"The Big High" real? SPOILER
Every show starts with "The story you about to see is true."
So did something like this ever happened? If so, it's evidence against the argument that "weed don't kill."
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MovieChat Forums > Dragnet 1967 (1967) Discussion > "The Big High" real? SPOILER
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A couple of things bother me about that episode.
One, after Joe and Bill visit the Shipleys and see they have absolutely no probable cause to do anything, they still send juvenile officer Dorothy Miller over to check on the welfare of the child. That's really harassment, with no justification at all. The Shipleys should have filed a complaint against the LAPD right then and there.
Second, when Joe And Bill go back to the Shipleys house after getting a tip from Freddy the Loader, they first listen at the door but no sound is audible from inside the house. Without knocking, Joe just kicks in the door and they enter without permission. All this without a search warrant. The illegal entry and search should have been enough to get the case thrown out of court.
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I know things have changed a lot since the '60s, but I don't know whether there were rules in place when this episode was made that would have governed things like kicking in the door without warning and, apparently, without a search warrant. Does anyone know for sure?
Regardless, this episode makes me laugh out loud. I'm as law-and-order as you can imagine...now...in my 50s...but when I was a teenager I did more than my fair share of illegal stuff, including using a lot of drugs. Although I haven't touched marijuana for 35+ years, I'm still annoyed by its inaccurate representation in shows like this one. The way its effects are portrayed in this episode is just silly. The whole thing with the parents zoning out and forgetting about the baby in the bathtub is ludicrous, not only from the perspective of marijuana's effects, but also based on their very responsible behavior overall. Logically, they would have given the child a bath and put her to bed BEFORE indulging in smoking pot with their friends. Indulging to such a point that they basically lose consciousness. Ridiculous.
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A baby just drowned in my area. Left alone in four inches of water. It's a known fact that a baby can drown in one inch of water and I'm sure this episode was based on these sad occurances.
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Oh, yes. The Dragnet production people were insane people and you are always right. Glad to meet You, God.
shareI suppose it's possible for the kid to have drown like that. But I'm sure it's happened by parents being drunk too and passing out. It's a sad world where kids suffer for their idiotic parents behaviour. I didn't like the part where Gannon said; "Would you mind if we looked around?" What? Can we search your home with no search warrant and probable cause? For a veteran police officer that is a major screw up.
If the owners give permission, they don't need a warrant. Tricky.
So the theme of this episode is that drug users, including weed, are irresponsible enough to neglect a child. To death. But really there is no connection. There are drunks who kill in a car, but not everyone who drinks does that.
share"Joe and Frank"?
Now if that bastard so much as twitches, I'm gonna blow him right to Mars.
"Joe and Frank"?
Now if that bastard so much as twitches, I'm gonna blow him right to Mars.
How do you know they didn't have a warrant?
Because the narration didn't say they aquired one. And if they had a warrent they would have told her up front and shown it to her. And they wouldn't have asked if they could look around, they just would done it.
shareIf you want a real thrill, go back to the original series in the early '50s...at least 90 percent of their cases would be thrown out of court today, as they constantly search people's apartments/houses with no warrant when they're not home.
shareYes, times have changed. Really, as much as I love the 1960s Dragnet, I find the one from the 1950s boring. Maybe because I grew up in the 1960s. It just seemed the topics were more interesting, lurid and unintentionally funny when he was with Gannon. But no matter what, Friday always had the last word. And as my father said; "it tops the whole thing off."
shareIf you've never seen the parody of Dragnet in a Mad magazine from the '50s (the May 1954 issue, to be exact), you owe it to yourself to look it up.
shareRegarding the "No Warrant" issue when Friday kicks the door open at the Shipley's... it's very subtle but it's there. Remember when Friday and Gannon walk up to the door, Friday sniffs and says "Marijuana" confirming they can smell it. This gives them "Probable Cause" and therefore, no warrant is needed.
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