Quincy M.E. (1976–1983): Season 5, Episode 6 - Sweet Land of Liberty - full transcript

Steve Yomashira, an old friend of Sam's, goes crazy one night and kills a young police officer with the officer's gun. It turns out that its the latest in a series of near psychotic episodes that Steve was suffering following an incident in Germany while he was serving in the army. Steve then commits suicide and Sam decides to dig deeper and he eventually finds out that Steve was suspected of being a spy for the Soviets and he was given an LSD laced truth serum. Now Sam and Quincy must try to prove that the army was responsible for what happened to him and reverse the army's decision to dishonorably discharge him and give Steve the honor back that he lost.

A cop's bullet ends
up in his own body.

He is not the Steve
you knew, Sam.

He's changed.

The Army gave him some
kind of hallucinogenic drug.

How are you gonna prove such a
wild accusation against the Army?

They said he had stolen
some classified documents

and leaked them
off to the Russians.

I don't know what I can do for
your friend, he's guilty as can be.

He's changed!

He attacked two men.
And killed one of them!

If he was your friend, you'd
march to Hell for the answer!



If you don't play by the
Army's rules, you lose!

Gentlemen, you
are about to enter

the most fascinating
sphere of police work,

the world of forensic medicine.

Kemp, ah, check the
plate on that German car.

- Why?
- It doesn't belong
in this neighborhood.

378 PCE.

It's on the list. It's a
long way from Bel Air.

Yeah. Maybe those people in
there can tell us how it got here.

- Okay, let's check it out.
- Yeah.

What is it?

We'd like to talk to you about
that car parked out front, ma'am.

Oh, we don't own
a car. It's not ours.

Yes, ma'am. We know that. Can
we speak to your husband, please?



Ah, he doesn't feel well.

We'd still like to see
him. It won't take Iong.

Lee...

No! You're not gonna
get me this time!

Cover the back.

Cover me.

Hey!

Kemp, are you all right?

This is the body of George
Kemper, age twenty-three, Caucasian.

The bullet entered
through the abdominal wall

transecting the fundus of
the stomach, the spleen,

and rupturing the diaphragm.

There it is, Sam.

The bullet is lodged in the posterior
abdominal wall subcutaneous fat.

Bring me a Petri dish, will ya?

Looks like a .38.

Yeah, from a regulation
police revolver.

The world is inside out, Sam. A
cop's bullet ends up in his own body,

Have that sent over to
ballistics, would you, Sam?

Right away.

Hey, you been watchin' us? I thought
this kind of thing made you squeamish.

How I feel isn't important.
Now, that kid on the table is.

I've never seen you so
worked up over a case!

This isn't just a case, Quincy.
He's the son of a friend of mine.

I put that kid on that duty.

I thought working that area would
be good experience for him, and safe.

Instead, it killed him.

It could have happened
anywhere, on any assignment.

But it didn't! It happened
where I sent him.

Is this what you got outta him?

Yeah, I'm sending
it to ballistics now.

That's only a formality now.
The guy that killed him confessed.

He confessed?

Yeah. He probably figures a confession
will look good in front of the judge,

throw himself at the
mercy of the court.

But let me tell you, I'm gonna
move mountains to see that that creep

sees nothin' but four stone
walls for the rest of his life.

Let me sign this. The
faster I get this to ballistics,

the faster I can nail
that creep. Thanks.

- I've never seen him so mad.
- He feels responsible.

Monahan's report.
He must've forgotten it.

Oh, I'll give it to him later.

It says it was supposed to be

a routine investigation.
A stolen auto.

No! I don't believe it.

What's the matter?

You remember my friend, the one
I told you was like my big brother?

- Yeah,
Steve something or other?
- Yomoshira.

What about him?

Well, this report says that he
was the one who shot that cop.

Well, that's impossible.
Maybe it's somebody else.

It's not a common name.
The address is here.

Quince, I gotta check this
out. I have to make sure.

Okay, it's our lunch hour.
Come on, I'll go with you.

- We'll change.
- Thanks.

I don't know, it just
doesn't fit together.

It's not like Steve.

Sometimes men change, Sam.
For no reason. Something just snaps.

No, you don't know Steve! I'm
sorry, Quince. He's so gentle.

