Just you wait a little while,
The nasty man in black will come
With his little chopper,
He will chop you up!
You're out
Stop singing that awful song
Don't you hear me?
Always that awful song
Just you wait a little while,
The nasty man in black will come
What's the matter?
l told those kids to stop
singing that awful song
But they keep singing
it over and over
As if we haven't heard
enough of that murderer
Oh, leave them be
lf they're singing, at
least we know they're okay
Yes, l guess you're right
WHO lS THE MURDERER?
Since June 11, little
KLAUS KLAWlTZKY and
his sister KLARA have disappeared
Evidence leads us to believe
the children were victims
of a similar crime
committed last fall
against the DOERlNG sisters
What a pretty ball!
What's your name?
Elsie Beckmann
Did Elsie come with you?
No, she didn't
Thank you
A thrilling new chapter!
Passionate, moving, sensational
Just a moment, Mr. Gehrke
-Tell me, Mr. Gehrke.
-Yes?
Have you seen Elsie?
Didn't she just come up
the stairs?
No, she isn't here yet
She won't be long now.
Good-bye, Mrs. Beckmann
Good-bye, Mr. Gehrke
Extra! Extra! Extra!
New crime!
Who is the murderer?
Because the police have not
published my first letter
l am writing today
directly to the NEWSPAPERS
Continue your investigations
Everything will happen
just as l have told you.
But l have not yet finished
Who is the murderer?
Christ! Here we go again.
lt's horrible
The lettering is too small
We can't read it
Hey, you, read it out loud
-''The unknown murderer''.
-Let him read! Hey! Quiet!
''The terror in our town
has found a new...''
Certain evidence leads us
to believe that the murderer
is the same one who has
already killed eight children
We must remind you again
that a mother's first duty
is to guard her children
from the danger which
always threatens
Also, the danger is often
hidden in some attractive bait
Candy, a toy, and fruit can be
the murderer's weapons
True, true!
Come on! Come on!
Read, read on
Okay, okay. ''The anxiety of
the general public is very high
because the police have not yet
completed their investigations
But the police are faced
with an almost impossible problem.''
''The criminal has left no clue.
Who is the murderer?''
What is he like?
Where is he hiding?
No one knows.
Still, he is one of us
ls it your neighbor?
Yes, that's right
Why look at me when you say that?
-You know very well.
-What do l know very well?
-Think about it.
-What are you saying?
l saw you go up those stairs
behind that little girl
What?! You are crazy,
you dirty swine!
Who's a swine? Me?
Or a man who chases little girls?
You bastard! You swine!
Murderer!
Gentlemen! Gentlemen!
l'll see you in court.
l'll see you in court
Now, now, gentlemen! Calm down!
Slanderer!
Trying to ruin my reputation
Slanderer! Terrible man!
The police listen to him!
They're searching my house!
How awful! What a shame!
Searching a man's house
because of an anonymous letter
Mr. Jager, calm down!
We're only doing our job
When we are so upset?
Scared about the children
Look, that's why the police
must follow every clue
Any man in the street
could be the guilty one
Can you please tell me
what time it is?
Yes, my child
Now, my child, go home.
Where do you live?
What's it to you
where the kid lives?
Why were you bothering that kid?
But - but - l did nothing!
What do you want with me?
Just you wait and see
Let me go!
lt's an outrage!
-What's going on?
-lt's an outrage!
What does he want?
Don't get so excited
Punch him in the face!
-Bothering children.
-Acting like a big shot!
Let me go! l did nothing!
You wanted to get her
alone, didn't you?
Yes, then kill her like
all the others, right?
lt's the murderer! lt's him!
Hold him! Call the police!
No police around when you
need them. Officer, officer!
Move along please,
move along now. Don't block!
You can catch pickpockets but
you'd better get the murderer
What? ls he the murderer?
Move along now.
Come on, get a move on
MURDERER WRlTES TO NEWSPAPERS
lt's a terrible scandal
This will have a bad effect
on public opinion, lnspector.
lt's very serious
But, sir, we cannot stop the
murderer from writing letters!
This man is a mental case
He gets a kick from
seeing himself in the papers
We immediately got in touch
with the newspaper
They sent us the original letter.
