AN: I took some liberties here with regs & such, but they're based on
what I know of the standard rules of conduct for lawyers...
***************************************************************
The next morning
JAG HQ
0930 Local
AJ Chegwidden had always considered himself a fairly reasonable
man, even under the worst of circumstances. But like most people,
there were some situations that he simply would not tolerate. And this
morning he was dealing with one of them.
The intercom buzzed as Tiner's voice interrupted his thoughts.
"Sir, Commander Rabb, Colonel MacKenzie and Miss Von Kleist are here to
see you."
"Send them in, Tiner," he said, in a deceptively even and calm
tone. He was anything but; in fact, if he didn't get a worthwhile
explanation soon, he would be absolutely furious.
The two officers came in, followed by the civilian, and stopped in
front of Chegwidden's desk. Harm and Mac came to attention, with
Mercedes somewhat following suit. "Reporting as ordered, sir," Harm
announced, waiting for the typical "at ease" that followed.
It never came. Instead, AJ leaned back slightly in his chair,
hands on the desk, and fixed his gaze on the three in front of him.
"Colonel MacKenzie will be taking over your current case, with
assistance from Mr. Roberts, effective immediately," he stated coldly,
before turning to Mercedes. "As for you, I don't suppose you'd care to
favor me with an explanation as to why you felt compelled to lie to a
US Navy Admiral and subsequently jeopardize a high-profile
investigation."
Silence. "I'm waiting... Miss Rabb."
To the credit of all three, none wavered a bit, although in Mac's
case, it was due only to pure Marine discipline. Rabb?!?!??? What the
hell was going on here?
Having gotten nothing from Mercedes, he turned on Harm. "As for
you, Commander, I'm still trying to decide how many ranks to bust you
down for this little stunt. Did you miss the section of the
regulations on appearance of impropriety, or just ignore them?" he
bellowed as Harm inwardly winced. "You're lucky someone here brought
this to my attention. The press is all over this case, and they would
have a field day with this! Relatives working on the same case, while
not inherently objectionable, is in violation to the regs when done
without specific consent from superiors. It can compromise the
objectivity of an ongoing investigation. WOULD YOU CARE TO TELL ME HOW
YOU HAPPENED TO FORGET THAT, COMMANDER?!?"
"With all due respect, Admiral, the Commander didn't know that
this hadn't been cleared with superiors," Mercedes stated quietly,
still as if at attention.
AJ paused briefly, before moving in front of her. "I suggest you
explain, Miss Rabb."
"I was assigned the case first, then assigned to work with
Commander Rabb by my superiors and you. While I realized it was a
mistake, he had no such reason to think so. I never disabused him of
the notion it was not cleared."
AJ contemplated this for a moment. "Be that as it may, you, Miss
*Rabb*, still lied about your identity. And neither you nor the
Commander felt inclined to inform me of the truth of the matter?"
Nothing. AJ returned to his chair. "As I said, Colonel MacKenzie
and Lieutenant Roberts will assume this investigation. You, Commander,
are suspended for three days without pay and a letter of reprimand will
go into your file. As for you, Miss Rabb, your superior has been
informed and will deal with you accordingly. Now get the hell out of my
office. Dismissed."
****
They had barely left the Admiral's office when Harm rounded on
Mercedes. "My office. Now."
Still stunned by the morning's developments, Mac could only watch
as he strode away, followed by the tall blonde, who forcefully shut
Harm's office door behind her.
TBC....
what I know of the standard rules of conduct for lawyers...
***************************************************************
The next morning
JAG HQ
0930 Local
AJ Chegwidden had always considered himself a fairly reasonable
man, even under the worst of circumstances. But like most people,
there were some situations that he simply would not tolerate. And this
morning he was dealing with one of them.
The intercom buzzed as Tiner's voice interrupted his thoughts.
"Sir, Commander Rabb, Colonel MacKenzie and Miss Von Kleist are here to
see you."
"Send them in, Tiner," he said, in a deceptively even and calm
tone. He was anything but; in fact, if he didn't get a worthwhile
explanation soon, he would be absolutely furious.
The two officers came in, followed by the civilian, and stopped in
front of Chegwidden's desk. Harm and Mac came to attention, with
Mercedes somewhat following suit. "Reporting as ordered, sir," Harm
announced, waiting for the typical "at ease" that followed.
It never came. Instead, AJ leaned back slightly in his chair,
hands on the desk, and fixed his gaze on the three in front of him.
"Colonel MacKenzie will be taking over your current case, with
assistance from Mr. Roberts, effective immediately," he stated coldly,
before turning to Mercedes. "As for you, I don't suppose you'd care to
favor me with an explanation as to why you felt compelled to lie to a
US Navy Admiral and subsequently jeopardize a high-profile
investigation."
Silence. "I'm waiting... Miss Rabb."
To the credit of all three, none wavered a bit, although in Mac's
case, it was due only to pure Marine discipline. Rabb?!?!??? What the
hell was going on here?
Having gotten nothing from Mercedes, he turned on Harm. "As for
you, Commander, I'm still trying to decide how many ranks to bust you
down for this little stunt. Did you miss the section of the
regulations on appearance of impropriety, or just ignore them?" he
bellowed as Harm inwardly winced. "You're lucky someone here brought
this to my attention. The press is all over this case, and they would
have a field day with this! Relatives working on the same case, while
not inherently objectionable, is in violation to the regs when done
without specific consent from superiors. It can compromise the
objectivity of an ongoing investigation. WOULD YOU CARE TO TELL ME HOW
YOU HAPPENED TO FORGET THAT, COMMANDER?!?"
"With all due respect, Admiral, the Commander didn't know that
this hadn't been cleared with superiors," Mercedes stated quietly,
still as if at attention.
AJ paused briefly, before moving in front of her. "I suggest you
explain, Miss Rabb."
"I was assigned the case first, then assigned to work with
Commander Rabb by my superiors and you. While I realized it was a
mistake, he had no such reason to think so. I never disabused him of
the notion it was not cleared."
AJ contemplated this for a moment. "Be that as it may, you, Miss
*Rabb*, still lied about your identity. And neither you nor the
Commander felt inclined to inform me of the truth of the matter?"
Nothing. AJ returned to his chair. "As I said, Colonel MacKenzie
and Lieutenant Roberts will assume this investigation. You, Commander,
are suspended for three days without pay and a letter of reprimand will
go into your file. As for you, Miss Rabb, your superior has been
informed and will deal with you accordingly. Now get the hell out of my
office. Dismissed."
****
They had barely left the Admiral's office when Harm rounded on
Mercedes. "My office. Now."
Still stunned by the morning's developments, Mac could only watch
as he strode away, followed by the tall blonde, who forcefully shut
Harm's office door behind her.
TBC....