So Help Me God was the ninth episode of Season 2 of the TV series Quantum Leap. also the 18th overall episode in the series. Written by Deborah Pratt, the episode, which was directed by Andy Cadiff, originally aired on NBC-TV on November 29, 1989.
Summary[]
Although he can't remember much more than habeas corpus, Sam finds himself leaping into Leonard Dancey, a defense attorney in a capital murder case for a young black woman named Delilah "Lila" Berry (Tyra Ferrell), who's accused of murdering the son of a prominent white powerful man in a small Louisiana town steeped in racism.
Plot[]
Sam has leapt to Louisiana in 1957, into a defense attorney named Leonard Dancey. His entrance is very poorly timed, as it is during the committal hearing of the leapee's client, a young black woman named Delilah (Lila) Berry, who is accused of murder, and is immediately asked for their plea. Unsure of what to do, Sam looks at Lila and, seeing innocence in her eyes, pleads not guilty. This causes an uproar in the courtroom, as the audience had expected (and obviously hoped for) a guilty plea.
As Leonard had struck a deal with the prosecution before the hearing, the judge Eugene Haller (played by William Schallert) in his chambers discusses this change of heart with both counsels. He wonders if Sam has ulterior motives for changing the guilty plea (e.g., Lila hitting on him) and advises Leonard to reconsider the prosecutor's offer of 20 years in prison for a guilty plea unless he has a good reason. But the prosecutor, angry and humiliated, rants that he will now push for a sentence of death by electric chair once Lila is declared guilty. Sam coolly replies that he will have to prove it. Back in the courtroom, the judge announces that Delilah Berry will stand trial for the murder of Houston Palmer Carter.
Lila angrily asks Sam why he changed her plea, and he replies that she is innocent. She retorts, "I never said that!" but their conversation is interrupted when the sheriff handcuffs her to take her back to the prison, informing Sam that he can talk to her the next morning during visiting hours. Sam is then approached by a well-dressed middle-aged man who is obviously very prominent and powerful, as everyone tips their hats to him.
"The Captain," as he's called, asks if he can drive Leonard home, and despite Sam's immediate reluctance, he agrees (mainly because he doesn't know where he lives). During the ride, Captain Colton Carter (played by Byrne Piven), who it turns out is the father of Houston, the murder victim, tells Sam that Leonard only has this job because of his friendship with Houston, and explains that his wife Sadie (played by Kathleen Noone) hasn't been well since Houston's death and that he offered a plea bargain to not have to put her through a trial.
The Captain doesn't believe Sam when he answers why he's pleading not guilty, and like the judge, thinks Sam is enjoying her attention. He doesn't exactly blame Sam for this either, reminiscing how he enjoyed watching her bent over while cleaning the floor – Lila was one of their maids. They arrive at Sam's house and Leonard's wife "Shugee," who's keen on a membership at the country club, is so pleased that her husband was seen in the Captain's new car, says she was going to bake him a pecan pie and let him play “Rhett Butler” with her that night.
Sam spends the night researching the case, trying to find a way to help Lila, but all he could remember about the law was what he knew from a TV show whose name he didn't even remember until Al shows up the next morning and exclaims, "It's Perry Mason!" when he sees Sam.
Al apologizes for taking so long to get there. He had to take care of Leonard, who was unwell in the waiting room. He is not much help to Sam anyway, because they have no idea why Sam leapt there. They have already run through a few scenarios and determined that in the original story, the 20-year sentencing deal that was finalized was the best possible option anyway because of the overwhelming evidence against Lila. Unfortunately, that is no longer an option, as Sam has plead Lila not guilty.
Al is flabbergasted, but Sam argues that after hearing how bigoted this town is towards blacks (and Lila in particular), it does not make sense that they would show her “mercy”, there must be something else going on. He also tells what he saw in Lila's eyes and Al is convinced, believing that the eyes are the window to the soul. Al informs Sam that law is not one of his seven degrees, but that he (through Ziggy) has the entire history of law in his hands and that they will all be blown away at the trial...
