Continuity mistake: During the interview with Maria, her headscarf disappears from Inspector Clouseau's desk. (00:34:28)
A Shot in the Dark (1964)
Ending / spoiler
Directed by: Blake Edwards
Starring: Herbert Lom, Peter Sellers, George Sanders, Elke Sommer
The second four murders were actually done by Dreyfus, who was trying to kill Clouseau. The initial four murders were done by the members of the Ballon household, who were all having affairs with someone else - in fact, Maria is the only one who didn't kill someone else. Hercule knocks out the power as part of Clouseau's ruse to catch the murderer, and everyone escapes and they all steal Clouseau's car. However, Dreyfus has put a bomb in the car, and it blows up, killing the Ballons and their servants. Clouseau and Maria embrance - and then Cato shows up and attacks them.
Dave
More mistakes in A Shot in the Dark
Dreyfus: Give me ten men like Clouseau and I could destroy the world.
More questions & answers from A Shot in the Dark
Answer: In this particular film, he's referred to solely as "Commissioner" and is then Chief Inspector in every subsequent Pink Panther film in which he appears (up until "Son of the Pink Panther" [1993], Herbert Lom's last appearance in the role, when he is again Commissioner). If you're after a reason, there likely isn't an official one, though perhaps Dreyfus's murder spree and mental breakdown in this film led to his demotion.