Divide the class into groups and explain that each group is a detective team whose task is to solve the Benchley Murder. Charles Benchley, owner of the multimillion-dollar Benchley Industries, was found shot to death in the study of his Loch Side mansion. Tell students they will be competing in teams to solve the mystery by using the clues that each team member will receive.

1. Students may not pass the individual clues they receive to other members of the team or line them up on a desk. They may read their clues aloud, discuss them in any way they wish, but the physical clues must remain in their hands.
   
   
2. Students may analyze the evidence any way they wish, organizing clues by character, each reading his or her clues, or by some other method.
   
   
3. When they solve the crime, they must elect a spokesperson to not only give the solution, but to also present the evidence that led the team to that solution.
   
   
4. The team with the correct solution and the most convincing evidence will win the game. If two teams should happen to reach the same solution, have the spokesperson write a list of the team's evidence before sharing it orally.
   
   

          Before using this strategy, you will need to Xerox copies of the clue list so that each team has a complete set, and cut three or four clues for each detective-participant. Emphasize that the winning team will be the one with the best support for the correct solution and not the first team to arrive at a solution. Distribute the clues and let the teams begin.

• Charles Benchley, seventy-year-old owner of the multimillion dollar Benchley Industries, was found shot to death in the study of his Loch Side mansion.
  
  
• Ballistics show that Charles was shot with a rare "Levinger Pistol," recovered at the scene. No fingerprints were found on the weapon. The coroner placed the time of death at 11:00 P.M. on Saturday evening, July tenth.
  
  
• Mimi Benchley, the twenty-year-old wife of Charles, said she saw Buddy Benchley arrive at the mansion just as she was leaving around 5:00 on Saturday, the day of the murder.
  
  
• Charles Benchley stipulated in his will that if he died, Mike Adams, his financial advisor, was to be named a major partner in Benchley Industries.
  
  
• Buddy, the son of Charles Benchley, is in debt for $100,000 from gambling at Jungle Joe's, an illegal casino for high rollers. The casino is operated by several individuals believed to have Mafia connections.
  
  
• Amy Benchley, the daughter of Charles, was at the Hot Spot nightclub Saturday evening with Buddy and another man. The owner of the Hot Spot said Amy was there from five until one in the morning.
  
  
• Mimi told detectives that she was with Mike Adams, the Benchley investment advisor, reviewing legal documents at the time of the murder. She had stopped there on her way to her sister's, but did not return to the mansion after she left at five o'clock.
  
  
• Annie Vorst, the cleaning lady, mentioned that two tough-looking characters had recently stopped by the house looking for Buddy. Annie said she never heard Buddy threaten Charles.
  
  
• Buddy claims that he hasn't seen the murder weapon in years. He said he bought the gun as a gift for his father, Charles, who collected weapons. He thought Charles had stored it in a cabinet with his gun collection.
  
  
• Mike Adams confirmed to detectives that he and Mimi were working on legal and investment issues at the time of the murder. He said she appeared calm and composed. Nothing she said or did, in his estimation, suggested she had just committed murder.
  
  
• The bartender at the Hot Spot said he is "almost sure" that Buddy was there from about seven until one on the night of the murder. Roco Fritz joined him around midnight.
  
  
• Buddy told Detective Preston that he never visited his father the night of the murder and never threatened him at any time. He also claimed that didn't know anyone named Roco.
  
  
• Amy Benchley, the daughter of Charles and brother of Buddy, has been in psychiatric care for years. Her father once had her committed for a year, and she has resented that ever since. Amy said that she often argued with her father, but Buddy rarely did.
  
  
• Amy told detectives that she heard Rockin Rollins is in deep debt and may sell his house.
  
  
• Mimi Benchley will inherit one-third of the Benchley fortune when the estate is settled. Mimi says she doesn't trust Rockin Rollins and has often seen him wandering about the neighborhood late at night.
  
  
• The owner of the mansion next door, rap star Rockin Rollins, says he saw two people--- a man and a woman---leave the Benchley mansion around 11:15. He couldn't clearly identify either of them since they were some distance away, and the car they drove didn't look familiar.
  
  
• Amy Benchley will inherit one-third of the Benchley estate now that her father is dead.
  
  
• Buddy refused to take a lie detector test concerning the events on the night of the murder.
  
