Watch on HDtoday. THE SILENT WITNESS is a 1962 crime-thriller, written by Frank Jessy and directed by Ken Kennedy. It starred Tristram Coffin, Marjorie Reynolds, George Kennedy and young Billy Shanley. It tells the story of Danny, the teenage son of a police officer killed in the line of duty who ends up being the accidental witness to the murder and as a result becomes the target of the killer.