The lab is working on it
Of course, you can't get good
fingerprints from a postcard
which went through so many hands
We'll compare the results
with our archives
We must try everything
to find a clue or a lead
Then, we'll send the letter
to the graphologist
The very particular shape
of the letters...
do you follow me?
indicates in this man a very
strong and pathological sexuality
Some of the broken letters
reveal an actor's personality
which can be indolent
or even lazy
ln the whole, the handwriting
shows clear signs of insanity
Yes, lnspector, certainly.
You and your men are very good
But, nevertheless, results,
we must have results
Results!
Minister, my men are only
getting 12 hours sleep a week
as well as searches
on the spot, Minister
They start their shift
already tired
Don't forget, this job
is nervously trying
especially when the success
rate is so low
The homicide officers work
restlessly
They're always on alert
following any clue,
even the slightest one
that may lead us to our man
Minister, consider their findings
on the scene of the crime
We find, for instance,
behind a hedge
a little white paper bag
Clearly it held the candy
ln a corner, we found some
crumbs and some sugar grains
Within a radius of 2 kilometers,
we have searched
in all the candy shops to find out
where the bag came from
But in vain
Every day the search widens
but, of course, no one
remembers anything
Nevertheless, we keep on
searching, getting nowhere
without much hope of
finding a solution. Our men...
What good is that?
l know you're trying
but an unknown murderer
terrorizes the town
A town of four million
and your police are failing
Minister, you don't seem to
understand the difficulties
Only on the way home
of the missing child
we got fifteen different
testimonies
Just listen: ''Testimony 1478
in the Beckmann murder case...''
-You know nothing.
-More than you, Sir!
Gentlemen! Can't you agree
what color hat
that little girl wore
when you saw her?
Of course, lnspector, it was red
-lnspector, it was green.
-lt was a red hat!
lt was a green hat!
Stop! lt's hopeless.
Thank you, gentlemen
-Next witness.
-Of course, lnspector
if you listen
to a color-blind man!
The police have investigated
over 1,500 clues
Documents fill 60 volumes.
We have all available men
We have systematically
combed all adjoining areas
Every thicket, every piece
of undergrowth, every bush
in every hole,
we might find something
We sent out police dogs.
The best trackers are on the scent
to no avail.
Since the murderer's first crime
police have inspected all
the flop-houses every night
and checked the identity
of every vagrant
Such measures hurt our popularity
and make people nervous
But we watch all railway stations
and raid the underworld hangouts
Despite all this, the police haven't
succeeded in finding anything
The police. Get back!
Let me go, you dirty bastard!
Let me go!
Please let me go, won't you?
You son of a bitch! Let go!
Let her go, you filthy pig!
Quiet! Quiet!
The head cop!
Quiet!
You'd like that, wouldn't you?
Police orders: nobody leaves.
Get your papers ready
Quiet! C'mon kids,
let's not be stupid
lt's Fatty Lohmann!
Loh-mann, Loh-mann, Loh-mann!
Loh-mann! Loh-mann!
Quiet! Quiet!
You'll wear yourselves out
lt would be better if
you got the murderer
Yes! Much better!
Quiet! Be reasonable!
Spread out. All of you spread out.
C'mon, papers out!
-l haven't got any.
-Show me your papers
Please let me go, lnspector
Show me your papers
-l think we know each other.
-Yes, we do
To the headquarters!
With all this mess, not a client!
Don't make any trouble. No papers
and you go to headquarters
l am innocent
Don't talk nonsense
Quiet! Show me your papers
Don't push. lt's everybody's turn
-Have you got your papers?
-l can't go around
with my birth certificate.
That's asking too much
-Don't mess with me.
-That's asking too much, lnspector
Headquarters for you
Look here, it's disgusting
Poor workmanship, old boy.
You've had it. To headquarters
Better luck next time, Willie
Shut your face!
Next
Fancy boy
What's wrong?
Pop Lohmann's got him
''Unsolved burglary at a fur shop.''
Well, l guess l'd better
take you down to headquarters
But... my papers are in order
Next
No luck, huh?
Papers
l have none
Headquarters
No luck
Next, come on, let's go
This is wrecking our business,
Sarge, trouble every night
You can't have ten minutes
peace anymore. Give us a break!
lt's no joke for us either,
out every night
Of course, but you're
drivin' away my clientele
and the guy you're looking
for ain't here
Do you know how mad everyone
is about this guy who's causing
a raid every night? 'Specially
the girls. Sure, they solicit
but believe me, everyone
is a little mother at heart
l know a lot of crooks, get sort
of tender when they see kids
lf they catch that bastard
they'll wring his neck
Ready to go, Sarge?
