Judge — July 14, 1928 — page 6: what you’re looking at

What you’re looking at

# "The Alibi" - Judge Cartoon Analysis This cartoon by Gardner Rea satirizes a judge's dubious legal reasoning. The sequence depicts a judge building an increasingly implausible defense for a defendant. Panels 1-3 show the judge coaching a small defendant, establishing the lie. Panels 4-5 escalate the absurdity—the judge and defendant appear to be fleeing or creating false witnesses. Panels 6-9 show the "alibi" becoming ridiculous: the defendant is supposedly elsewhere (in flames, on a hill, at a town gathering). The satire targets judicial corruption or incompetence—specifically, judges willing to concoct transparent falsehoods to acquit defendants. The exaggerated scenarios mock both the legal system's potential for abuse and the obvious implausibility of such defenses. The title "The Alibi" underscores the central theme of manufactured innocence.