You know, when I was a
kid, we lived in the same block.

He ended up marrying my next
door neighbor, Lee Yamamoto.

I latched onto him. You know,
the older brother I never had bit.

He never tried to shake
me like the other guys did.

He took a real interest in
me. He'd take me places,

amusement parks,

fishing off Venice pier.
Took me hunting once.

Quince, his idea of
hunting was to load up

a camera and try to
see how close a picture

he could get of a deer. His
trophies were in Ektachrome.

Then, he enlisted in
the Army, Korean War.

He thought it was important for Japanese
Americans to show their patriotism.

He was decorated and everything.
They gave him a Silver Star.

Well, maybe the war
experience turned him around.

It wouldn't be the first
time that happened.

No. No, I saw him just
before I went to college, in '58.

Quince, he was
gentler than ever.

He told me, even though he was
gonna make the Army his career,

he would work
for peace, not war.

That was the last
time you saw him?

Yeah. He wrote me a few times,

but I was always
too busy to answer.

Lee?

Yes?

- Lee. Sam.
- Sam?

Sam Fujiyama.

Sam Fujiyama!

You're an answered prayer!

Look at you.

All grown up. A man!
And so handsome.

Out of the blue, at my door...

Lee, Dr. Quincy
here is gonna help us.

- How do you do.
- How do you do.

Oh, Sam.

- Then, it's not a mistake.
- No, it's not a mistake.

But, why, Lee? Why?

He is not the Steve
you knew, Sam.

A lot of time has
passed. He's changed.

- What happened last night?
- He didn't mean it.

Oh, he never means it.

But these...

he has attacks,
terrible headaches,

and he has no control over them.

He couldn't make
it outside the Army.

I thought he loved the
Army. Why did he leave, then?

He didn't.

They discharged
him. Dishonorably.

Dishonorably? But he was a hero!

In Korea he was a hero, Sam.

Twenty-five years ago.

But while he was
stationed in Germany,

he attacked his C.O.

They court-martialled him.

- I just can't believe it.
- It's all true, Sam.

Have you seen Steve yet?

No.

No.

I can't.

Not just yet.

Do you want me to?

Would you, Sam? He needs
somebody to be with him.

I will.

He needs somebody
who really cares.

Monahan.

This Is Dr. Quincy.

How do you do, Dr. Quincy.
I'm Eleanor Janssen

- Pleased to meet you.
- I'm representing
Mr. Yomoshira.

Ah, thanks for having Lieutenant
Monahan notify me of your visit.

Thank you for letting us
see him on such short notice.

This is Sam Fujiyama,
Steve's friend.

How do you do?

Look, I don't know what you guys are doin'
here, but I'm tellin' you he's no good.

- Stay away from him.
- We wanna see him anyway.

- All right, I'll get 'em.
- I'll go with you.

You stay here.

Did you know Steve before this?

Uh, No. No, but Judge Kyoto
asked me to take the case.

And, well, I might have some cases
coming up before him in the near future.

The balances of justice.

It's not especially nice, but
that's the way the game is played.

Besides, I don't know what I can do
for your friend, he's guilty as can be.

You're his lawyer and you say that!
What chance will he have in the courtroom?

Not much, I'm afraid.

Look, I'm only telling
you the way it is.

And Sam is very sensitive
about this, so lay off, will ya?

I'm sorry, for Sam's sake, but
I'm not goin' easy on this one.

Thank you.

Come in, Sam. I want you to
meet Jim Dono, an Army buddy.

Good to meet you. I've
heard a lot about you.

- This is my wife, Betty.
- Hello.

Sam? Is something
wrong with Steve?

Sam? Is something
wrong with Steve?

Sam?

Sam? Sam!

Lee, he's dead.

He killed himself.

No. Oh, Steve! No!

No! I'll go.

They did this to him!

Who did?

The Army! They gave
him those headaches.

It all started after the interrogation.
And he was never the same after that!

Never!

What interrogation?

Back in '62, when
they broke his spirit.

He was a hero and they
treated him like scum!

What? What are you talking
about? What are you talking about?

When they arrested him!

Arrested him for what?

For spying. They said he had
stolen some classified documents

and leaked them
off to the Russians.