Good night
So it's the Crocodile tonight.
Two loads for the nick
What's keeping Schranker?
ls it three o'clock yet?
l'll find out
Hello, the exact time, please.
Two minutes to three
Thank you
There are more police on
the street tonight than whores
Wherever you spit, cops
Even when you've got a broad,
they don't leave you alone
They've gone nuts. All they
think about is the murderer
l have a little six-year-old and
every night l have to look under
the bed and in the closet to see
if the murderer is hiding there
You can't even do your job.
The police are everywhere
There's no privacy anymore.
l'm fed up with it
Tell us something new
What's keeping Schranker?
Maybe he's been caught
Not him. He did a bank job in
London. Scotland Yard trapped him
There he was, hands up, back to
the wall, millions of cops around
two seconds later there were
two corpses and he'd beat it!
The best man between
Berlin and San Francisco
Six years they've looked and they
haven't caught him yet
Haven't caught him yet,
but dogs can kill wolves
Shut up
The suspense is killing me.
He's always right on time
God be praised!
At last!
Well, hello! You've finally come.
Good afternoon
Are you crazy? Close the curtains
Gentlemen, the meeting
can now begin
According to regulations,
l confirm that the leadership of
every organization in
our union is represented
l assume you are all authorized
to vote on behalf of your members
Good. Let's not be held up
by procedure
We all know why we are here.
Some non-member is screwing up
our affairs. Daily raids by
the police for the child murderer
interfere with our business.
We can't put up
with this pressure any longer
in every hotel, cafe or pad
This state of affairs must not
be allowed to continue
We have to put things right
again or we'll all be ruined
Our funds are exhausted.
We'll have to use money allocated
for our colleagues' wives who
are being ''hosted'' by the state
Furthermore, our reputation
is suffering
Gentlemen, the cops are looking
for the murderer in our ranks!
When l run into a cop while on
business, he knows the risk
and so do l. lf one of us dies,
OK, that's a risk one takes
lt can happen. But you and l are
not on the level of this murderer
Absolutely!
We are doing our job,
we have to make a living
But this monster has no right
to live. He must disappear!
He must be eliminated,
without pity, without scruples
Gentlemen, our members have
to carry on normal business
without being handicapped
by nervous policemen
l ask you for advice
l suggest a closer watch on
lD cards, systematic searches
and police raids. More raids,
and much tougher ones
Spies. We need spies among
the police to give us warnings
The girls must take a little more
notice of the cops
We get into trouble because one
of the girls has talked too much
to her cop boyfriend. Now the girls
have to tell us what gives
We must be allowed to search
any house, apartment, back yard
in order to find a clue
We have contacts, we have to make
a statement to the press
we have to tell them that
we condemn the bastard too
We should make it known that
he isn't in the underworld
l'm sure it's a man who looks
like he wouldn't hurt a fly
ln his normal state, he might
even play marbles with the kids
or cards with his wife.
Otherwise, murderers like Grossmann
or Haarmann couldn't live
for years like they did
without their neighbors
suspecting them at all
We have to get that across
to the public. They must help
Don't talk to me about the
public helping. lt disgusts me
just to hear them talk.
Excuse me, Chief!
But it's the truth. Christ! Help
from the public brings no clues!
Just a pile of letters with
the most incredible accusations!
Quite true
Calls to the police the moment
a garbage man crosses a yard!
But when we need accurate
information, they can't remember!
They've seen nothing. That's
help from the public for you
You're exaggerating
a little, Lohmann
No, he isn't
Most of the people
don't feel concerned
The majority of them
doesn't realize
that a child disappearance
is also their problem
l've got an idea! Let's get
one of those guys, a telepath
one who finds handkerchiefs and
pocketbooks that have been hidden
l don't think the reward is enough
Chief, we have to offer a real
fortune for the murderer
None of this is getting
us anywhere
-That won't do any good.
-What's your idea?
Well, we just can't wait until the
police decide to arrest the fellow
The difficulty in solving crimes
like this comes from the fact
that the criminal and the victim
are connected only by chance
An instantaneous impulse
is the killer's only motive
We find the victim, we
identify him, then we find out
when he was last seen.
Then, nothing more
Children disappear
and you know what state
we find them in
if we find them
And the killer... as we know,
in this kind of crime
never leaves a mark behind
This is what makes our job so hard
and our success so rare
The police have been looking
for eight months
Now, they'll catch him
only by luck
-We can't wait for that.