  
• Rockin Rollins told detectives that Charles had a good relationship with Buddy and Amy, although Amy had mental problems. Benchley told him that Amy wasn't dangerous, but at times would lose touch with reality and sometimes not know where she was.
  
  
• Any family member implicated in the robbery will lose his or her inheritance because of legislation that prohibits criminals from profiting from their crimes.
  
  
• Roco Fritz saw Mimi leave the house before he went in to burglarize it. This worried him because Buddy said only the old man would be there and that he would be sleeping.
  
  
• Arny "The Fence" Jackson said Roco Fritz brought several items into his pawn shop---jewelry, three valuable paintings, and some computer accessories. Arny claims he didn't know these were stolen goods.
  
  
• The bartender at the Hot Spot said two men "who looked like trouble" stopped by the bar a week before the murder looking for Buddy. He noticed that one of the men was carrying a gun.
  
  
• Roco's prints and Arny's were found on the stolen merchandise. Rockin Robin's fingerprints were found in the study of Charles Benchley.
  
  
• Annie says she doesn't trust Rockin Rollins. She has seen him outside walking late into the night.
  
  
• A local art dealer called Detective Preston to tell him that a painting she had purchased from Arny's Pawn Shop might have been stolen from the Benchley mansion. After checking with relatives of Benchley, Detective Preston discovered that the painting was stolen from Benchley. Fingerprints were found on the painting that matched those of Roco Fritz.
  
  
• The police lab found no fingerprints on the murder weapon.
  
  
• Buddy will inherit one-third of the Benchley estate now that his father has died.
  
  
• Annie Vorst, the Benchley cleaning lady, once saw Mimi kissing Mike Adams. Their embrace seemed more than just friendly.
  
  
• Charles Benchley told Annie that Mimi would be visiting her sister Saturday evening and Sunday. So, she wouldn't need to clean her room Sunday morning.
  
  
• Roco Fritz admitted robbing the Benchley mansion on the night of the murder, but claims he arrived after Benchley was killed. He didn't discover Benchley's body until he had collected several items.
  
  
• Annie was once a nun, but left the church to marry.
  
  
• Roco said that Buddy told him where to go and what to look for and the deal was that they would split the sale of the stolen goods. Roco passed a lie detector test that indicated he did not kill Benchley.
  
  
• Mimi told Detective Preston that both Amy and Buddy were violent personalities who often lost their tempers quickly.
  
  
• Buddy's scarf was found clutched in the hand of Mr. Benchley.
  
  
• Rockin Rollins told police that he and Charles had developed a close friendship, although Charles was much older. Rollins said he often visited Charles just to talk as friends. He mentioned that Charles loved his children despite their problems. Rollins said that Buddy had recently told him he planned to stop gambling and become more involved in the company.
  
  
• Annie says that when she left the Benchley mansion at 5:00, the only two people left in the house were Mimi and Mr. Benchley.
  
  
• Mike Adams said that Buddy had asked Charles for money to pay off gambling debts. When Charles refused, Buddy threatened him. Mike explained that Charles told him confidentially that he feared Buddy might harm him, and was considering removing Buddy from his will.
  
  
• Rockin Rollins was once arrested (but not convicted) for attempted murder. The incident involved a knife fight at a concert.
  
  

          Mike Adams and Mimi Benchley, who had a romantic relationship, conspired to kill Charles for his money. Mike would become a major partner in Benchley Industries and Mimi would inherit a third of the Benchley estate. Mimi and Mike planted the scarf in Benchley's hand to incriminate Buddy.

          To further implicate Buddy, they also lied to the police. Mimi falsely said she saw Buddy arriving at the Benchley mansion, and Mike claimed Buddy had threatened Charles.

          Just by coincidence Buddy and Roco planned a robbery on the night of the murder. The bartender placed Buddy at the Hot Spot during the time of the crime. Roco passed a lie detector test that cleared him. Buddy refused to take the lie detector test because he didn't want to be implicated in the robbery.

          After the spokesperson of each group gives a solution for choosing the guilty individual or individuals, discuss the logical relationship between their conclusion and the evidence given by the group. Point out that this logical relationship is a common pattern in writing.

          Mysteries offer some of the best teaching tools for students to internalize the logical framework that holds passages and paragraphs together. Telling students the relationship between a thesis and support isn't nearly as effective as having them experience the process of logic by solving a mystery and then providing a logical explanation.