Unknown Crime
Author's Note: This is a short story from early in my 'Unknown Contact' Timeline, shortly after *SPOILERS* the Migrant Fleet and Human forces defeat the invading Ethereals, liberating the Vipers and Silicoids (Cyberdiscs) from their control, but well before first contact with the Citadel. This is set during the awkward period after the war as all parties are attempting to figure out how to interact. I don't think anything from the larger story is needed to understand this, but I've been wrong before…
Trigger Warning: Mention of sexual assault (sort of) and legalese (lots of).
"This meeting of the Integration Committee's Legal Subcommittee is called to order. It will address the Certified Question asked by the King County Prosecuting Attorney. Though recording is permitted, flash photography is not. The audience is instructed to remain in their seats," the Committee's secretary paused for a moment, noting the unusual presence of Viper's in the audience and the fact that the massive snake-like aliens would (1) crush any chair they sat on and (2) were not really designed for sitting, flushed slight, decided it was less embarrassing to just keep going, made a mental note to edit her speech for the future and kept moving, "and mute all communication devices…"
Georgia Kolton, senior member of the Subcommittee by virtue of having hit all the lights on her way to where X-Com had dropped the first batch of Viper refugees and thereby being the first government attorney on the scene, tuned out the speech of the Committee's appointed secretary. She'd heard it a hundred times before over the last two years. Four of her fellow Committee members were sitting with her at the table. Well, Dira-Nal was in the traditional Viper resting posture which didn't so much sit as rest some of their weight on the table through their arms, letting their back relax somewhat and the Integration Committee Legal Representative, (who was not a creative namer of things or people) the Silicoid member of this quorum of the Committee, floated over their seat, but the other representatives were sitting. Though it was not required to have members from each of the species the Committee was supposed to deal with on the panel when they met like this, Georgia found a way to make sure it happened.
Finally the secretary finished her speech and Dira-Nal straightened, the bonded Viper was the junior member of this group of Committee members and so spoke first, which was good, because they had an emotional reaction to this case which they had a hard time conealing, "Before we get to the meat of the matter, this is the second time the Animal Rights Association has filed an amicus brief attempting to derail proceedings of this Committee into a discussion of the rights of non-sapient animals, or into a discussion of the precise line where sapience emerges. This attempt was addressed at length in the referral of Jamal Al-Hassan. Unlike that case, this is a criminal referral. The Committee does not look kindly upon an attempt to coopt a criminal proceeding to serve the pet causes of amici. The Committee hereby serves notice on all amici and especially the ARA that though it is not a court, it does possess the ability to sanction attorneys and those they represent who make frivolous filings, or attempt to derail proceedings," their eyes flicked over the audience, stopping on the single representative the ARA had in the throng which filed the room usually used for city council meetings and smiled in a manner which showed the impressive and disturbing teeth which they possessed. The representative flinched slightly, which was understandable, Dira had been a clan leader amongst the Vipers, even before bonding with Nal, by virtue of her ridiculous stature (even for a Viper), strength and cunning. Non-Vipers who didn't flinch from her were rare. "We retroactively revoke our permission to the ARA to file an amicus brief in this proceeding and give warning that such permission will be harder to receive in future."
The collection of a dozen nodes of floating dust which made up the Representative, rose and twinkled slightly as energy ran along its delicate frame and a synthesized voice spoke. "However, the Committee is grateful for the amici who remained on topic, especially those from the medical community explaining the biological nature of the Viper bonding process and the psionic and non-psionic psychologists and psychiatrists who provided information regarding the mental effects of the bonding process, especially those who made some effort to write in a fashion which the non-expert could understand. These, along with all the amici briefs, except the Animal Rights Association's brief are publically available. To summarize briefly," Georgia barely controlled a wince at the accidental pun, "the Committee recognizes and concurs with the overwhelming scientific, cultural and psionic testimony which indicates that when a male and female Viper bond to form a bonded Viper, that entity becomes a single entity, a unique fusion of its two predecessors. This Committee also recognizes and concurs with the evidence that the bonded Viper cannot be successfully physically separated by current medical technology without killing all parties. The Committee recognizes, but takes no position on the claim by various psionic groups that a bonded Viper's mind could, or could not be separated successfully, as no evidence beyond the unsupported opinion of the parties has been provided. The Committee cautions all parties that any such research would be illegal without the consent of the Viper and potentially even with that consent, that is question for a future proceeding."