-We'll be ruined before then
Then what will we do?
We'll have to catch him ourselves
Yes! We must. That's it
There is still one possible way!
The guilty man must have
a record somewhere. A man
that disturbed must have come
upon the law before. We've
got to contact every clinic
every prison, every asylum.
We'll have to make inquiries
about everyone freed as harmless
but with the same
pathological condition
as the killer
Every square foot must
be permanently watched
From now on, no child takes a
step without us being warned
OK, but how do we do it?
There must be people who can
go everywhere, not be noticed
who can follow children
without arousing suspicion
who can follow children
right up to their front doors
People no one would suspect
But who? People like that don't
exist. Who could do it? Who?
The beggars.
The beggars' union can do it
-Sausage going up.
-God! This cheese smells good
That finishes you
Stop snoring!
You'll wake up the lice
Now we must take the back yards
Yes, from number 1 to 88
Next
You are responsible for the
courtyards in every block, 1 to 88
Right!
-What's next?
-89 to 196 High Street
What's your union number?
There you are, Emil.
Maybe you'll win 15,000
Touch wood!
Thank you, ladies and gentlemen
Thank you
''When searching homes, we must
look for any clue which could
establish where the murderer's
letter to the papers originated
lf there is an old wooden table,
if there is a red pencil
or writing paper of the same type.
lnquiries must be discreet.''
ldiot
And here's a list of mental
patients who have been let out
as cured or harmless
in the last five years
Reports from every institute,
private and public
And that's a list
of their present addresses
Good morning
Does a Mr. Beckert live here?
What?
Does Mr. Beckert live here?
l'm afraid l can't hear you.
l'm a bit hard of hearing
As if l couldn't tell.
Does Mr. Beckert live here?
Oh, Mr. Beckert... Yes...
But he has just gone out
Too bad, l wanted to see him
l'm from the lncome Tax office
Oh, good God! Tax people?
Would you like to wait?
Yes, thank you
-Please take a seat.
-Thank you
Like something to read?
Thank you. You're most kind
Tell me, Mrs. Winkler, does
Mr. Beckert take this paper?
Mr. Beckert?
No, he always borrows mine
Mom! l was looking for you
You don't have to do this!
You know why
Good evening.
What would you like?
Coffee
No... a vermouth... no, a brandy
There you are
Another one
The bill!
Two brandies. 1.65, please
Thank you very much
Number 24: Beckert.
He does not take the Courier
A walnut table with a cloth.
No red pencil or traces of one
No writing paper. ln the waste
basket, a printed ad and
a postcard with flowers
and ''Regards, Paul'' on it
but no address of sender.
An empty cigarette pack
Ariston brand, a bag of candy
with the candy store name on it
Wait a moment...
Ariston, did you say?
Ar-is-ton...
That rings a bell... Ariston
Hello. Get me the file on
the Marga Perl murder. Hurry
Thank you very much
That's funny.
l've heard that before
lt was... it was...
Hey! Henry!
What is it?
Listen a moment. Someone
whistling. Can you hear him?
There
He's just stopped. Did you see him,
the guy who was whistling?
-Yes, l can still see him.
-Yes?
Yes. He's talking to a little
girl and walking her down the street
-After him and don't let him go!
-But why?
The day Elsie Beckmann was killed,
someone bought a balloon
He was with a little girl
and he whistled just like that!
Damn it, man! Are you crazy
throwing peels on the ground?
l might have broken my neck!
Unbelievable
l should report you to the police,
you're a menace to the public
Uncle
There! That's it. They found
three cigarettes butts
at the scene of the crime.
Aristons!
Yes, the cigarettes are the same,
but there's no old wooden table
Of course, he could have written
that letter somewhere else
Heavens, the windowsill!
You're right
Just a minute
A red pencil!
God, at last we're getting
somewhere
Yes, yes, what?
They have his trial!
-Have they found him?
-The beggars found him
-He was talking to a little girl.
-They put a mark on him
Can't you be quiet?
What's that?
They are following the sign.
He isn't out of sight for a second
He's being watched
-Uncle.
-What is it?
You're all dirty
Where?
There, on your shoulder
Here, l'll wipe it off
-What's the matter?