Process this, will ya? I don't
think you're gonna find anything.

For Sam's sake.
And finish up in here.

All right, Dr. Quincy.

Sam.

What did you find, Quince?

Nothing.

What about the cerebral vessels,
no aneurysms or old bleeding?

Nope. No.

Any sign of meningitis?

Sam, I went over every
millimeter of that body.

I couldn't find any reason
for those headaches.

He was in perfect shape, like
the body of a twenty-five year old,

except for a couple of missing teeth and a
hairline fracture of the jaw, that healed.

That can't be! There has
to be something you missed!

Something that caused
those headaches.

Sam, you know the body
doesn't lie. What's there is there.

I wanna look for myself!

Sam, you know you can't do that. Asten's
departmental orders forbids involvement

in any cases where
there's personal interest.

And he's right. He's not
the same person you knew.

Sam, he's changed!

He attacked two men.
And killed one of them!

But why did he change?
That's what I've got to know.

If he was your friend, you'd
march to Hell for the answer!

Well, I'm gonna find out.

Where you gonna look?
What are you gonna look for?

Please, Sam. Let
it go! Give it up.

I can't!

But you accused the
Army of mistreatment.

Look, I didn't know what I was saying.
I was mad because Steve had died.

But you do know that he
was detained and interrogated.

The only thing I know is what Steve
told me. He said it happened in '62.

I didn't get transferred to
Germany until months later.

Look, I gotta get to work.

But why did they pick Steve?

Because Steve was a "peacenik".

He said we should negotiate
with the Communist countries.

And he also had access
to the classified documents.

You think he took them?

No! And neither did they
after the interrogation.

Hey, you don't have to
bring this all up again.

- It's all over, isn't it?
- You said that
he was beaten up.

Yeah, he might've
been roughed up a little.

But the Army isn't
what it was then.

Now, if you look a soldier
in the face the wrong way,

they got a lawyer
climbin' up your back.

How much force would
they use, to get a man to talk?

Steve said they knocked out
some teeth and cracked his jaw.

Which teeth? These?

What do I know? A tooth's a
tooth. What difference does it make?

I don't know yet.

What about his attacks?
He had them back then?

Steve claimed they started
after the interrogation.

What were they like?
Did you see them?

Yeah, I saw a few. Something
like I'd never seen before.

First, he'd start with
a headache. Real bad.

- Like a migraine?
- Yeah, but worse.

- He started talking crazy,
sayin' wild stuff.
- Like what?

Like he was on fire.
He meant in real flames,

and he ran around screamin'
and yellin', trying to put the fire out.

And he didn't stop until
I put the fire out for him.

Look man, I'm only telling
you what Steve told me.

I'm not gonna get in trouble telling
you this, will I? I mean, with the brass?

What do you do in the Army?

I'm a recruiting sergeant now. It's
not as exciting as it once was, but

the Army's the only kinda work I know.
And I wouldn't wanna louse anything up.

You won't. I promise.

Thanks for talking to me.

Sam, what are you doing?
It's 3:00 in the morning!

The watchman called me.
He was worried about you.

I had to come
down from the boat.

I guess I got carried away.
I didn't realize the time.

- I'm onto something here.
- It's a wild goose chase, Sam.

No, it isn't. Just
look what I've found!

Sam, I've released the body. I dropped
the report off at Asten's before I left.

It's done. It's finished.

- I took it back.
- You what?

I went into Asten's office and
the report was still on his desk,

so, I took it.

Sam, you can't do that!
There are rules and regulations!

Well, they never stopped you.

Look at this. I've
created a monster here!

I started with the only thing
you could find wrong with Steve.

The missing teeth and the
hairline fracture of the jaw.

I know how it happened.

How?

His old Army buddy told
me they were knocked out

during a pretty tough interrogation
the Army put Steve through.

Why did they interrogate him?

- They accused
Steve of being a spy.
- A spy?

Yeah. Well, I'll
explain that later.

I took another X-ray of the jaw,

where you found this fracture, to see
how extensive the damage actually was.

Well, I had to leave
the room for a few

minutes and I left the
jaw on the X-ray plate.

And this is what I got.

It's fogged. Is that a light
leak or is that radiation?

Radiation.

I double-checked it.