Since he needs to do more research, he asks to see all the evidence at the police station, such as the police and coroner's reports, but the incompetent sheriff is not sure Sam has the right. Sam gets the sheriff to call his supervisor to get permission. When it looks like he will be denied, Sam yells into the phone that he will have all the evidence subpoenaed and charge them both with obstruction of justice. When that is approved, Sam thanks Perry Mason in his mind.
He then goes to the Captain's house to talk to the other maid, Myrtle (played by Ketty Lester), who heard the shooting and is something of an eyewitness. He is greeted by the Captain's wife, Sadie. Away with the fairies, she talks about how the heat is causing all the flowers to die, and wonders "they" will ever come back. On the back porch, Sam talks to Myrtle and what she tells him completely contradicts the information that was in the confession signed by Lila - that she kept making advances on Houston and when he rejected her advances, she murdered him in cold blood.
However, according to Myrtle, Houston had forced Lila into a dominant sexual relationship when she was 14 that lasted many years, that he had beaten her in the past, and that there had been a heated argument that turned violent shortly before the shooting. Sam tells Myrtle that if she testifies, Lila will be found innocent because she shot him in self-defence, but Myrtle refuses, declaring that she will not swear on a Bible!
When Sam visits Lila in prison, she says she now knows how Christians felt. Sam comforts her, saying that no one will throw her to the lions, and asks her to confirm what Myrtle has told him. Lila remembers that her mother had to bury fourteen children in the bayou where she came from, and that she had sworn never to return there, so she let him take advantage of her and confirm what Myrtle had said. But for some reason, she does not want to testify either.
At the trial, Sam causes an uproar when he demands that the jurors be changed because a jury is a trial by peers and since Lila is black, there should be some black members. Although this goes over well with the judge, he reminds Sam that to be a juror you must be a registered voter, and there were no black voters. Sam explains that they must reluctantly accept these jurors as Lila's equals. The prosecution begins their plea and when it comes to the confession, Sam objects to it being sworn in as evidence because it was written under duress. He tries to get Lila on the stand to defend herself, but she refuses. Sam then asks her to at least read the confession, and Lila explains that she cannot read.
The judge calls a recess so Leonard can decide what to do. During lunch, Shuggy tells Sam how upset she was that the nice jurors said they were equal [to a black woman]. That's when the Captain comes in and threatens Sam that much of the legal work in this town comes out of his offices and that he'll now do most of the work pro bono. Sam is undeterred and invites Lila to lunch. He desperately tries to get her to understand that if she doesn't recant the confession, she'll go to the electric chair, and reads it to her. She breaks down when it says “he begged me in the name of Jesus” and calls it a lie.
Sam believes he's convinced her, but at the trial she still refuses to swear on the Bible, and so the confession is sworn in as evidence.
Sam makes his way to the chapel, for he has come to a realization. He and Al conclude that Myrtle and Lila will not swear on a Bible because they fear God so much that they would tell the truth even if it incriminated them, or someone else that they care about even more than themselves. Myrtle happens to walk in and apologizes for interrupting his prayer, and Sam says he was praying for a miracle. Myrtle wishes she could help, but she has sworn to keep something secret and the person she swore to has said she will go to hell if she tells.
Ziggy finds something, and Al tells Sam to read a bible passage to Myrtle, that whatever persuasion he used did not come from God and that he too would have to face judgement. Convinced, she tells him that last crucial bit of information...
The next morning, Sam is late for the trial. They are about to begin without him when Sam runs in and calls Sadie Carter as his witness. This causes an uproar in court, Lila tells Sam not to do it, and the Captain yells at the judge to put a stop to it. The judge turns Sam down, not intending to call a grieving mother to the stand, but Sam had anticipated this. The reason for his delay is that he had gone to Baton Rouge to get a subpoena and a federal marshal.
Unable to stop him, Sadie is sworn in. Although not in her right mind, she is coherent enough to tell her story. Under oath, she says how much Houston loved Lila and wanted to marry her, but could not because she was black. He loved her so much that he hated her for it and beat her often (but never in front of her, until that night). She had given Lila some money so she could leave and start a new life. When they said goodbye, Houston came back from hunting and was so angry that he nearly beat Lila to death and even pushed his mother away. Sadie shocks the courtroom when she recalls that SHE, fearing he would kill Lila, took the shotgun and shot Houston - and Lila screams that the gun went off accidentally.