-Come on, let's go
He hasn't come out yet
or we would have seen him
He must be in the courtyard,
he didn't come out this way
He must be somewhere
Maybe he's hiding
inside the building
Closing time!
He mustn't get out
with everyone leaving
Christ! Here come
the first ones already
Let's go out in the street
Keep a sharp lookout
Turn off the light or he'll suspect
something when he comes back
What time is it?
Nearly 6:30
He must still be in the building,
anyway, he didn't come out
Ok, Ok, yes... No, just a moment
The beggars have gone for more
help to search the whole area
The murderer must still be
in the building
What sort of place is it?
Nothing but offices. l don't
know what's in the cellar
There's a branch of the savings
bank on the ground floor
and from the first to the fifth,
nothing but offices
above that are lofts
Look at that. lt ain't possible
Anyone there?
Anyone there?
What next? Anyone there?
Damn carelessness,
all that trouble for one door
Yes, good
Looks like that guy
is really cornered now
l think we should tip off
the cops right away
-l agree.
-Now then, listen carefully
Hello. Just a moment. What?
Ok, call me right back
What is it? What's the matter?
Are you crazy or something?
The police? No. We're going
to get that guy ourselves
Listen... now, the time is
Good. Then at 9:00, 10:00, 11:00!
Good evening. Did you know
your gates are not closed?
What? But that's impossible!
l've only just... But it is
Open up, and no noise!
Are you going to open up?
Come on, get it open
Get a move on!
How many watchmen are
there in the building?
Ok, so you don't want to answer?
There are two watchmen
on their rounds
Bloody hell!
Damn it
Shit!
Careful with the lights.
And don't walk like elephants
-What's the story?
-He isn't in the basement.
We went through it
and found nothing
Friede and Auguste are still
going through the boiler rooms
Wait
That's the last one
Go up and join Emile.
He needs help
Go on, get a move on!
Schranker sent me
Good. Listen carefully
lt's a new type of time switch
Here's a general plan here.
lf the time switches aren't set
they automatically go off at the
nearest police station. Get it?
Have you got it?
What do you think l am,
some kind of a nut?
-He isn't in the boiler room.
-Fine
We moved all the coal
Are you nuts?
What if the door is wired up?
Want to get the police here?
Well, we have to get in if we're
going to search the whole place
But not by the door, you ass!
Use the office on the floor above
Go through the ceiling
Right, let's go
Hey! What's up?
Hey! Answer me. What's happening?
Paul - tell us
What's going on?
l heard some banging!
-What did you say?
-What's the hurry?
l must see Schranker!
He's in the attic! l heard him
knocking. He's in the attic!
Keep quiet
Get on with it, then
He must be there
There's the switch
Force the locks
Come on. Hurry up!
l've got him.
He's in the attic
l heard someone hammer
l told Schranker immediately
He's up there with 8 men.
They'll get him any moment
l just came down to tell you
lf l hadn't been alert, we'd
have looked for him for hours
Look out! The watchman!
Let's get out of here!
The cops will be here any
moment. The watchman rung in
Let's get out of here!
Stop! Quiet! We've got
compartments to search. Carry on.
Get on with it. Only hurry!
Out of the way.
You can't do it that way
He's not in here
Next door!
Come on. Quicker
Not here either
Come on, keep it up! Next door
Quick! We've only got
about 3 minutes left
Hurry up! Quickly!
This one hasn't got a padlock,
he must be here. Go on, open it!
lt's locked from the inside,
let me do it!
Hurry up, only one minute left!
Here he is, here he is,
the dirty bastard!
Get going, hurry up -
Everybody out!
Go on - move!
Hurry up, quickly!
Christ! Get out while
you can, you fool!
-Anybody left?
-A few up top, they're on the way
No reason for you to wait for them.
With or without that guy
lt doesn't matter, get away.
What are they up to? Christ!
Bloody hell! At last! Thank God!
Hey! He's not down here.
Who's pulled up the ladder?
Who's pulled up the ladder?
Bunch of morons
Hello
Hands up
How can l put my hands up when
l'm trying to hang onto the ladder?
Get out of there
For once, l'm innocent
As a newborn babe
This will surprise you, Franz,
but l believe you
Well, then everything
is in order. l can leave then
One minute
Cigarette?
Oh, boy
l'll take your word for it
On condition you tell me
who was the man you were
looking for and found there?
l don't understand, lnspector.
A man, you said?
l know nothing about that.