Then Steve must have been exposed
to some kind of radioactive material

and the fracture
sight captured it.

Was he involved in
any nuclear testing?

No. The Army wasn't
involved in any testing at all.

Look, I ran some bone samples
through the liquid scintillation counter.

- To check for beta radiation?
- Right.

And this is what came out.

Most of the counts are in
window two. 156 kV. Carbon-14?

Carbon-14.

I checked it on the multi-channel
analyzer. It had to have been introduced

into Steve's system
when his jaw was broken.

That indicates when he
was being interrogated.

And you're saying the
Army gave him Carbon-14?

- Right.
- Why?

Well, according to his friend, Steve
was suffering from hallucinations.

I'll bet the Army gave him some kind of
hallucinogenic drug tagged with Carbon-14!

Are you bananas, Sam!

How are you gonna prove such a
wild accusation against the Army?

I don't know, yet. I know
I'll have to go to the Army.

But I don't know where to begin
to ask the right kinds of questions.

Maybe you oughta go to that lawyer.
You know, Janssen, whoever she is.

Are you out of your
mind? She'd be no help.

She was all set to hand
Steve over without a fight!

I hear she's a great lawyer.

Yeah, if you have a million dollars or
own a couple of television networks.

Well, I don't think you have much of a
choice. I think you oughta give her a shot.

You know, Sam, I consider
myself a pretty good friend, right?

I mean, I come down
here at 3:00 in the morning,

I'm talkin' about Carbon-14 and
interrogations and spies. I love ya.

But, do I have to drink this
coffee? I'll see you in the morning.

As Mr. Fujiyama knows, I wasn't very
interested in this case in the beginning.

But he came to me with an
incredible story, which, if true,

is such a gross
miscarriage of justice,

I don't think I could
continue to call myself

a lawyer if I didn't
see it to the end.

Now, um, what we're interested
in is declassified information

concerning the Army's use of
hallucinogenic drugs. On soldiers.

Specifically, those
stationed In Germany.

Well, I've been running around gathering
records ever since you called this morning.

And I tell you... I tell you, with
the Freedom of Information Act

a warehouse full of records
have been declassified.

We only care about the
records dealing with drug use.

We don't want to know the
rest of the warehouse. Yet.

All I can tell you is that there were
some experiments done using LSD-25

here, in the United States.
But never in Germany.

There are no records on the
use of any hallucinogenics used

on servicemen overseas.

As a matter of fact, there is
no record existing to confirm

that Sergeant Yomoshira
was ever interrogated.

Are you trying to tell us that
Sergeant Yomoshira made this all up?

Well, considering what we
know about his mental state,

his unpredictable behavior,
it's possible, isn't it?

Besides, you're talking
about seventeen years ago.

The records may have been
destroyed, they may have been lost.

If the Army kept all the records
they'd made over the years,

we'd need two Pentagons
just to file them all away.

Well, uh, if you could, give us the names
of some of the men he was stationed with.

They might be able
to tell us something.

Well, that information
cannot be given out.

The Privacy Act permits us to not
divulge the names of former servicemen.

Are you saying, that there's no
way we can substantiate this story?

Without records,
without witnesses?

I'm sorry, but
I'll keep looking.

Yeah, I'll bet!

I knew you
wouldn't let this drop.

I'm sorry I ever
told you anything.

And now you come back with
his lawyer. The guy is dead!

He doesn't need a lawyer. Let
this whole ugly thing die with Steve!

We can't. Don't you see?

If we can prove what you told
us about Steve's behavior change,

that it was the result
of the interrogation,

maybe Eleanor can get the Army to
reverse the decision of the court-martial.

Get his honor restored.

How? By dragging his
dirty laundry out in public?

This can only hurt.

You can't win something
like this against

the most powerful
organization in the world!

Well, we're still gonna
try. And we need your help.

No way. I'm not saying
anything else. Nothing!

Please, Sergeant,
just a few questions.

Let me ask. You can
always refuse to answer.

Sam tells me you weren't there in Germany,
when Steve was detained and interrogated.

I was stateside. Crimpton
Arsenal, Maryland.

Well, do you know anyone
who served with Steve,

who would know
about the interrogation?

He didn't talk to anyone but me.

