Star Trek (1966–1969): Season 1, Episode 20 - Court Martial - full transcript
After encountering a severe ion storm, the Enterprise visits Star Base 11 for repairs. While there, Kirk files a report about the death of crewman and former friend LCDR Finney, who was taking scientific readings in an externally mounted instrument pod before Kirk needed to jettison it for the safety of the ship. However, the computer log shows that Kirk jettisoned the pod before there was a danger, thereby revealing the captain's willful perjury and culpable negligence in crewman Finney's death. Or so it would seem.
Captain's log, stardate 2947.3.
We have been through
a severe ion storm.
One crewman is dead.
Ship's damage is considerable.
I have ordered a nonscheduled
layover on Starbase 11 for repairs.
A full report of damages was made
to the commanding officer
of Starbase 11, Commodore Stone.
Maintenance Section 18.
Your section is working
on the Intrepid.
Reschedule.
The Enterprise is on priority one.
That makes three times
you've read it, Jim.
- Is there an error?
- No.
- But the death of a crewman...
- Regulations, captain.
The extracts from your ship's computer
log confirming this sworn deposition?
- Kirk to Enterprise.
- Bridge here. Go ahead, captain.
Where's Mr. Spock
with that computer log extract?
Well, he should've been
there ten minutes ago, sir.
- Kirk, out.
- It's a great pity.
The service can't afford to lose men
like Lieutenant Commander Finney.
I agree. I waited until the last
possible moment.
We were on red alert.
The storm got worse.
I had to jettison the pod.
What took you so long,
Mr. Spock?
Captain...
- I believe l...
- I'll take that.
- Jame.
- There you are.
I just wanted one more look at you.
- The man who killed my father.
- That's not so. He was my friend.
Your friend?
You hated him all your life,
and that's why you killed him.
You murderer!
You murderer! You murderer!
Jame.
Mr. Spock, would you please?
Miss Finney, come with me, please.
Captain Kirk,
you say you jettisoned
the pod after the red alert?
You have my sworn deposition.
Then, captain, I must presume
you have committed wilful perjury.
This extract from your computer
log says you jettisoned the pod
before going to red alert.
Consider yourself
confined to the base.
An official enquiry will determine
if a general court-martial is in order.
Space, the final frontier.
These are the voyages
of the starship Enterprise.
Its five-year mission:
To explore strange new worlds,
to seek out new life
and new civilizations,
to boldly go where no man
has gone before.
Captain's log, stardate 2948.5.
Starship Enterprise remains
in orbit around Starbase 11.
Full repairs in progress.
I have been ordered
to stand by on Starbase 11
until the enquiry into the death
of Lieutenant Commander Finney
can be conducted.
I am confident of the outcome.
Timothy, haven't seen you
since the Vulcanian expedition.
Well, I see our graduating
class from the academy
is well represented.
Corrigan. Teller.
- How you doing, Mike?
- I'll get by, Jim.
I understand you're
laying over for repairs.
Big job?
- Couple of days.
- Be moving out then?
- In a hurry to see me go?
- Oh, I just wondered how long
it would take you to get
a new records officer.
- You can talk plainer than that.
- I can.
But I think the point's been made.
- Ben was a friend of ours.
- Come on, Jim, let's go.
No, go on, finish.
Ben was a friend of yours,
and?
Jim.
Go on.
- I'm waiting to hear the rest.
- Why don't you tell us?
What would be the point?
You've already
made up your minds.
Excuse me, Bones.
If you have any doubt, that was indeed
Captain James Kirk of the Enterprise.
Yes, I know.
Are you a friend of his?
In these trying times,
one of the few.
Dr. Leonard McCoy, and you?
Areel Shaw.
And I'm a friend too. An old one.
All of my old friends
look like doctors.
All of his look like you.
Well, you might as well join me for
a drink. With this enquiry coming up,
he's going to need
all the friends he can get.
Recording: Enquiry.
Matter: Captain Kirk, James T.
Subject: Circumstances of death,
Lieutenant Commander Finney,
Benjamin.
This enquiry to determine
whether a general court-martial
should be convened against
Captain Kirk,
on charges of perjury
and culpable negligence.
Ready.
Let's begin with your relationship
with Commander Finney.
You knew him for a long time,
didn't you?
Yes, he was an instructor
at the academy when I was
a midshipman,
but that didn't stand in the way
of our beginning a close friendship.
His daughter Jame, who was here
last night, was named after me.
It's common knowledge that something
happened to your friendship.
It's no secret. We were assigned
to the same ship some years later.
I relieved him on watch once
and found a circuit open
to the atomic matter piles
that should've been closed.
Another five minutes,
could have blown up the ship.
Ship's nomenclature. Specify.
United Starship Republic,
number 1371.
Continue.
I closed the switch
and logged the incident.
He drew a reprimand and was sent
to the bottom of the promotion list.
- And he blamed you for that?
- Yes.
He had been at the academy
for an unusually long time
as an instructor.
As a result, he was late in being
assigned to a starship.
The delay, he felt,
looked bad on his record.
My action, he believed,
made things worse.
Comment.
Service record of Commander
Finney to be appended this enquiry.
Noted.
Now, let's get into the specifics
of the storm, captain.
Weather scan indicated
an ion storm dead ahead.
- I sent Finney into the pod.
- Why Finney?
- He was at the top of the duty roster.
- If he blamed...
He may have blamed me
that he never commanded a ship,
but I don't assign jobs on the basis
of who blames me.
It was Finney's turn,
and I assigned him.
He had just checked in with me...
...from the pod when we hit
the leading edge of the storm.
Not too bad at first.
I signalled a yellow alert.
Then we began encountering
pressure, variance, stress,
force seven, the works.
I finally signalled a red alert.
Finney knew he had
a matter of seconds.
I gave him those seconds
and more.
But, apparently, it wasn't enough.
Then why, captain,
does the computer log from your ship,
made automatically at the time,
indicate that you were still on
yellow alert when you jettisoned,
and not on red?
I don't know.
- There's been a mistake.
- It would seem so.
Could the computer be wrong?
Mr. Spock is running
a survey right now,
but the odds are
next to impossible.
Stop recording.
Now, look, Jim.
