The Trial of the Falcon

As the Falcon is coming to terms with his criminal past, he and Captain America are called into the office of acting SHIELD director Jeff Cochren. Waiting for them are Peggy Carter and Gabe Jones who were recently sent to Los Angeles to verify the Red Skull’s claims that Sam was once a drug dealer nicknamed Snap Wilson. They found evidence proving this and Cochren orders the Falcon to be taken into custody while awaiting trail.[1]

Falcon tries to evade capture but Captain America stops him, telling him that standing trial is the only way to present his case in the hopes that his time as Captain America’s partner will help him get a lesser sentence. That’s when Nick Fury arrives and is furious with how Cochren handled things in his absence. After forcing Jeff to apologize to Sam, Fury promises to have SHIELD’s best lawyers help him with his case. However, Falcon doesn’t have much faith in the system as he believes it is stacked against African-Americans like himself. Captain America tries to assure Falcon that he will get a fair trail. Sam decides to reluctantly follow along with things and is allowed to go home with his girlfriend Leila Taylor until the trial. Speaking to Captain America in private, Nick Fury decides to put aside their past differences and hopes they can work together again before handing back Steve’s A-1 Priority badge.[2]

The news about Falcon’s criminal past and upcoming trial starts a media whirlwind. When questioned about his past association with the Avengers, Iron Man tells the press that they are considering the Falcon innocent until proven otherwise. While in California, a mobster named Hollywood Vine fears that Snap Wilson will spill all their secrets and hires an assassin to eliminate him. This happens to be none other than Stilt-Man who runs into the Trapster following his defeat at the hand of the Ghost Rider. Left to float away by his anti-gravity discs, the Trapster is plucked out of the sky by Stilt-Man who only did so in order to strip the Trapster of his weapons, quickly discarding the villain once he gotten what he wanted.[3]

Later, when the trial begins, the prosecution calls up various criminals that had past associations with Snap Wilson. When the Falcon takes the stand he is about to reveal everything he knows about his criminal past when Stilt-Man comes crashing into the court room to eliminate him. Although the Trapster’s weapons trip up Captain America and the Falcon to start, the pair’s constant teamwork proves superior to Stilt-Man’s added arsenal and he is soon defeated. The trial is resumed in the aftermath of the battle and while the judge finds Sam guilty of his past crimes, he decides that he has more than made up for them during his time as Captain America’s partner and releases him on probation with Nick Fury being assigned as his parole officer. Grateful that he has avoided jail time and will be able to continue his crime-fighting career, Sam thanks Steve and Fury for all their help.

Recurring Characters

Captain America, Falcon, Stilt-Man, Peggy Carter, SHIELD (Nick Fury, Gabe Jones, Countess de la Fontaine, Jeff Cochren), Leila Taylor, Iron Man, Trapster, Ghost Rider

Continuity Notes

1. In Captain America #186, the Red Skull claimed that Sam Wilson was once a drug dealer nicknamed Snap and that he used the Cosmic Cube to brainwash Sam into the ideal partner for Captain America. It’s later revealed that Snap Wilson is actually a fabrication, per All-New Captain America #3. If this was a fabrication it does not explain how Peggy and Gabe were able to find proof of his criminal past. An official at the time of this writing (June 2021) has not been provided. For speculation regarding these issues click here for more details.

2. Captain America was first given SHIELD A-1 priority in Tales of Suspense #78, in fact this scene pays homage to that same story. Although never implicitly stated anywhere, I would presume Cap’s A-1 status was stripped either when he cut ties with SHIELD in Captain America #124.

3. The battle between the Trapster and Ghost Rider was chronicled in Ghost Rider (vol. 2) #13.

Topical References

• The Falcon states here that he has been Captain America’s partner for six years. This should be considered a topical reference as it measures the length of time between publications from Falcon’s first appearance in Captain America #117 and this story. Per the Sliding Timescale the pair have been partners for about 2.5 years at this point.