Juror #6: Well, I'm not used to supposin'. I'm just a workin' man. My boss
does all the supposin' -- but I'll try one. Supposin' you talk us all out of
this and, uh, the kid really did knife his father?
Juror #10: Bright? He's a common ignorant slob. He don't even speak good
English.
Juror #11: Doesn't even speak good English.
Juror #10: I don't understand you people! I mean all these picky little points
you keep bringing up. They don't mean nothin'. You saw this kid just like I did.
You're not gonna tell me you believe that phony story about losing the knife,
and that business about being at the movies. Look, you know how these people
lie! It's born in them! I mean what the heck?! I don't even have to tell you.
They don't know what the truth is! And, lemme tell you, they don't need any real
big reason to kill someone, either! No sir!
[Five gets up from his seat.]
Juror #10: You know, they get drunk,...oh, they're very big drinkers, all of 'em,
and bang: someone's lyin' in the gutter. Oh, nobody's blaming them for it.
That's how they are! By nature! You know what I mean? VIOLENT!
[Nine rises and crosses to the window.]
Juror #10: Human life don't mean as much to them as it does to us!
[Eleven gets up and walks to the other window.]
Juror #10: Hey! Where are you going?! (Beginning to sound desperate.) Look,
these people're lushing it up and fighting all the time and if somebody gets
killed, so somebody gets killed! They don't care! Oh, sure, there are some good
things about 'em, too. Look, I'm the first one to say that.
[Eight gets up and walks to the nearest wall.]
Juror #10: I've known a couple who were OK, but that's the exception, y'know
what I mean?
[Two and Six get up from the table. Everyone's back is to Ten.]
Juror #10: Most of 'em, it's like they have no feelings! They can do anything!
What's goin' on here?! I'm trying to tell you we're makin' a big mistake, you
people! This kid's a liar! I know it. I know all about them! I mean, what's
happenin' here?! I'm speaking my piece, and you...
[The Foreman gets up and walks away. So does Twelve.]
Juror #10: Listen to me! They're no good! There's not a one of 'em who's any
good!
[Seven turns away.]
Juror #10: Boy, are you smart! Well, I'm tellin' 'ya we better watch out! This
kid on trial here, his type...Well, don't you know about them?
[Three turns his back.]
Juror #10: What are you doin'?! Listen to me! I'm tryin' to tell you somethin'!
There's a danger here! These people are wild! Don't you know about it?! LISTEN
TO ME! LISTEN!
Juror #8: It's very hard to keep personal prejudice out of a thing like this.
And no matter where you run into it, prejudice obscures the truth. Well, I don't
think any real damage has been done here. Because I don't really know what the
truth is. No one ever will, I suppose. Nine of us now seem to feel that the
defendant is innocent, but we're just gambling on probabilities. We may be
wrong. We may be trying to return a guilty man to the community. No one can
really know. But we have a reasonable doubt, and this is a safeguard which has
enormous value to our system. No jury can declare a man guilty unless it's SURE.
We nine can't understand how you three are still so sure. Maybe you can tell us.
[Last lines.]
Juror #9: Hey, what's your name?
Juror #8: Davis.
Juror #9: Mine's McCardle.
[Pause]
Juror #9: Well, so long.
Juror #8: I think this is what happened: the old man had heard the fight between
the boy and his father a few hours earlier. Then, while lying in bed, he heard a
body hit the floor in the boy's apartment, and he heard the woman scream from
across the street. He got up, he tried to get to the door, heard someone racing
down the stairs and *assumed* it was the boy.
Juror #3: Assumed?! Now, listen to me, you people! I've seen all kinds of
dishonesty in my day, but this little display takes the cake. You come in here
with your heart bleeding all over the floor about slum kids and injustice, and
you make up some wild stories, and all of a sudden, you start getting through to
some of these weak-kneed...Well, you're not getting through to me! I've had
enough! What's the matter with you people?! Every one of you knows this kid is
guilty! He's gotta die! We're letting him slip through our fingers here!
Juror #8: Slip through our fingers? Are you his executioner?
Juror #3: I'm one of 'em!
Juror #8: Maybe you'd like to pull the switch
Juror #3: For this kid? You bet I would!
Juror #8: I feel sorry for you...
Juror #3: Don't start with me...
Juror #8: What it must feel like to want to kill someone yourself!
Juror #3: Listen, you shut up!
Juror #8: (baiting him) Ever since we walked into this room, you've been
behaving like a self-appointed public avenger!
Juror #3: I'm tellin' you now! Shut up!
Juror #8: You want to see this boy die because you personally want it, not
because of the facts!
Juror #3: Shut up!
Juror #8: You're a sadist!
Juror #3: Shut up!!!
[He lunges wildly at Eight, who holds his ground. Several jurors hold Three
back.]
Juror #3: Let me go! I'll kill him! I'LL KILL HIM!
Juror #8: You don't *really* mean you'll kill me, do you?
Juror #8: There's another thing I'd like to talk about for a minute. I think
we've proven that the old man couldn't have heard the boy say "I'm going to
kill you," but supposing...
Juror #10: You didn't prove it at all. What're you talking about?
Juror #8: But supposing he really did hear it. This phrase, how many times has
each of us used it? Probably hundreds. "I could kill you for that,
darling." "If you do that once more, junior, I'm going to kill
you." "Come on, Rocky, get in there and kill him!" We say it
every day. It doesn't mean we're going to kill someone.
Juror #3: Wait a minute. What are you trying to give us here? The phrase was
"Im going to kill you," and he screamed it out at the top of his
lungs! Don't tell me he didn't mean it. Anybody says a thing like that the way
he said it, they mean it.
[Juror 8 has convinced everyone to change their votes to not guilty except for
Juror 3.]
Juror #9: It's eleven to one.
Juror #7: So, what do we do now?
Juror #8: You're alone.
Juror #3: I don't care if I'm alone or not! It's my right.
Juror #8: It's your right.
Juror #3: Well, what do you want from me?!
Juror #8: We want your arguments.
Juror #3: I gave ya my arguments!
Juror #8: We're not convinced! We want to hear them again. We have as much time
as it takes.
Juror #3: Everything...every single thing that came out in that courtroom, but i
mean everything...says he's guilty. What d'ya think? I'm an idiot or somethin'?
Why dont'cha take that stuff about the old man; the old man who lived there and
heard everything? Or the business about the knife! What, just because he found
one exactly like it? The old man *saw* him. Right there on the stairs. What's
the differnece how many seconds it was? Every single thing. The knife falling
through a hle in his pocket...you can't *prove* that he didn't get to the door!
Sure, you can hobble around the room and take all the time you want, but you
can't prove it! And that stuff with the El! And the movies! Now there's a phony
deal if I ever saw one. I'd betcha five thousand dollars I'd remember the names
of the movies I saw! I'm tellin' ya: every single thing that has went on has
been twisted...and turned. This business with the glasses. How do you know she
didn't have 'em on? This woman testified in open court! And that thing about
hearin' the kid yell...huh?! Listen, I've got all the facts here...
[He struggles with his notebook, throws it on the table.]
Juror #3: Ah! Well, there it is! That's the whole case!
[He turns towards the window as the other jurors stare at him.]
Juror #3: Well, say something! You lousy bunch of bleedin' hearts. You're not
goin' to intimidate me! I'm entitled to my own opinion!
[He sees the picture of his son on the table.]
Juror #3: Rotten kids...you work your life out!
[He lunges at the picture and tears it to pieces. He suddenly realizes what he's
doing.]