Not one man in a million could
do what you and I have done.
Command a starship.
A hundred decisions a day,
hundreds of lives
staked on you making
every one of them right.
You're played out, Jim.
- Exhausted.
- Is that the way you see it?
It's the way my report will read,
if you cooperate.
Physical breakdown.
Possibly even mental collapse?
- Possibly.
- I'd be admitting that a man died...
Admit nothing. Say nothing.
Let me bury the matter
here and now.
No starship captain has ever stood trial
before, and I don't want you to be first.
If what you suspect is true, I'm guilty.
I should be punished.
I'm thinking of the service.
- I won't have it smeared...
- By what, Commodore Stone?
All right.
By an evident perjurer who is either
covering up his bad judgement,
- his cowardice or something worse.
- That's as far as you go, sir.
I'm telling you I was there,
on the bridge.
I know what happened.
I know what I did.
It's in the transcript,
and computer transcripts don't lie.
I'm telling you, either you accept
a permanent ground assignment or...
...the whole disciplinary weight
of Starfleet Command
- will light right on your neck.
- So that's the way we do it now?
Sweep it under the rug
and me along with it.
Not on your life.
I intend to fight.
Then you draw a general court.
Draw it? I demand it. And right now,
Commodore Stone. Right now.
Captain's log, stardate 2948.9.
The officers who will comprise
my court-martial board
are proceeding to Starbase 11.
Meanwhile, repairs on the Enterprise
are almost complete.
Areel.
Dr. McCoy said you were here.
I should have felt it in the air,
like static electricity.
Flattery will get you everywhere.
It's been...
How long has it been?
Four years, seven months
and an odd number of days.
- Not that I'm counting.
- You look marvellous.
You haven't changed a bit.
Things have changed for you,
haven't they?
Oh, you've heard about that,
have you?
I'm a lawyer in the
Judge Advocate's office, remember?
I remember. Let's forget it.
We have a lot of lost time
to make up for.
You're taking it very lightly.
- The confidence of an innocent man.
- Are you?
That's not
what the rumours indicate.
Look, let's not talk shop.
Jim, this could ruin you.
Will you take some advice?
I never could talk you into anything.
All right, fire away.
The prosecution will build its case
on the basis of Kirk
versus the computer.
Now, if your attorney tries
to defend on that basis,
you won't have a chance.
What other choice is there?
Well, that's up to your attorney, and
that's why he's got to be a good one.
- You, perhaps?
- No, I...
- I'm busy.
- Well,
a girl with your ability should be able
to handle two cases at once.
Jim, be serious.
You're not an ordinary human.
You're a starship captain,
and you've stepped into scandal.
If there's any way they can do it,
they'll slap you down
hard and permanently
for the good of the service.
You still haven't made
any recommendations.
Samuel T. Cogley, attorney at law.
If anyone can save you, he can.
He'll be paying you a visit.
- Jim, I've got to go.
- Areel.
You still haven't told me
how you know so much
about what the prosecution's
going to do.
Because, Jim Kirk,
my dear old love...
...I am the prosecution.
And I have to do my very best
to have you slapped down hard,
broken out of the service,
in disgrace.
You Kirk?
Yes.
- What is all this?
- I figured we'd be spending
- some time together, so I moved in.
- I hope I'm not crowding you.
What's the matter,
don't you like books?
Oh, I like them fine,
but a computer takes less space.
A computer, huh?
I got one of these in my office.
Contains all the precedents.
A synthesis of all the great legal
decisions written throughout time.
- I never use it.
- Why not?
I've got my own system.
Books, young man, books.
Thousands of them. If time wasn't
so important, I'd show you something.
- My library. Thousands of books.
- What would be the point?
This is where the law is.
Not in that homogenized,
pasteurized, synthesized...
Do you want to know the law?
The ancient concepts
in their own language?
Learn the intent of the men
who wrote them? From Moses
to the Tribunal of Alpha III?
Books.
You have to be either an obsessive
crackpot who's escaped
from his keeper or Samuel T. Cogley,
attorney at law.
You're right on both counts.
Need a lawyer?
I'm afraid so.
This court is now in session.
I have appointed,
as members of this court...
...Space Command
Representative Lindstrom...
...Starship Captains
Krasnovsky and Chandra.
Captain Kirk, I direct
your attention to the fact
that you have a right to ask
for substitute officers if you feel
that any of these named harbour
prejudiced attitudes to your case.
I have no objection, sir.
And do you consent
to the service of Lieutenant Shaw
as prosecuting officer, and to myself
as president of the court?
- I do, sir.
- All right, clerk.
Charge: Culpable negligence.
Specification:
In that, on stardate 2945.7
by such negligence,
Captain Kirk, James T.
Did cause loss of life to wit,
the life of records officer
Lieutenant Commander Finney,
Benjamin.
To all recorded charges and
specifications, what is the plea?
Not guilty.
Proceed, lieutenant.
I call Mr. Spock.
Spock:
Serial number S 179-276 SP.
Service rank:
Lieutenant commander.
Position:
First officer, science officer.
Current Assignment:
USS Enterprise.
Commendations:
Vulcanian Scientific Legion of Honour.
Awards of valour: Twice decorated
by Starfleet Command.
Mr. Spock, as a first officer
you know a great deal
about computers, don't you?
I know all about them.
It is possible for a computer
to malfunction, is it not?
- Affirmative.
- Do you know of any malfunction
which has caused an inaccuracy
in the Enterprise computer?
Negative.
That answer is based
on your mechanical survey
of the Enterprise computer,
ordered by
the defendant prior to this trial,
is it not?
- Affirmative.
- Now, the stardate...
But the computer is inaccurate,
nevertheless.
Why do you say that?
It reports that the jettison button
was pressed before the red alert.
In other words,
it reports that Captain Kirk
was reacting to an extreme emergency
that did not then exist.
- And that is impossible.
- Is it?
Were you watching him
the exact moment
- he pressed the jettison button?
- No. I was occupied.
The ship was already
on yellow alert.
Then how can you dispute
the finding of the log?
I do not dispute it.
- I merely state that it is wrong.
- Oh?
- On what do you base that statement?
- I know the captain.
- He is in...
