Reed Hadley is Bart Matthews, your Public Defender, in this series of law and
order dramas that ran on CBS from 1954 to 1955. At the time of the show's
creation (by Mort Lewis and Sam Shayon), the concept of the public defender was
little known throughout much of the United States. Stories were purportedly
based on true cases, and each episode ends with a salute to a working public
defender.
Bart Matthews (Hadley) takes on clients that cannot afford expensive legal
counsel. Young or old, innocent or guilty, the law comes first for the stoic and
driven public defender. Hadley previously starred in the television series
"Racket Squad" (1953-1954) and is fondly remembered for playing the title role
in the action-packed Republic serial Zorro's Fighting Legion (1939).
LIVING A LIE - Two men, each sharing a heinous secret about a
hit-and-run crime fifteen years earlier, must face their guilt before an
innocent man pays the penalty.
STORY OF NORA FULTON - An innocent young woman is charged with murder,
but the real killer is a loved one she does not suspect.
ANYTHING FOR A THRILL - A young girl is pressured into joining a gang
at school and finds herself on the wrong side of the law.
THEY NEVER COME BACK - Desperate for cash, an ex-jockey enters a
comeback race. When the cameras catch him lashing out at an adversary, he's
charged with assault with a deadly weapon.
Starring: Reed Hadley, Richard Crane & Morris Ankrum
Produced by: Hal Roach Jr.
Directed by: Budd Boetticher, Sobey Martin & Harve Foster
The Public Defender, Volume 1 (DVD Movie) . . .
