lost his lighter. After several days, they finally declare themselves a hung jury, with a good deal of frustration from several quarters being directed at Aunt Bee. The young man with the lost lighter is one of Aunt Bee's antagonists; however, he rattles off the list of items stolen and adds a radio to the list. With this information, Andy talks to the prosecuting attorney and finds out a lighter was found in the store the night of the robbery. Since the young man knew all the items that were stolen (in addition to losing his lighter), Andy and the attorney are able to deduce the young man is a suspect in the robbery and that Jenkins wasn't involved. Jenkins is acquitted, and Aunt Bee is proven right. The jury members who previously were angry with Aunt Bee offer their congratulations and apologies.
Notes/Trivia[]
- This was the second appearance for Jack Nicholson in The Andy Griffith Show. In the previous season he played Mr. Garland in "Opie Finds a Baby.”
Goofs[]
- At the start of the episode, Aunt Bee reads that the jury notice came from the Municipal Court. Jury notices are actually issued by a city's Circuit Court.
Music[]
Quotes[]
