Carl Stockdale

Notorious film industry figure, Stockdale, a close acquaintance of Mary Miles Minter's mother, Charlotte Shelby, took the witness stand to profess his presence alongside Mrs. Shelby at the time of the murder of William Desmond Taylor, Minter's alleged lover. Stockdale's testimony was designed to exonerate Charlotte Shelby from any potential suspicion of being involved in Taylor's murder, as he claimed to have been in her company when the crime was committed. Furthermore, Stockdale expressed his suspicion that Taylor's former chauffeur, a man named Sands, might have been the actual perpetrator of the heinous act. Despite numerous investigations conducted by authors, private detectives, and even renowned film director King Vidor, the majority of sources familiar with the case consistently point to Charlotte Shelby as the likely culprit responsible for Taylor's tragic demise.