There must be some mistake
l know nothing, nothing at all
Of course. Only l don't understand
why you are covering up
for the gang who left you
in the lurch. Funny friends!
Leaving you right in
it and running off. Bah!
That won't wash with me,
lnspector
After all, l'm not risking
very much
Maybe a little bit of damage.
But nothing was stolen
Of course, something was stolen.
ln fact, a good deal
What? Stolen? How much?
lf you talk, l'll tell you
l've already told you,
l don't know anything
All right. Well, think about it.
lt's amazing what one remembers
when one is left alone
for an hour or two
Take him away!
Send the night watchman in here
Get the watchman Damowitz
Sit down
Now then, you said in your
statement - Listen carefully
You may have to repeat it
under oath
You clearly heard
one of the burglars say to another,
''we've found him
l've discovered the guy.
He's in the attic.'' ls that correct?
Yes, lnspector. Yes, l'll swear
to whatever you want
Right. You may go home now.
But please be ready to testify
Of course, lnspector.
Good day, lnspector
Tell me, is lnspector Lohmann
in the building?
He's talking to someone? No,
it doesn't matter. l'll come up
What? Good. Hasn't come in yet.
You're watching Mrs. Winkler?
Come in
We've surrounded the whole block
lf he wanted to get home,
he'd run into us
Now you have to wait
l'll be in my office
if you have some news
Hell...
What do you want?
l wanted to ask you a favor
Disgusting
l wanted to ask you
Anyway, read a bit of that
-Reports?
-Yes
Burglary in an office block
Bennostrasse?
That's a very quiet neighborhood
Perhaps it's not as quiet
as all that
Hell, this is becoming serious
Did they intend to empty
the whole place, then?
What can they have been
looking for in the coal?
Look at that. lt's incredible
Good Lord!
This is madness!
Ah, now it makes sense.
They were after the safe
Good God! What's it all about?
l don't understand it at all
They haven't even attacked
that one. Are they all crazy?
Well, l'll be damned!
Well, what have you got to say?
Nothing stolen, but a man taken
Fantastic!
And Franz the burglar
was arrested. lsn't talking
Frightened, evidently.
Actually, l know him well
He's one who'd rather jump
from the fifth floor
than get mixed up in a murder
Could we set a trap for him?
Could you help me, Lohmann?
l see what you're getting at
Let's take a look at this Franz
You're wanted for questioning
What? Four people for me?
Come on
The murder squad?
lnspector Karl Lohmann
What do you want with me?
What's the murder squad want?
Yes, old boy, your case has been
passed over to me now
But why? What for?
You did your work
a little too well
One of the watchmen
Dead?
Planning and assisting with a
murder. lt's a bad show, Franz
l can't go on with it. l don't
want to have anything to do with it
l'll tell you everything,
everything l know
Very wise, but unfortunately
too late
lnspector, it can't be too late...
Please, lnspector
lt isn't possible! Listen,
l'm going to tell you everything
Even who we were looking for
in that damn building
Well, then
The child murderer
What? What? Who?
The child murderer, lnspector
Wait
This had to happen to me!
Of all people
Sit down
Now, we're going
to have a little talk
lf you want to, lnspector
And mind you, don't lie.
OK, let's start
What have you do to with the
murderer, and where'd you take him?
Well, lnspector, you know the old
distillery of Kuntz and Levy?
-The one that went bankrupt?
-Yes. Since then
the building's been abandoned
and nobody cares
What do you want with me?
Let me go! Let me go!
l've done nothing to you,
let me go, you swine!
Let me go!
What do you bastards want with me?
What do you want?
Help!
Help! Let me go. l want to
get out. Get me out of here
Let me out!
You will not get out of here
But gentlemen, l don't even
know what you want me for
l beg you, set me free.
There must be some mistake
No, no. No mistake.
lmpossible. There's no mistake
No mistake
Do you recognize it? lt's a
balloon like the one you gave
little Elsie Beckmann!
A balloon like that
Where did you bury little Martha?
But l never...
l never even knew her
You never knew her?
And what about this one?
And this one?
You didn't know
this one either, huh?
Stop him, stop him...
Don't let him get away
Let me go!
You have no right
to treat me this way!
We'll show you what right we have!
You have no right to hold me here
Right? Someone like you
has no rights. Kill him!
Yes, kill him!
We must treat him like
a mad dog. Crush him!
You talk of rights.
