Facts and Forms, or, Elementary my dear Clouseau
Copyright © 2006 by Joel Marks Inspector Jacques Clouseau: Facts, Hercule, facts! Nothing matters but the facts. Without them the science of criminal investigation is nothing more than a guessing game. So consider the facts in the case at hand. Fact: Maria Gambrelli was found standing over the dead man with a smoking gun in her hand. Fact: She had a big smile on her face. Fact: No other fingerprints were found on the gun. So what do we conclude, Hercule? Hercule LaJoy: Why, that Maria Gambrelli committed the murder. Inspector Jacques Clouseau: No, you fool! You are forgetting the most important fact: motive. Hercule LaJoy: He beat her. Inspector Jacques Clouseau: He was Spanish! Hercule LaJoy: He tore her dress off. Inspector Jacques Clouseau: Oh, don't be ridiculous. Would you kill someone who tore your dress off? -- from the 1964 movie, A Shot in the Dark, starring Peter Sellers as Inspector Clouseau Hilarity aside, the cited scene from the classic comedy serves as a perfect exa