No one else knew?

There was another G.I. He
was accused of being a spy, too.

His name was, uh, Cahill.
Corporal Robert Cahill.

That's exactly what
we're looking for!

But he won't do you any
good when you find him.

Why not?

He's dead.

Dead?

Uh-huh.

He was arrested with Steve and
the day that they were released,

he went behind the barracks with
a revolver and blew his brains out.

Now just wait a minute... wait a minute.
You don't know what you're asking for.

I mean, you're asking for the
exhumation of a body that was buried

seventeen years ago. I
just can't go along with that.

First, we don't even know
where the body is buried...

Done. It's in Long Beach.

And you... you know, it's
not really our jurisdiction.

Ah, he died in the military
overseas, not L.A. County.

Dr. Asten, this is the first time I've
ever come to you with a request like this.

Sam, I appreciate that very
much. You'll never know.

But, you're giving me
very flimsy evidence.

- Quincy, now isn't
this evidence flimsy?
- Don't look at me.

Flimsy? Cahill shot himself in the
head right after the interrogation!

Is that what you call flimsy?

Well, Sam, maybe he was guilty.
And why shouldn't I look at you?

You're responsible, he's
just following your example.

Dr. Asten, you don't understand.
He died within hours of his release!

If they gave him the radioactive
LSD, signs of the Carbon-14,

the tag for the LSD
would still be there,

and it would be the same
as we found in Steve's jaw.

And that would prove that they were
given the drug during the interrogation!

Yeah, maybe the Army did give
him a Carbon-14 tagged drug.

But we don't know if it
was an hallucinogenic.

Now it could have been an
experimental drug, couldn't it?

For curing the common cold, for gallstones.
It could have been a research project!

Using two soldiers accused of being
spies? Both of whom killed themselves!

But, Sam, if the Army wanted
intelligent answers from the man,

facts, figures, names, why would
they give him an hallucinogenic?

I don't know. I
can't answer that.

Well you see, it just doesn't
make sense! Oh, Sam.

Sam, you know how highly
I think of you. How much...

how much I respect your work.

I mean, I would fight the whole
United States Army for you if I had to.

I'm not afraid to go in there and fight the
big guys. But I need a chance of winning.

- Quincy will tell you that. Right? Right?
- Yes, sir.

But this is my only chance. The
only hope I have left of proving

that Steve was
actually innocent.

Now come on, Sam. This is a
personal crusade you're waging.

And the department can't be
involved with something like that.

It just wouldn't be ethical.

- Quincy will
explain that to you.
- Okay. Fine.

You have to think about the department.
Well, I have to think about Steve

and what happened to him.
And Lee, and what's happening

to her right now.
That's my responsibility!

So, if you can't see your way
clear to give in to me on this,

I don't think I can see
my way clear to stay here!

Sam. Hey, Sam. Sam!

- What do you think
he meant by that?
- Seemed pretty clear to me.

Yes, I think he's taking
what I said personally.

Quincy, you understand
why I had to refuse him.

No hard evidence.
Well, I have to...

have to put my feelings aside for him and
base my decision on facts, facts, facts!

He shouldn't take it personally.
Quincy, you go and explain it to him.

- He'll listen to you.
- Okay.

- Oh, I have a fact
to tell you.
- What?

If he goes, I go.

Good grief.

Whoa! Whoa, take it easy.

Mark, I'm surprised at you.

Now this body's seventeen years
dead, it's not last week's laundry.

Sorry, Doctor.

Jeez.

Come on, Quince.

Tell me how you convinced Asten
to go ahead with the exhumation.

I've already told you.
I didn't do it, you did.

- I did?
- Sure!

If you believe in something strongly
enough, you can melt icebergs.

Come on, we've
got an autopsy to do.

It's partially mummified.

Makes you think that he was
embalmed by ancient Egyptians.

Well, Cahill was buried in a
wooden casket, that's good.

It allowed the moisture to escape
and then it was inserted into a dry vault.

Perfect for preserving a body.

The embalming is
absolutely magnificent.

Yeah, the Army is fastidious
about the care of their dead.

Too bad they didn't have that
much care for him when he was alive.

Look at the cranial damage
from the gunshot wound.

It's clear exactly where the
bullet entered and the path it took.