- Please instruct the witness
- not to speculate.
- Lieutenant.
I am half Vulcanian.
Vulcanians do not speculate.
I speak from pure logic.
If I let go of a hammer on a planet
that has a positive gravity,
I need not see it fall to know
that it has, in fact, fallen.
- I do not see what that has...
- Gentlemen,
human beings have characteristics
just as inanimate objects do.
It is impossible for Captain Kirk
to act out of panic or malice.
- It is not his nature.
- In your opinion.
Yes.
- In my opinion.
- Thank you.
- Your witness, Mr. Cogley.
- No questions.
You may step down.
I now call the personnel officer
for the Enterprise.
Service rank: Ensign.
Position: Personnel officer.
Current assignment:
USS Enterprise.
In the course of your duties as
personnel officer of the Enterprise,
you would be familiar
with the service records of all aboard?
- Yes, ma'am.
- With reference
to Records Officer Finney,
was there, in his service record,
a report of disciplinary action
for failure to close a circuit?
- Yes, ma'am.
- Was the charge, in that instance,
based upon a log entry
by the officer who relieved him?
- Yes, ma'am.
- And who was that officer?
Ensign James T. Kirk.
Louder, please, for the court.
Ensign James T. Kirk.
Now the Captain Kirk
who sits in this courtroom?
- Yes, ma'am.
- Thank you.
Do you wish to cross-examine,
Mr. Cogley?
- No questions.
- You may step down.
I now call Dr. McCoy to the stand.
Service rank:
Lieutenant commander.
Position: Ship's surgeon.
Current assignment:
USS Enterprise.
Commendation: Legion of Honour.
Awards of valour:
Decorated by Starfleet Surgeons.
Doctor, you are, on the record,
an expert in psychology,
especially space psychology patterns
which develop
in the close quarters of a ship
during long voyages in deep space.
I know something about it.
You have just heard the testimony
of your own personnel officer
that it was an action
of the then Ensign Kirk
which placed an un-erasable
blot on the record
of the then Lieutenant Finney.
Psychologically, doctor,
is it possible that Lieutenant Finney
blamed Kirk for the incident?
It's possible.
He could have hated Kirk,
down through the years,
blamed him for being
passed over for promotion,
blamed him for never being given
a command of his own, correct?
- He could have.
- Now, let us hypothesize, doctor.
Is it normal for a person
to return affection for hatred?
- No.
- Do we not tend to, at first, resent,
and then actively dislike
the person who hates us?
Wait a minute,
I don't quite follow you.
Hypothetically,
would not Captain Smith begin to hate
Lieutenant Commander Jones
once he learned that
Lieutenant Commander Jones
hated and detested him?
- Oh, yes, I suppose it could happen.
- Then I ask you,
is it not possible that
Captain Kirk became aware
of Lieutenant Commander
Finney's hatred toward him,
and perhaps, even involuntarily,
began to reciprocate?
- Not Captain Kirk.
- Any normal human, doctor.
- Is it possible?
- But he's not that kind of a man.
Is it theoretically possible, doctor?
Yes.
It's possible.
Thank you.
Your witness, Mr. Cogley.
No questions.
You may step down.
Mr. Cogley,
you have listened to testimony
from three witnesses,
and in neither instance
have you availed yourself
of your right to cross-examine.
Have you abrogated that right?
Well, sir, the truth is, I've been
holding back till we get this
preliminary business out of the way.
I'd like to call Captain Kirk to the stand.
James T. Kirk.
Serial number SC 937-0176 CEC.
Service rank: Captain.
Position: Starship command.
Current assignment:
USS Enterprise.
Commendations:
Palm Leaf of Axanar Peace Mission,
Grankite Order of Tactics,
Class of Excellence.
Prentares Ribbon of Commendation,
Classes First and Second...
May it please the court.
Court recognises counsel
for the prosecution.
The prosecution concedes the
inestimable record of Captain Kirk.
- Mr. Cogley?
- I wouldn't want to slow
the wheels of progress.
But then, on the other hand,
I wouldn't want those wheels
to run over my client
in their unbridled haste.
Continue.
Awards of valour: Medal of Honour,
Silver Palm with Cluster,
Starfleet Citation for
Conspicuous Gallantry,
- Karagite Order of...
- Stop.
I think that's enough.
I wouldn't wanna slow
things up too much.
Thank you.
Now, captain, despite what
these machines indicate,
was there indeed a red alert
before you jettisoned the pod?
Yes, sir, there was.
Please tell us about it.
Firstly, I am at a loss
to explain the errors
in the extract
from the computer log.
We were in an ion storm.
Everyone here in this court
knows the dangers involved.
I was in command.
The decisions were mine,
no one else's.
Charges of malice have been raised.
There was no malice.
Lieutenant Commander Finney
was a member of my crew,
and that's exactly
the way he was treated.
It has been suggested that
I panicked on the bridge
and jettisoned the ion pod prematurely.
That is not so.
You have heard some
of the details of my record.
This was not my first crisis.
It was one of many.
During it, I did what my experience
and training required me to do.
I took the proper steps
in the proper order.
I did exactly what had to be done,
exactly when it should have
been done.
You did the right thing,
but would you do it again?
Given the same circumstances...
...I would do the same thing
without hesitation.
Because the steps I took,
in the order I took them,
were absolutely necessary
if I were to save my ship.
And nothing
is more important
than my ship.
Your witness, Miss Shaw.
The prosecution does not
wish to dishonour this man,
but facts are facts.
I must invite the attention
of the court and Captain Kirk
to this visual extract
from the Enterprise computer log.
Playback.
What you are about to see
is precisely what took place
on the Enterprise bridge
during the ion storm.
Meteorology reports ion storm
upcoming, captain.
We'll need somebody
in the pod for readings, Mr. Spock.
- Mr. Finney is top of duty roster.
- Post him.
- Lieutenant.
- Attention, Commander Finney.
Report to pod for reading
on ion plates.
- Message received.
- Officer posted, captain.
- Stand by on alert status, Mr. Spock.
- Acknowledged.
Approaching ion storm, sir.
- Warp factor 1, Mr. Hansen.
- Warp 1, sir.
Reverse.
Stop.
