On the night of Helen's murder, the Kimbles had been heard, earlier the same day, arguing heatedly over this topic by their neighbors. Richard later went out for a drive to cool off; as he was returning home, he nearly struck with his car a man with only one arm, who was fleeing from the vicinity of the Kimble house. Richard then found that Helen had been killed. But no one had seen or heard Richard go out for his drive, or seen him while he was out, and there was no evidence that the "one-armed man" Kimble saw existed. At his trial, Kimble was unjustly convicted of Helen's murder and sentenced to death in the electric chair.