I want to take samples of
all the tissues that still remain.

What do you think they'll show?

Well, we hope radioactivity
from the Carbon-14.

And, if we're lucky, we should
be able to tell within a few hours

of when it was administered.

I want you to prepare these
tissues for the scintillation counter.

I'll keep my fingers crossed.

Yeah.

Muscle and skin
hardly show anything.

Here comes the liver.

Hallelujah! Carbon-14!
123 counts per minute.

And let's hope we get a
low count on the kidney, huh.

Only 85 counts per minute.

Sam, we're two-thirds
of the way there.

Now, let's pray for a very
high count on the bladder.

Bladder has 113
counts per minute!

Oh, Sam, do you know what that means?
To get such a low count on the kidneys

and such a high
count on the bladder.

It would take at least 24
hours to get down there!

And since he was
released from the

interrogation within
six hours of his death,

the Army interrogators
had to have given it to him.

It certainly looks that way.

I can't wait to tell Eleanor.

What are you waitin'
for? Go ahead, will ya?

Are you sure it's okay?

Asten's pretty
mad at me already.

I'll cover for you.
Go ahead, Tiger!

Thanks, Quince.

We're not saying
that he didn't do it.

What we're saying is that he might
not be responsible for his actions.

Mrs. Yomoshira, your husband's
behavior might have been caused

by the Army interrogation.

Ah! How could that be possible.
That was seventeen years ago.

Lee, we have proof that he
was given an hallucinogenic drug.

One that he had a
very bad reaction to,

that caused those recurrent
headaches, the attacks.

You mean, he wasn't really sick?

Well, why? Why did
they do that to him?

I mean, how could they
do that to him? Or anybody?

I don't know, Mrs. Yomoshira.

They stripped him of his pride

and they took a
beautiful, gentle man

and made him ugly, and angry.

And we want them to acknowledge
what they did to him. To you.

And to that young cop.

How, Sam? They
didn't kill anybody.

Technically, no. They didn't pull the
trigger. But they are morally responsible,

because they gave the drug to your
husband without his knowledge or consent.

Now, I know we're not going to be
able to put the Army on trial for murder,

but maybe we can at least corner
them into accepting their responsibility.

How would you do
that? Steve is dead.

Well, we would go to Washington and
ask the Army for a posthumous hearing.

We think we can get
the court-martial reversed.

But you have to file
for it. No one else can.

If you appeal, and we win, it
would mean restoring Steve's honor.

And overturning the court-martial's
decision would then entitle you

to all the benefits that
have been unjustly withheld.

I think your husband
would've wanted that for you.

In conclusion, we intend to show
that in waiving his right to counsel

at his court-martial, Sergeant
Yomoshira, a decorated hero,

suffered a miscarriage of
justice in that the mistreatment,

the beatings, the illegal
use of hallucinogenics on him

at the hands of Army
interrogators, were not disclosed.

Further, we conclude that this

resulted in alterations in
his psychological make-up

which led to the incident of
the attack on his superior officer,

and ultimately to his own death.

Mr. Jenkins, how would you
describe Steve's temperment?

Well, this is gonna sound funny
for a man, and for a soldier, but, I...

I don't mean it to sound that
way. He was, uh, he was gentle.

That's... that's
the word I'd use.

Were you with PFC Yomoshira
on the night of August 7th, 1952?

For most of it. Yes, ma'am.

Will you tell us about it?

We were sent out that
night, on what was called

a feeler patrol, from Panmunjom.

All of a sudden from up on
the ridge somewhere, we got hit

with mortar and small weapons.
They caught us off-guard

and we couldn't return the
fire. They were killing us.

Anyway, from out of
nowhere, Steve started shouting

that he was gonna
do something about it.

He must've moved in and
circled around the ridge and hit 'em

with enfilade fire
from the flank.

Because... because in a few
minutes everything got very quiet.

We went up there later
on and there must've been

about fifteen North Koreans lying
dead at his feet. They said he was a hero.

Well, he brushed that aside.
And they gave him the Silver Star.

Studies have shown that
as little as 200 micrograms

of an hallucinogenic, like LSD,

can result in adverse reactions
ranging from mild hallucinations

to severe paranoid ideation, sometimes
lasting years after the initial ingestion.