Go forward with magnification
on the panel.
Gravity control
switching to batteries.
Freeze that.
Captain Kirk is now signalling
a yellow alert.
Go forward, normal view.
- Call from the pod, sir.
- Tie in.
Finney here, captain.
Ion readings in progress.
Make it fast, Ben.
I may have to go to red alert.
Affirmative.
- Hold your course, Mr. Hansen.
- Aye, aye, sir.
Lateral vibrations,
force two, captain.
- Force three.
- Engineering, then ion pod.
Aye, aye, sir.
- Engineering.
- One-third more thrust.
Working.
Ion pod.
- Stand by to get out of there, Ben.
- Aye, aye, sir.
Force five, sir.
Steady as she goes, Mr. Hansen.
Freeze that.
If the court will notice, the log plainly
shows the defendant's finger
pressing the jettison button.
The condition signal reads
yellow alert, not red alert,
but simply yellow alert.
When the pod containing Lieutenant
Commander Finney was jettisoned,
the emergency did not as yet exist.
But that's not the way it happened.
Captain's log, stardate 2949.9.
The evidence presented by the visual
playback to my general court-martial
was damning. I suspect even
my attorney has begun to doubt me.
- Computers don't lie.
- Are you suggesting that I did?
I'm suggesting that maybe
you did have a lapse.
It was possible, you know,
with the strain you were under.
There's still time to change our plea.
I could get you off.
Two days ago, I'd have
staked anything on my judgement.
- You did. Your professional career.
- I spent my whole life training
for decisions just like that one.
My whole life.
Is it possible that when
the moment came?
No.
I know what I did.
You can pull out if you want to.
There's no place to go,
except back to court
and hear the verdict.
- Kirk here.
- Captain.
I have run a complete megalite
survey on the computer.
I'll tell you what you found.
Nothing, right?
You sound bitter, captain.
Not bitter enough to forget
to thank you for your efforts.
- Further instructions?
- No.
It's not all bad, Mr. Spock.
Who knows? You may be able
to beat your next captain at chess.
Kirk, out.
Chess.
Jame.
- This is Finney's daughter.
- Miss Finney.
Mr. Cogley, you've got to stop this.
Make him take a
ground assignment.
I realise it wasn't his fault.
I won't make any trouble.
- Make him change his plea.
- It's too late for that, Jame.
But I'm glad you don't blame me
anymore for what happened.
I was just so upset that night.
I'm sorry.
- Don't say anymore.
- But I have to.
I never realised how close
you and Dad had been
until I read through some
of the papers he wrote.
Letters to Mother and me.
I don't know how I ever
could have thought that you...
Mr. Cogley, ruining Jim won't
change what's happened.
That's very commendable,
Miss Finney, but most unusual.
After all, Captain Kirk is accused
of causing your father's death.
And the evidence
would indicate his guilt.
- I was just thinking of Jim.
- I know, and I thank you.
I have to go and change.
You ready?
No,
but I may be getting ready.
Bishop, half level right.
- Well, I had to see it to believe it.
- Explain.
They're gonna lop off the
captain's professional head,
and you're sitting here playing
chess with a computer.
That is true.
Mr. Spock, you're the most
cold-blooded man I've ever known.
Why, thank you, doctor.
I've just won my fourth game.
- That's impossible.
- Observe for yourself.
Rook to king's pawn four.
Bishop, half level right.
Now, this is the computer's move.
And now mine.
Checkmate.
Mechanically,
the computer is flawless.
Therefore, logically, its report
of the captain's guilt is infallible.
- I could not accept that, however.
- So you tested the programme bank.
Exactly. I programmed it myself
for chess some months ago.
The best I should have been
able to obtain was a draw.
Well, why are you just sitting there?
Transporter Room, stand by.
We're beaming down.
Court is now in session.
The board will entertain motions
before delivering its verdict.
Counsel for the prosecution?
Sir, the prosecution rests.
Counsel for the defence?
Sir...
...the defence rests.
Mr. Cogley.
- Mr. Cogley.
- Sir.
Some new evidence has just been
brought to my attention,
- and I'd like to ask the court to...
- Objection.
Counsel for the defence
has rested his case.
- Of what nature is this evidence?
- I can't tell you.
- I have to show you, sir.
- Mr. Cogley is well-known
for his theatrics.
Is saving an innocent
man's career a theatric?
Counsels will kindly direct
their remarks to the bench.
I'd be delighted to, sir, now that I've got
something human to talk about.
Rights, sir, human rights.
The Bible.
The Code of Hammurabi
and of Justinian.
Magna Carta.
The Constitution of the United States.
Fundamental Declarations
of the Martian Colonies.
The Statutes of Alpha III.
Gentlemen...
...these documents
all speak of rights.
Rights of the accused
to a trial by his peers.
To be represented by counsel.
The rights of cross-examination.
But most importantly,
the right to be confronted
by the witnesses against him.
A right to which my client
has been denied.
Your Honour, that is ridiculous.
We produced the witnesses
in court. My learned opponent
had the opportunity to see them,
- cross-examine them...
- All but one.
The most devastating witness
against my client is not a human being.
It's a machine.
An information system.
The computer log of the Enterprise.
And I ask this court adjourn
and reconvene aboard that vessel.
- I protest, Your Honour.
- And I repeat. I speak of rights.
A machine has none. A man must.
My client has the right
to face his accuser.
And if you do not grant him
that right,
you have brought us down
to the level of the machine.
Indeed, you have elevated
that machine above us.
I ask that my motion be granted.
And more than that, gentlemen.
In the name of a humanity fading
in the shadow of the machine,
I demand it. I demand it.
Captain's log, stardate 2950.1.
After due consideration, the general
court-martial has reconvened
onboard the Enterprise.
How many games of chess did you
win from the computer, Mr. Spock?
Five in all.
- May that be considered unusual?
- Affirmative.
Why?
I personally programmed the
computer for chess months ago.
I gave the machine an understanding
of the game equal to my own.
The computer cannot make an error,
and assuming that I do not either,
the best that could normally
be hoped for would be stalemate
after stalemate.
And yet
I beat the machine five times.
Someone, either accidentally
or deliberately,
adjusted the programming,
and therefore,
the memory banks of that computer.
