A lot of things happen to Rusty in the last scene of the Presumed Innocent, things that will change his life forever and ultimately leaving him feeling responsible. First he finds the murder weapon used on his mistress, Carolyn. Then he learns that it was his wife that killed her which leads him to feel guilt. For if he had not had an affair his wife would have had no reason to kill anyone and the woman with whom he had the affair would still be alive. Going through the grieving process is a battle already so I know that blaming yourself for the death of someone must leave you feeling way worse and this is what Rusty has to deal with. The guilt of having someone’s death on your hands, the loss of a lover, and also to live with the murderer till death do you part. This sad reality seems to hit Rusty as his wife begins to tell him how perfect her murder was and why she did it, so that they could be a happy perfect family once again. This internal struggle within the household is reinstated when in the last scene Rusty’s voice over says “There is punishment.” Because even though Rusty and Barbara were not convicted they have to live with each other and all their secrets which is a torture in itself. Rusty knows he lives and sleeps in the same bed as a murderer and to make it worse it is the murderer of the woman he loved and Barbara has to live with the fact that her husband will always prefer another woman over her even after she has killed her. Guilt is a horrible prison itself.
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