Seventeen years,
is that possible?

The field of hallucinogenic study is
new. We haven't had much opportunity

to study its effects over
that great a period of time.

But there are indications
that these periodic episodes,

as described as the ones
suffered by Mr. Yomoshira, do occur.

Thank you, Dr. Taylor.

Captain.

Uh, Dr. Taylor, how long have
you been a practicing psychiatrist?

Thirty-seven years.

Oh, that's a fine tour of duty.

In that time, have you seen these
symptoms? Severe headaches,

violent outbursts, paranoia, exhibited
by persons who have not suffered

from an hallucinogenic drug?

Yes, sir.

Now, how would you
diagnose a case like that?

Well, that would be difficult to say, I
mean, without meeting with the patient.

Come on, Doctor. We're talking
about some pretty classic symptoms.

Now what would you diagnose
these symptoms as indicating?

With nothing more to
go on, schizophrenia.

Schizophrenia. Well, could a
seemingly normal person, say even a, uh,

gentle person just snap like that, and
become what we might call schizophrenic?

- It has been known to happen.
- And no drug would
have to be ingested?

- No, sir.
- Thank you.

When Dr. Quincy and I further found
that because of the fact that Carbon-14 was

present in trace amounts in
the major organs of Robert Cahill,

and our knowledge that the isotope
when associated with a drug like LSD,

is quickly flushed out of
a normal, uninjured body,

it had to have been introduced into
his system within 48 hours of his death.

I suppose this is all very interesting,
delving into forensic medicine,

uh, but I don't
know what it proves.

Now what we have is two
men, both dead, both suicides.

Counsel is maintaining that they were
interrogated by the United States Army

for suspicion of having
stolen classified documents.

I find no record of such an
interrogation taking place.

It is also alleged that they were exposed
to some phantom hallucinogenic drug.

Again, unsubstantiated.

Colonel, we have contacted
a man, an Army officer,

who has specific information
and documentation

of the Army Intelligence Corps'
activities during the time in question.

Well, what are you waiting
for, a presidential invitation?

Colonel, was the radioactive
isotope, Carbon-14,

ever used as a tag by the Army?

- Yes, ma'am.
- How?

It was attached to another drug.
One we were developing at the time.

It was called 1379.

Well what exactly is 1379?

For those of us not
familiar with Army coding?

LSD-25.

An hallucinogenic.

Why would the Army be
interested in such a drug?

Well, during that time, the Intelligence
Corps and the Chemical Corps

both were interested in
new methods of interrogation.

There were certain drugs that we
thought might work out as truth serums,

like Sodium Pentothal. And they
were being studied experimentally.

So, the Army thought that LSD
could be used as a truth serum?

Well, at the time, yes.

Of course, it developed later, that
it didn't work out as we anticipated.

And where did this
experimentation take place?

Crimpton Arsenal, in Maryland.

- He said Crimpton Arsenal.
- Yes. So?

Colonel,

what procedures were
developed by the Intelligence Corps

for carrying out these experiments
and the use of the drugs?

Well, in late 1962, a team was
assigned to each developmental process.

That is to say, each experimental
agent had its own team.

Was the team ever involved
in using the drug on humans?

Well, the records
indicate that it was.

- Here in the United States?
- Yes.

Was LSD ever transported
out of the States?

Yes. In 1962, a small amount of the
drug was transported to USAREUR.

That's United States
Army in Europe.

For distribution to
certain security sections.

Would one of these security
sections have been in Germany?

Yes. It was the Staff
Message Control Unit.

Sam, you think Jim Dono
knows more than he told you?

Yeah, he told me he went to
Germany after Steve was interrogated.

I know he lied!

I'm sure he was part of the special team
that was sent from Crimpton Arsenal in '62.

Okay, I'll talk to him. I
hope he can help you.

Thanks, Quince.

So, you did lie? You were there!
Why didn't you tell Sam the truth?

Who would it have helped? Listen,
I've got a career with the Army.

It's been my life. And
they pay my salary!

I got a wife and two kids that
need to eat, a roof over their heads,

and shoes on their feet.
And I'm not gonna risk that!

If you don't play by the
Army's rules, you lose!