Could that have had an effect
on the visual playback we saw?
Object. The witness
would be making a conclusion.
- Sustained.
- Hypothetically, Mr. Spock.
Hypothetically, Miss Shaw.
If what you suggest
had been done,
it would be beyond the
capabilities of most men.
- Is that true?
- Affirmative.
What man aboard ship
would it not be beyond?
The captain, myself
and the records officer.
And at the moment,
you have no records officer.
Affirmative. Until he was lost,
our records officer
was Lieutenant Commander Finney.
Captain Kirk,
will you tell the steps you took
to find Mr. Finney after the storm?
I instituted a Phase 1 Search.
Describe a Phase 1 Search.
It's a painstaking, thorough attempt,
in and around the ship,
to find a man who is presumably
injured and unable to respond.
It presupposes, does it not,
that a man wishes to be found?
- I beg your pardon?
- If you start a search for a man,
you assume, don't you, that he
wants to be found? He's not hiding.
Yes.
On a ship of this size,
could a man evade such a search?
Possibly.
Gentlemen,
I submit to you that Lieutenant
Commander Ben Finney is not dead.
Mr. Cogley, we are waiting for
proof of the extraordinary statement
- you made in the briefing room.
- And you shall have it.
But first I need the cooperation of this
court in conducting an experiment.
- Captain Kirk.
- Gentlemen.
For the purposes of this experiment,
it will be necessary for all personnel,
except for members of the court
and the command crew,
to leave the ship. I am ordering
all others to report
- to the Transporter Room.
- Including myself, sir.
This court is by no means adjourned,
Mr. Cogley.
I have an errand ashore
of vital importance
to the purpose of this court,
and I will return.
- Very well.
- Thank you, sir.
Captain, are you maintaining
an engine crew aboard?
Our impulse engines
have been shut down.
- We'll maintain orbit by momentum.
- And when the orbit begins to decay?
We hope to be finished
long before then.
- Ready, Mr. Spock?
- Affirmative, captain.
Gentlemen, this computer
has an auditory sensor.
It can, in effect, hear sounds.
By installing a booster,
we can increase that capability
on the order of one
to the fourth power.
The computer should be able to bring
us every sound occurring on the ship.
All personnel have left
the ship as ordered, sir.
Dr. McCoy?
All right, Mr. Spock.
Turn it down a little.
Gentlemen, that sound
is caused by the heartbeats
of all the people onboard the ship.
Dr. McCoy
will use this white-sound device
to mask out each person's
heartbeat so that it will be eliminated
from the sounds we are hearing.
First, the captain.
Mr. Spock.
And lastly, myself.
That's all of us, except the crewman
in the Transporter Room.
Mr. Spock, eliminate his heartbeat.
That accounts for everyone.
Finney.
Localise that.
B Deck. In or near Engineering.
Seal off B Deck,
sections 18-Y through 23-D.
Acknowledged.
- So Finney is alive.
- It would seem so.
Commodore, this is my problem.
I would appreciate it if no one
left the bridge.
Sam Cogley had gone ashore
to bring Jame Finney onboard.
We both felt that Jame's presence
would make Finney easier to handle
in the event
Finney really were alive.
Ben.
Ben Finney.
Mr. Spock, encountering variance.
- Compensate.
- What does that mean?
The orbit is beginning to decay.
Ben, where are you?
Hello, captain.
Nothing to say, captain?
I'm glad you're alive.
You mean you're relieved because
you think your career is saved.
Well, you're wrong.
Ben.
Ben, it's not too late.
We can help you.
Like you helped me all along?
Kept me down.
Robbed me of my own command.
I'm a good officer.
As good as you.
I've watched you for years.
The great Captain Kirk.
They told you to do it to me.
You all conspired against me.
You ruined me.
But you won't do it anymore.
- Put the phaser down, Ben.
- Oh, I wouldn't kill you, captain.
Your own death would
mean too little to you.
- But your ship...
- What about my ship?
It's dead. I've killed it.
I tapped out your primary
energy circuits.
Mr. Spock. What's our orbit status?
- Decaying, captain.
- Variance at second level
depreciating unusually fast.
You're out of power.
I know this ship too.
The Enterprise should've been mine.
You kept me from it.
Ben.
- Why kill innocent people?
- Innocent?
Officers and gentlemen,
captains all.
Except for Finney,
and his one mistake
a long time ago,
but they don't forget.
I logged the mistake, Ben.
Blame me, not them.
But they are to blame.
All of them.
I was a good officer.
I really was.
I loved the service more
than any man ever dared.
Mr. Spock,
we're running out of time.
Gentlemen, if you'll please hurry
to the Transporter Room.
Mr. Spock, the court has
not yet reached a verdict.
- We will hear this witness out.
- Very well, sir.
It's not too late.
You can be helped.
- But if you kill all those people...
- Why shouldn't I?
They killed me, didn't they?
It's a fair trade.
Is Jame included in that deal?
What do you mean?
She's onboard by now.
- Yes, she's onboard.
- Why did you do that?
Why did you bring her here?
Beaten and sobbing, Finney told me
where he had sabotaged
the prime energy circuits.
The damage he had caused
was considerable,
but not irreparable.
With luck, I would be able to effect
repairs before our orbit
decayed completely.
Power returning, Mr. Spock.
Up 14 points and rising.
Activate port impulse engines.
- One-third power.
- One-third power.
Variance fading.
Orbit stabilising.
All secure, sir.
Unless the prosecution
has an objection,
I rule this court be dismissed.
Absolutely no objection, sir.
How long will it be this time
before I see you again?
At the risk of sounding like a mystic,
that depends on the stars.
Sam Cogley asked me
to give you something special.
It's not a first edition
or anything, just a book.
Sam says that makes
it special though.
I didn't have much of
a chance to thank him.
He's busy on a case.
He's defending Ben Finney.
- He says he'll win.
- I wouldn't be a bit surprised.
Do you think it would cause
a complete breakdown of discipline
if a lowly lieutenant kissed a starship
captain on the bridge of his ship?
Let's try.
See, no change.
Discipline goes on.
And so must the Enterprise.
Goodbye, Jim.