You will get your rights
We are all law experts here
from 6 weeks in Tegel prison
to 15 years in Brandenburg
You will get your rights,
you will even get a lawyer
Everything will be done
according to the rule of law
A lawyer? A lawyer?
l don't need a lawyer
Who is accusing me?
You, maybe? You?
Just a moment. lf l were
you, sir, l'd keep quiet
Your life's at stake,
in case you didn't know it
Who are you?
l have the dubious honor
of being your defense counsel
But l'm afraid it won't be
much use to you
But, but... Do you want to kill
me? Murder me, just like that?
We just want to render you harmless
But you'll only be that way
when you are dead
But if you kill me,
it'll be cold-blooded murder!
l demand that you hand me over
to the police
l demand to be handed over to
the jurisdiction of common law
That would suit you, wouldn't it?
Then you'll invoke paragraph 51
And spend the rest of your life
in an institution at state expense
And then you'd escape,
or else get a pardon, then
there you are, free as air,
with a law-protected pass
because of mental illness,
off again, chasing little girls
We're not going
to let that happen
We must make you powerless.
You must disappear
Yes, disappear!
l can't help what l do
l can't help it, l can't...
The old story, we never
can help it in court
What do you know about it?
Who are you anyway?
Who are you? Criminals?
Are you proud of yourselves?
Proud of breaking safes
or cheating at cards?
Things you could just as
well keep your fingers off
You wouldn't need to do all that
if you'd learn a proper trade
or if you'd work. lf you
weren't a bunch of lazy bastards
But l... l can't help myself!
l have no control over this
this evil thing inside me,
the fire, the voices, the torment!
You mean to say
that you have to murder?
lt's there all the time, driving
me out to wander the streets
following me, silently,
but l can feel it there
lt's me, pursuing myself
l want to escape, to escape
from myself! But it's impossible
l can't escape. l have to obey it.
l have to run... endless streets
l want to escape, to get away
And l'm pursued by ghosts.
Ghosts of mothers
And of those children...
They never leave me
They are there, always there...
Always, except when l do it
When l...
Then l can't remember anything
And afterwards l see those posters
and read what l've done
Did l do that? But l can't
remember anything about it
But who will believe me?
Who knows what it's like to be me?
How l'm forced to act... How l
must... Must... Don't want to
Must! Don't want to, but must!
And then... a voice screams
l can't bear to hear it
l can't go on
The accused has said that
he cannot help himself
That is to say, he has to murder.
As this is the case
he has pronounced
his own death sentence
Someone who admits to being
a compulsive murderer
should be snuffed out,
like a candle
This man must be
wiped out, eliminated
Perfect! Just what l think!
l wish to speak
The defense lawyer will speak
Our very honorable president,
who is, l believe, wanted
by the police for three murders -
That's got nothing to do with it
...claims that because my client
acts under an irresistible impulse
he is condemned to death
He is right!
He is mistaken. Because it is
that very fact that clears him
Just a minute, enough!
Mad old drunk!
ls this very obsession which
makes my client not responsible
And nobody can be punished
for something he can't help
-Ridiculous!
-Do you suggest
that this brute should get off?
l mean this man is sick.
A sick man should be handed over
not to the executioner,
but to the doctor
Can you promise he'd be cured?
What use are asylums, then?
And what would happen
if he escaped?
Yes. Or if they released him
as harmless? And what if
the compulsion to kill returns?
Another man-hunt for months
Paragraph 51 again. The asylum,
then another escape or release
Then the compulsion all over again,
and so on, and on
No one can kill a man who isn't
responsible for his actions
Not the state,
and certainly not you
The state must see that this man
becomes harmless and no longer
is a danger to his fellow citizens
You've never had children, huh?
So you haven't lost any
But if you knew what it's like
to lose one... Go ask the parents!
Ask them what those days
and nights were like when
they didn't know what had happened.
And then when they finally knew
-Ask the mothers!
-She's right!
Do you think they'll have mercy?
-She's right.
-l'll say she is
-No mercy! No pardon!
-Give the murderer to us
Kill the beast!
-Crush the brute!
-Kill him! Beat him!
All that won't silence me
l won't allow a crime to be
committed in my presence
l demand that this man...
that this man be granted
the protection of the law
l demand that this man be
handed over to the police
-To the police!
-Filthy stooge
ln the name of the law
ln the name of the people
This won't bring back
our children
We, too, should keep a closer
watch on our children