Steve is dead! Now
he can't lose anymore.

And what about Lee?

Hey, that's not fair. I love
Lee like she was my own.

But she's not. I have
to think about them first!

Damn! I thought this whole
nightmare was over and finished.

And you come in and
start it up all over again!

You can't keep
running away from it!

You know, you're really something.
You say you were Steve's friend.

Well, with friends like you he certainly
didn't need any enemies, did he?

You held his hand while
his head was blowing apart!

And you only did that out of guilt!
You watched him go through a living hell

and you sat on your hands.

And now you're gonna
do the same thing with Lee.

You're gonna watch her
grow old before her time.

Well how much pain does
that woman have to endure?

How much more anguish before
you do what has to be done?

I was sent to the Staff Message Control
Unit with the special investigative team.

I was one of the guys who brought
Steve and Cahill in for questioning.

It didn't go the way it went
at the mock interrogation.

It didn't happen the
way they said it would.

And I've had to live with
that for seventeen years.

And that's why I befriended
Steve. It was my fault he freaked.

Sergeant Dono, would you relate
the events of the time in question?

It was around midnight,
we went to the barracks

where Cahill and Steve bunked.

We roused them out of a sleep
and quickly blindfolded them,

and drove them across the back roads
to a fallen down farmhouse in the country.

And all through the interrogations
they were rough on those guys.

They made them sit in the same position
for hours, handcuffed to their chairs.

They made them stand for
days without food or sleep.

And then they
gave them the water.

The water that I knew
was laced with EA-1379.

I have never seen anything
like it before in my life.

After they drank it
they just went crazy.

Steve started jumping up
out of his seat and screaming.

Cahill was worse.

He started hitting his head against
the table. He hurt himself real bad,

but he just kept on doing it.
And then Steve freaked out.

He went for the Captain
and the Captain wailed at him,

and caught him along
the side of his face

and Steve and the chair
went flying against the wall.

It got so bad, I had to turn away. I
couldn't stand to watch it anymore.

Sergeant Dono,
when did this occur?

We took Sergeant Yomoshira

and Corporal Cahill
to the detention house

on the night of October 11th.

And they were released
at noon on December 20th.

They found Cahill at 7:00
p.m. with a bullet in his head.

And the experimental
agent, EA-1379, the LSD,

when was that given to them?

In the fifteen
weeks of detention,

they were given
it about six times.

And the last time was the 19th.

And that was the day
before they were released.

In the case of the appeal on
behalf of Sergeant Yomoshira,

while we cannot excuse
the actions of the appellant,

the board here finds that the
decision of the court-martial was remiss

in not considering the
mitigating circumstances.

Thus, we have decided to overturn
the decision from those proceedings,

reinstate the benefits and
privileges in accordance

with the honorable severence
from the United States Army.

We did it! We did it!

Please, ladies and gentlemen.
Colonel Wilcox has asked to be allowed

to speak to this assembly
after the findings.

Although irregular, I have
acceded to this request.

Thank you.

I didn't want what I have to say, to affect
in any way the judgement of this board,

so I asked to be
heard at this time.

The treatment of Mr. Yomoshira and
Mr. Cahill was, indeed, unconscionable.

That this Army should
have treated its own as it did,

even if they were suspected of illegally
absconding with classified documents,

that moral position
cannot be altered.

But, I feel it's important for us all
to understand how this happened.

The period in question
was October of 1962.

Do you remember that the Russians
were building missile sites ninety miles

from the shores of the
United States at that time?

That this country was faced with
the potential of a catastrophic war,

that would threaten not only
the lives of its servicemen,

but those of every
man, woman and child?

So when you shake your heads in
horror of what we did to some men

who were suspected of collaborating
with that great enemy, please

remember the lives of the millions
that we had sworn to protect.

- Oh, Sam, you did it!
- Hey!

I know a great delicatessen here in
Washington. You're gonna be my guests.

Everybody! Come on.

- Dr. Quincy.
- Yes, sir?

I hope I was able to get you to
see our point of view during that time.

Yes, you were, sir. But
there is one question.

Yes?

To quote George Bernard Shaw:

"What price salvation?"

Fold flag.

On behalf of a grateful
nation, accept this flag

that your husband has
served under so faithfully.