Goodbye, Areel.
Better luck next time.
I had pretty good luck this time.
I lost, didn't I?
She's a very good lawyer.
- Obviously.
- Indeed, she is.
We have been through
a severe ion storm.
One crewman is dead.
Ship's damage is considerable.
I have ordered a nonscheduled
layover on Starbase 11 for repairs.
A full report of damages was made
to the commanding officer
of Starbase 11, Commodore Stone.
Maintenance Section 18.
Your section is working
on the Intrepid.
Reschedule.
The Enterprise is on priority one.
That makes three times
you've read it, Jim.
- Is there an error?
- No.
- But the death of a crewman...
- Regulations, captain.
The extracts from your ship's computer
log confirming this sworn deposition?
- Kirk to Enterprise.
- Bridge here. Go ahead, captain.
Where's Mr. Spock
with that computer log extract?
Well, he should've been
there ten minutes ago, sir.
- Kirk, out.
- It's a great pity.
The service can't afford to lose men
like Lieutenant Commander Finney.
I agree. I waited until the last
possible moment.
We were on red alert.
The storm got worse.
I had to jettison the pod.
What took you so long,
Mr. Spock?
Captain...
- I believe l...
- I'll take that.
- Jame.
- There you are.
I just wanted one more look at you.
- The man who killed my father.
- That's not so. He was my friend.
Your friend?
You hated him all your life,
and that's why you killed him.
You murderer!
You murderer! You murderer!
Jame.
Mr. Spock, would you please?
Miss Finney, come with me, please.
Captain Kirk,
you say you jettisoned
the pod after the red alert?
You have my sworn deposition.
Then, captain, I must presume
you have committed wilful perjury.
This extract from your computer
log says you jettisoned the pod
before going to red alert.
Consider yourself
confined to the base.
An official enquiry will determine
if a general court-martial is in order.
Space, the final frontier.
These are the voyages
of the starship Enterprise.
Its five-year mission:
To explore strange new worlds,
to seek out new life
and new civilizations,
to boldly go where no man
has gone before.
Captain's log, stardate 2948.5.
Starship Enterprise remains
in orbit around Starbase 11.
Full repairs in progress.
I have been ordered
to stand by on Starbase 11
until the enquiry into the death
of Lieutenant Commander Finney
can be conducted.
I am confident of the outcome.
Timothy, haven't seen you
since the Vulcanian expedition.
Well, I see our graduating
class from the academy
is well represented.
Corrigan. Teller.
- How you doing, Mike?
- I'll get by, Jim.
I understand you're
laying over for repairs.
Big job?
- Couple of days.
- Be moving out then?
- In a hurry to see me go?
- Oh, I just wondered how long
it would take you to get
a new records officer.
- You can talk plainer than that.
- I can.
But I think the point's been made.
- Ben was a friend of ours.
- Come on, Jim, let's go.
No, go on, finish.
Ben was a friend of yours,
and?
Jim.
Go on.
- I'm waiting to hear the rest.
- Why don't you tell us?
What would be the point?
You've already
made up your minds.
Excuse me, Bones.
If you have any doubt, that was indeed
Captain James Kirk of the Enterprise.
Yes, I know.
Are you a friend of his?
In these trying times,
one of the few.
Dr. Leonard McCoy, and you?
Areel Shaw.
And I'm a friend too. An old one.
All of my old friends
look like doctors.
All of his look like you.
Well, you might as well join me for
a drink. With this enquiry coming up,
he's going to need
all the friends he can get.
Recording: Enquiry.
Matter: Captain Kirk, James T.
Subject: Circumstances of death,
Lieutenant Commander Finney,
Benjamin.
This enquiry to determine
whether a general court-martial
should be convened against
Captain Kirk,
on charges of perjury
and culpable negligence.
Ready.
Let's begin with your relationship
with Commander Finney.
You knew him for a long time,
didn't you?
Yes, he was an instructor
at the academy when I was
a midshipman,
but that didn't stand in the way
of our beginning a close friendship.
His daughter Jame, who was here
last night, was named after me.
It's common knowledge that something
happened to your friendship.
It's no secret. We were assigned
to the same ship some years later.
I relieved him on watch once
and found a circuit open
to the atomic matter piles
that should've been closed.
Another five minutes,
could have blown up the ship.
Ship's nomenclature. Specify.
United Starship Republic,
number 1371.
Continue.
I closed the switch
and logged the incident.
He drew a reprimand and was sent
to the bottom of the promotion list.
- And he blamed you for that?
- Yes.
He had been at the academy
for an unusually long time
as an instructor.
As a result, he was late in being
assigned to a starship.
The delay, he felt,
looked bad on his record.
My action, he believed,
made things worse.
Comment.
Service record of Commander
Finney to be appended this enquiry.
Noted.
Now, let's get into the specifics
of the storm, captain.
Weather scan indicated
an ion storm dead ahead.
- I sent Finney into the pod.
- Why Finney?
- He was at the top of the duty roster.
- If he blamed...
He may have blamed me
that he never commanded a ship,
but I don't assign jobs on the basis
of who blames me.
It was Finney's turn,
and I assigned him.
He had just checked in with me...
...from the pod when we hit
the leading edge of the storm.
Not too bad at first.
I signalled a yellow alert.
Then we began encountering
pressure, variance, stress,
force seven, the works.
I finally signalled a red alert.
Finney knew he had
a matter of seconds.
I gave him those seconds
and more.
But, apparently, it wasn't enough.
Then why, captain,
does the computer log from your ship,
made automatically at the time,
indicate that you were still on
yellow alert when you jettisoned,
and not on red?
I don't know.
- There's been a mistake.
- It would seem so.
Could the computer be wrong?
Mr. Spock is running
a survey right now,
but the odds are
next to impossible.
Stop recording.
Now, look, Jim.
Not one man in a million could
do what you and I have done.
Command a starship.
A hundred decisions a day,
hundreds of lives
staked on you making
every one of them right.
You're played out, Jim.
- Exhausted.
- Is that the way you see it?
It's the way my report will read,
if you cooperate.
Physical breakdown.
Possibly even mental collapse?
- Possibly.
- I'd be admitting that a man died...