Gonzalo Alcaro, third most senior member of the Committee and by far the most experienced at actually judging rose from his chair ponderously, crossing his arms over his chest and glared out at the audience, carefully avoiding the large Viper on one side of the room and the pair of furious Humans on the other side of the room. "The facts of this case are not in dispute. Kopa broke into the home of Jant, while his parents, Mr. and Mrs. Best, were home. She assaulted them, resulting in moderately severe injuries, broke into his room and forcibly bonded with him. Thereafter, the bonded Viper which they became surrendered to the police and has been held in separate custody since then. Briefs of the real parties in interest have been filed. And though we appreciate the pain of the Bests, and the information regarding Kopa's early life and forced servitude to the Ethereals," a hiss ran through the room at the mention of the leadership of the invading forces, somewhat literally as Dira-Nal joined in, "it is not relevant to the duty of this Committee. We are not a court and we do not pass sentence and weigh mitigating factors. We answer the questions of law which the dawn of this new age has brought upon us all. The King County Prosecuting Attorney has therefore asked a question of this Committee. Is a bonded Viper responsible for the crimes committed by their predecessor Vipers? Please note that this question is limited to criminal matters, the question of who acquires the belongings of predecessor Vipers when they bond has already been answered and the question of debts owed by predecessor Vipers is before this Committee in another proceeding at this time. The questions here are criminal, first is that Viper," he uncrossed his arms and flicked a hand out to point directly at the bonded Viper in the corner of the room, surrounded by (and dwarfing) a quartet of Human police officers, with a Viper in an X-Com uniform discretely in the background. "responsible for the crimes of Kopa? And second, if so, what crime did Kopa commit against Jant? Her crimes against Mr. and Mrs. Best are all too clear," the older man nodded to the adopted parents of the young Viper, subsumed entirely by his assailant's body, "those against Jant are rather less well defined by the existing criminal code." Gonzalo sat down without any of his usual flourish and his hand came up to rest on the steel-grey beard he'd been growing for the last six months as age and stress eating finally caught up with him and began to give him a hint of a double chin.
Jona'Yefor vas Earth actually had more experience with inter-species relations than the rest of the Committee put together (assuming you didn't treat working together while under mind control as inter-species relations), but was considered the second in seniority because she'd hitched a ride down on the third refugee shuttle, while Georgia had been on time to meet the first one to land when X-Com had finally managed to finagle the Vipers and Silicoids off the Temple Ship. She'd also been one of the first Quarians to adopt a new, planetary, name and one of the few to choose Earth as her home, but, since she'd also been one of the first members of the Migrant Fleet proper to be freed from her suit by Meld, remaining on Earth merely required a bit of care in making sure she got the right food, not a constant struggle. The overhead lights reflected slightly oddly off her grey skin and she clasped her hands behind herself as she fell into the classic Migrant Fleet marines at ease pose, deliberately reminding everyone in the room that she'd been one of the thousands of marines to board the Temple Ship (and even more impressively, one of the ones to make it off alive).
"The answer to that first question, of the responsibility of the bonded for the criminal acts of their predecessor's is no. They are not responsible for the criminal acts of Kopa," the Viper almost collapsed with relief, while Jant's parents looked murderous and crushed respectively. The more seasoned Committee observers however noted that there was still one member who had to speak and held their peace and their seats.
"They are a wholly new person. Several of the amici offered the analogy of their being the child of Kopa and Jant. This analogy is misleading, but for this purpose accurate, we will not penalize them for the actions of their predecessor. Even if we went against the overwhelming weight of evidence to conclude that they were still Kopa, we would have to conclude that they were also Jant and that we could not punish the one without punishing the other. That would be unjust."