Sometime after the trial, Sam meets up with Lila at the bus stop, planning to start fresh. She thanks Sam, and couldn't be more grateful to Sadie for saving her life twice.
Lila hopes Sadie never remembers what happened. After congratulating "Leonard" on his new job at a prestigious law firm (and the country club membership that comes with it), she offers to send Leonard money until she pays him in full for his services, but Sam tells Lila that the only payment he wants from her is for her to learn to read, and hands her a reader. She boards the bus and waves goodbye from the window, promising to do so “So Help Me God”, and with a final parting wave, Sam leaps.
"So Help Me God" Full Cast & Crew[]
Directorial/Writing credits[]
- Andy Cadiff - Director
- Deborah Pratt - Writer
Cast (in credits order)[]
- Scott Bakula as Dr. Samuel Beckett
- Dean Stockwell as Admiral Al Calavicci
- Byrne Riven as Captain Cotter
- Tyra Ferrell as Delilah "Lila" Berry
- Kathleen Noone as Sadie Cotter
- Ketty Lester as Myrtle
- John Apicella as Sheriff Dixon
- Stacy Ray as Sugee Dancey
- John Shepard as bo Parsons
- William Schallert as Judge Eugene Haller
- Robert Dryer as Chigger
- Scotch Byerly as clerk
- Heather Lee as Woman gossip
- Travis Michael Holder as Leonard Dancey
- Phillip Persons as Coroner
- Cal Gibson as Gardener
- Deborah Pratt as Narrator (uncredited)
Art Department[]
- Scott Nifong - Assisant property master
Production team[]
- Donald P. Bellisario - Executive Producer / Associate Producer
- David Bellisario - Associate Producer
- Jeff Gourson - Associate Producer
- Deborah Pratt - Supervising producer
- Robert Wolterstorff - Supervising producer
- Paul M. Belous - co-producer
- Harker Wade - Producer
Music[]
- Tom Boyd - Oboe soloist
- Mike Post - Music by/Music supervisor, Composer (theme music)
- Tom Gleason - Music editor
- Velton Ray Bunch - Music
- Jerry Grant - Music
Cinematography[]
- Michael W. Watkins - Director of Photography
Film Editing[]
- Alan Shefland - Film editor (as Alan Shefland)
Camera and Electrical Department[]
- Ed Nielsen - Camera Operator
- Peter Gulla - Assistant camera
- Mark Abbott - Gaffer
Casting[]
- Ellen Lubin Sanitsky - Casting
- Sheryl Roberts - Casting Assistant
Art Direction[]
- Peg McClellan - Art direction
Set Decoration[]
- Robert L. Zilliox - Set decorator
Costume Design[]
- Jean-Pierre Dorléac - Costume designer (as Jean-Pierre Dorleac)
Production Management[]
- Ronald R. Grow - unit production manager (as Ron Grow)
Production Design[]
- Cameron Birnie - Unit production manager
Second Unit Director or Assistant Director[]
- Paul Simmons - First assistant director
- Robert Brooks Mendel - Second assistant director (as Rob Mendel)
Stunts[]
- Diamond Farnsworth - Stunt coordinator
Sound Department[]
- Paul B. Clay - Supervising Sound Editor
- Mark Hopkins McNabb - Sound mixer
Costume and Wardrobe Department[]
- David Rawley - Costume supervisor
- Donna Roberts- Costume supervisor (as Donna Roberts-Orme)
Transportation[]
- Dennis Jung - Transportation co-Captain
Other crew[]
- Greg Knapp - Set Medic
- Winnie Rich - Script supervisor
Podcast[]
http://quantumleappodcast.com/episodes/season-two/017-so-help-me-god/
Fate's Wide Wheel: A Quantum Leap Podcast with Sam & Dennis - So Help Me God
Quantum Leap Revisited - So Help Me G-d