Admit nothing. Say nothing.
Let me bury the matter
here and now.
No starship captain has ever stood trial
before, and I don't want you to be first.
If what you suspect is true, I'm guilty.
I should be punished.
I'm thinking of the service.
- I won't have it smeared...
- By what, Commodore Stone?
All right.
By an evident perjurer who is either
covering up his bad judgement,
- his cowardice or something worse.
- That's as far as you go, sir.
I'm telling you I was there,
on the bridge.
I know what happened.
I know what I did.
It's in the transcript,
and computer transcripts don't lie.
I'm telling you, either you accept
a permanent ground assignment or...
...the whole disciplinary weight
of Starfleet Command
- will light right on your neck.
- So that's the way we do it now?
Sweep it under the rug
and me along with it.
Not on your life.
I intend to fight.
Then you draw a general court.
Draw it? I demand it. And right now,
Commodore Stone. Right now.
Captain's log, stardate 2948.9.
The officers who will comprise
my court-martial board
are proceeding to Starbase 11.
Meanwhile, repairs on the Enterprise
are almost complete.
Areel.
Dr. McCoy said you were here.
I should have felt it in the air,
like static electricity.
Flattery will get you everywhere.
It's been...
How long has it been?
Four years, seven months
and an odd number of days.
- Not that I'm counting.
- You look marvellous.
You haven't changed a bit.
Things have changed for you,
haven't they?
Oh, you've heard about that,
have you?
I'm a lawyer in the
Judge Advocate's office, remember?
I remember. Let's forget it.
We have a lot of lost time
to make up for.
You're taking it very lightly.
- The confidence of an innocent man.
- Are you?
That's not
what the rumours indicate.
Look, let's not talk shop.
Jim, this could ruin you.
Will you take some advice?
I never could talk you into anything.
All right, fire away.
The prosecution will build its case
on the basis of Kirk
versus the computer.
Now, if your attorney tries
to defend on that basis,
you won't have a chance.
What other choice is there?
Well, that's up to your attorney, and
that's why he's got to be a good one.
- You, perhaps?
- No, I...
- I'm busy.
- Well,
a girl with your ability should be able
to handle two cases at once.
Jim, be serious.
You're not an ordinary human.
You're a starship captain,
and you've stepped into scandal.
If there's any way they can do it,
they'll slap you down
hard and permanently
for the good of the service.
You still haven't made
any recommendations.
Samuel T. Cogley, attorney at law.
If anyone can save you, he can.
He'll be paying you a visit.
- Jim, I've got to go.
- Areel.
You still haven't told me
how you know so much
about what the prosecution's
going to do.
Because, Jim Kirk,
my dear old love...
...I am the prosecution.
And I have to do my very best
to have you slapped down hard,
broken out of the service,
in disgrace.
You Kirk?
Yes.
- What is all this?
- I figured we'd be spending
- some time together, so I moved in.
- I hope I'm not crowding you.
What's the matter,
don't you like books?
Oh, I like them fine,
but a computer takes less space.
A computer, huh?
I got one of these in my office.
Contains all the precedents.
A synthesis of all the great legal
decisions written throughout time.
- I never use it.
- Why not?
I've got my own system.
Books, young man, books.
Thousands of them. If time wasn't
so important, I'd show you something.
- My library. Thousands of books.
- What would be the point?
This is where the law is.
Not in that homogenized,
pasteurized, synthesized...
Do you want to know the law?
The ancient concepts
in their own language?
Learn the intent of the men
who wrote them? From Moses
to the Tribunal of Alpha III?
Books.
You have to be either an obsessive
crackpot who's escaped
from his keeper or Samuel T. Cogley,
attorney at law.
You're right on both counts.
Need a lawyer?
I'm afraid so.
This court is now in session.
I have appointed,
as members of this court...
...Space Command
Representative Lindstrom...
...Starship Captains
Krasnovsky and Chandra.
Captain Kirk, I direct
your attention to the fact
that you have a right to ask
for substitute officers if you feel
that any of these named harbour
prejudiced attitudes to your case.
I have no objection, sir.
And do you consent
to the service of Lieutenant Shaw
as prosecuting officer, and to myself
as president of the court?
- I do, sir.
- All right, clerk.
Charge: Culpable negligence.
Specification:
In that, on stardate 2945.7
by such negligence,
Captain Kirk, James T.
Did cause loss of life to wit,
the life of records officer
Lieutenant Commander Finney,
Benjamin.
To all recorded charges and
specifications, what is the plea?
Not guilty.
Proceed, lieutenant.
I call Mr. Spock.
Spock:
Serial number S 179-276 SP.
Service rank:
Lieutenant commander.
Position:
First officer, science officer.
Current Assignment:
USS Enterprise.
Commendations:
Vulcanian Scientific Legion of Honour.
Awards of valour: Twice decorated
by Starfleet Command.
Mr. Spock, as a first officer
you know a great deal
about computers, don't you?
I know all about them.
It is possible for a computer
to malfunction, is it not?
- Affirmative.
- Do you know of any malfunction
which has caused an inaccuracy
in the Enterprise computer?
Negative.
That answer is based
on your mechanical survey
of the Enterprise computer,
ordered by
the defendant prior to this trial,
is it not?
- Affirmative.
- Now, the stardate...
But the computer is inaccurate,
nevertheless.
Why do you say that?
It reports that the jettison button
was pressed before the red alert.
In other words,
it reports that Captain Kirk
was reacting to an extreme emergency
that did not then exist.
- And that is impossible.
- Is it?
Were you watching him
the exact moment
- he pressed the jettison button?
- No. I was occupied.
The ship was already
on yellow alert.
Then how can you dispute
the finding of the log?
I do not dispute it.
- I merely state that it is wrong.
- Oh?
- On what do you base that statement?
- I know the captain.
- He is in...
- Please instruct the witness
- not to speculate.
- Lieutenant.
I am half Vulcanian.
Vulcanians do not speculate.
I speak from pure logic.
If I let go of a hammer on a planet
that has a positive gravity,
I need not see it fall to know
that it has, in fact, fallen.
- I do not see what that has...
- Gentlemen,
human beings have characteristics
just as inanimate objects do.