"The answer to the question of what crime forcible bonding is under the current law will need to wait for another day, therefore. In a case where the perpetrator is prevented from bonding with their target. In such a case the question of whether they should be charged with attempted murder, attempted rape, attempted assault, or some other crime will need to be answered and the various amicus briefs filed in this matter will be of great use in solving this problem. The Committee would welcome such a question as we recognize that this recommendation makes it difficult to deter a successfully completed forced bonding, and therefore the punishment for attempted forcible bondings will need to deter all who would make the attempt."
Jona turned to face the Viper and spoke directly to them. "We recognize that you are not Jant, you are not Kopa and you are not responsible for her actions," she turned back to the crowd as a whole, then turned to face the Bests, "We cannot give you back your son, nor can we punish the Viper who took him from you. For that, you have the Committee's sympathy," she nodded sharply and took her seat again.
Georgia rose heavily, "My respected colleagues have focused on the question of justice to the real parties in interest and the responsibility of those before the Committee. This is half the task of this Committee. The other half is to address problems at a societal level. There are generally five theories of punishment: deterrence, retribution, rehabilitation, incapacitation, and unification," that was one more than she'd learned about in law school, but the Migrant Fleet had brought its own theories of justice and everything else. If the Vipers and Silicoids had kept their own culture, she was sure they would have had their own theories as well, but so far they were still adapting to what was available here, not yet creating models which fit their minds better than the borrowed Human and Quarian ones.
"My colleagues have already spoken to deterrence. As Kopa no longer exists retribution is no longer a relevant factor. Rehabilitation and incapacitation also rely upon the existence of an offender. Though several amici have written regarding the effects forcible bonding could have on a Viper and how it might be avoided or rehabiliated, none have provided any evidence. If medical issues should arise, those are best handled through the medical services, not this Committee. That leaves only unification, the theory that punishment is intended to unify everyone who is still alive."
She could see Jona flinch at that simplification of an extremely complicated theory, but kept going.
"Doing nothing does not meet this need. So the question becomes what can be done? This was not a question which the many, many amicus briefs we received in this matter addressed, nor was it a question certified to this Committee, but to meet the mission of the Integration Committee, it must be answered. In modern Viper culture, the bonded Viper takes their name from their predecessors, with the female first. This symbolizes the freely chosen union of two Vipers to create someone new. That is not what occurred in this case. Several Committee members suggested reversing the order of the names in order to recognize the harm done to Jant by Kopa, but this would not be feasible in the event of a male Viper forcibly bonding with a female Viper," unlikely though such a situation was to arise by actual force, given the radical sexual dimorphism between the massive female Vipers and the tiny male Viper's their bodies could entirely encompass. Still, trickery or stealth meant that it wasn't entirely unknown in the little known history of Vipers under Ethereal dominion.
"Instead, it is the recommendation of the Committee that you," Georgia turned to face the Viper who'd risen from their slump to the more rigid posture which meant tension and potential aggression in a Viper, "Choose a name which addresses not the fact of your bonding, but your current identity. This Committee's role is purely advisory. We cannot and do not command you to make this choice, nor can we command any governmental body to refuse you should you choose to follow a different path. We recognize that this request is unfair, asking more of you for the mere fact of the nature of your creation. However, it is the best way forward we can see," Georgia turned to face the room at large, "and as we all know, the universe does not give us the challenges we deserve, it gives us the Ethereals, it gives us the Geth, it gives us war and disaster and despair, but it is what we give each other that we can control. And I ask you to give your name for the rest of us. This is the answer of the Legal Subcommittee to the Certified Question of the King County Prosecuting Attorney. A written answer is being published as we speak. In any conflict between the written and oral opinion, the written opinion shall control."
Georgia nodded to the Viper who would become Jant-Best, to Mr. and Mrs. Best and to the secretary who began the closing formalities as the Committee members trooped out of the room, leaving behind a damaged, but perhaps not entirely broken family, a large crowd of observers and reporters and a very frustrated ARA representative.