Legal Issues

The political wrangling continued for a little while after the bust. It got as high as Lt-Gen Thorne, who was then acting as OC-FMC (Officer Commanding – Federation Marine Corps) after General North retired that year. Sera had gone to the Federation Council and told everyone, all the way to President Fowler himself, that the entire matter was insulting to her and to the Corps. Blackjack had to stand trial in a public court.

This is where the legal issue starts getting complicated. For everything that he'd done, for everything we had learned about every deal, every crime, every sin that Blackjack had committed, no one in Starfleet had the presence of mind to strip the rank from Admiral Thomas Ashcroft. Because of the way the Starfleet Charter works, any of his crimes would be investigated and prosecuted in a Starfleet court-martial, and because Aki's office had applied top-secret classification to the whole thing, it would be a closed-door court-martial.

I refused to believe that this was how it would end. That a criminal like Blackjack, whose corruption was poisoning the very heart of the Federation, would simply be shuffled under the rug, out of mind and out of sight.

"My first thought was of the Service," Aki explained, trying to justify his actions, "You must understand Kirin. Starfleet has stood for justice, for integrity, since before even the founding of the Federation. We could not let this disgrace drag the service down with it."

I pointed out that it was already too late for that. Blackjack was no longer a secret. But Aki wouldn't listen to me. It would come down to legalities. I went to Paris and had an interview with the Federation Legal Adjutant, Jessica Castle. To explain it simply, the FLA is meant to be a neutral third-party mediator when disputes between two or more bodies of the Federation can't resolve their issues any other way. The FLA has no authority over the uniformed services, but her word carries weight, nonetheless. Political weight, and moral weight.

"This… is a pretty tricky spot," Jessica said to me as she reviewed her notes. Jessica comes from Risa and spent most of her youth playing Hoverball and Parsee Squares. But unlike her countrymen, Jessica wanted a serious career. So, a JD in the University of Betazed and some hard work later, she found herself in one of the most powerful legal positions of the Federation.

"Fleet Admiral Nakamura is correct in that he has every right to keep this under wraps. Ashcroft, for better or worse, is still a registered Starfleet Officer. In terms of jurisdiction, Starfleet has first right of refusal, even if the crimes he's accused of affected Marines, civilians, even a foreign power."

I asked Jessica what the worst punishment would be for Blackjack to face in that circumstance. She bowed her head, almost ashamed of her answer. "By the book, life in prison. But Starfleet has never handed down life for a serving officer. Not once. So likely, twenty-five years, somewhere like New Zealand colony. And realistically, with his record, and if he behaves himself, he'll be up for parole in maybe five years."

I found it hard to keep my lunch in my stomach after hearing that. Five years on a tropical paradise? Never mind the fact that the Marines wanted blood. I wouldn't have put up with that. I asked Jessica if there was anything that could be done.

"There might be one thing," Jessica said, clearly weighing trepidation against her sense of justice, "The President has a little known, seldom-used executive power he can use in cases like this. After he officially summons for me consultations, he can declare the case to be a matter of national interest. What that means is that, in the legal opinion of the President, Ashcroft's status as a Federation citizen outweighs his service with Starfleet. And because of the extent of his crimes, the jurisdiction falls under the Crown Prosecutor."

And what would it take to get the ball rolling on that, I asked her.

Jessica again dipped her head and sighed. "If the near riots outside aren't enough, I'm not sure what will."

Naturally, I had broadcasted every step of the bust for the nightly news. The bar fights between Starfleet and the Marines had gotten worse, and bloodier. And they were no longer confined to the bars. Starships, outposts, even garrisons had seen their share of huge, sprawling fights break out between the Fishies and the Sharkies. Fed-Sec was powerless to stop it, short of stunning everyone in the area – a strategy that couldn't be sustained forever. The rank and file of both services had stopped listening to the very few higher-ups who actually tried to keep a lid on things.

Anywhere the Marines went, they were required by regs to be armed, and this reg extended to off-duty. Starfleet started doing the same thing. I couldn't help but feel that the Federation was on the bleeding edge of a civil war, over one man's arrogance.

I thanked Jessica for the interview and headed home, trying to make sense of how all this happened. And then I got a beep. I opened my terminal, saw the message, and let myself be shocked yet again.

Blackjack wanted an interview, and he asked for me by name.


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