It is impossible for Captain Kirk
to act out of panic or malice.
- It is not his nature.
- In your opinion.
Yes.
- In my opinion.
- Thank you.
- Your witness, Mr. Cogley.
- No questions.
You may step down.
I now call the personnel officer
for the Enterprise.
Service rank: Ensign.
Position: Personnel officer.
Current assignment:
USS Enterprise.
In the course of your duties as
personnel officer of the Enterprise,
you would be familiar
with the service records of all aboard?
- Yes, ma'am.
- With reference
to Records Officer Finney,
was there, in his service record,
a report of disciplinary action
for failure to close a circuit?
- Yes, ma'am.
- Was the charge, in that instance,
based upon a log entry
by the officer who relieved him?
- Yes, ma'am.
- And who was that officer?
Ensign James T. Kirk.
Louder, please, for the court.
Ensign James T. Kirk.
Now the Captain Kirk
who sits in this courtroom?
- Yes, ma'am.
- Thank you.
Do you wish to cross-examine,
Mr. Cogley?
- No questions.
- You may step down.
I now call Dr. McCoy to the stand.
Service rank:
Lieutenant commander.
Position: Ship's surgeon.
Current assignment:
USS Enterprise.
Commendation: Legion of Honour.
Awards of valour:
Decorated by Starfleet Surgeons.
Doctor, you are, on the record,
an expert in psychology,
especially space psychology patterns
which develop
in the close quarters of a ship
during long voyages in deep space.
I know something about it.
You have just heard the testimony
of your own personnel officer
that it was an action
of the then Ensign Kirk
which placed an un-erasable
blot on the record
of the then Lieutenant Finney.
Psychologically, doctor,
is it possible that Lieutenant Finney
blamed Kirk for the incident?
It's possible.
He could have hated Kirk,
down through the years,
blamed him for being
passed over for promotion,
blamed him for never being given
a command of his own, correct?
- He could have.
- Now, let us hypothesize, doctor.
Is it normal for a person
to return affection for hatred?
- No.
- Do we not tend to, at first, resent,
and then actively dislike
the person who hates us?
Wait a minute,
I don't quite follow you.
Hypothetically,
would not Captain Smith begin to hate
Lieutenant Commander Jones
once he learned that
Lieutenant Commander Jones
hated and detested him?
- Oh, yes, I suppose it could happen.
- Then I ask you,
is it not possible that
Captain Kirk became aware
of Lieutenant Commander
Finney's hatred toward him,
and perhaps, even involuntarily,
began to reciprocate?
- Not Captain Kirk.
- Any normal human, doctor.
- Is it possible?
- But he's not that kind of a man.
Is it theoretically possible, doctor?
Yes.
It's possible.
Thank you.
Your witness, Mr. Cogley.
No questions.
You may step down.
Mr. Cogley,
you have listened to testimony
from three witnesses,
and in neither instance
have you availed yourself
of your right to cross-examine.
Have you abrogated that right?
Well, sir, the truth is, I've been
holding back till we get this
preliminary business out of the way.
I'd like to call Captain Kirk to the stand.
James T. Kirk.
Serial number SC 937-0176 CEC.
Service rank: Captain.
Position: Starship command.
Current assignment:
USS Enterprise.
Commendations:
Palm Leaf of Axanar Peace Mission,
Grankite Order of Tactics,
Class of Excellence.
Prentares Ribbon of Commendation,
Classes First and Second...
May it please the court.
Court recognises counsel
for the prosecution.
The prosecution concedes the
inestimable record of Captain Kirk.
- Mr. Cogley?
- I wouldn't want to slow
the wheels of progress.
But then, on the other hand,
I wouldn't want those wheels
to run over my client
in their unbridled haste.
Continue.
Awards of valour: Medal of Honour,
Silver Palm with Cluster,
Starfleet Citation for
Conspicuous Gallantry,
- Karagite Order of...
- Stop.
I think that's enough.
I wouldn't wanna slow
things up too much.
Thank you.
Now, captain, despite what
these machines indicate,
was there indeed a red alert
before you jettisoned the pod?
Yes, sir, there was.
Please tell us about it.
Firstly, I am at a loss
to explain the errors
in the extract
from the computer log.
We were in an ion storm.
Everyone here in this court
knows the dangers involved.
I was in command.
The decisions were mine,
no one else's.
Charges of malice have been raised.
There was no malice.
Lieutenant Commander Finney
was a member of my crew,
and that's exactly
the way he was treated.
It has been suggested that
I panicked on the bridge
and jettisoned the ion pod prematurely.
That is not so.
You have heard some
of the details of my record.
This was not my first crisis.
It was one of many.
During it, I did what my experience
and training required me to do.
I took the proper steps
in the proper order.
I did exactly what had to be done,
exactly when it should have
been done.
You did the right thing,
but would you do it again?
Given the same circumstances...
...I would do the same thing
without hesitation.
Because the steps I took,
in the order I took them,
were absolutely necessary
if I were to save my ship.
And nothing
is more important
than my ship.
Your witness, Miss Shaw.
The prosecution does not
wish to dishonour this man,
but facts are facts.
I must invite the attention
of the court and Captain Kirk
to this visual extract
from the Enterprise computer log.
Playback.
What you are about to see
is precisely what took place
on the Enterprise bridge
during the ion storm.
Meteorology reports ion storm
upcoming, captain.
We'll need somebody
in the pod for readings, Mr. Spock.
- Mr. Finney is top of duty roster.
- Post him.
- Lieutenant.
- Attention, Commander Finney.
Report to pod for reading
on ion plates.
- Message received.
- Officer posted, captain.
- Stand by on alert status, Mr. Spock.
- Acknowledged.
Approaching ion storm, sir.
- Warp factor 1, Mr. Hansen.
- Warp 1, sir.
Reverse.
Stop.
Go forward with magnification
on the panel.
Gravity control
switching to batteries.
Freeze that.
Captain Kirk is now signalling
a yellow alert.
Go forward, normal view.
- Call from the pod, sir.
- Tie in.
Finney here, captain.
Ion readings in progress.
Make it fast, Ben.
I may have to go to red alert.
Affirmative.
- Hold your course, Mr. Hansen.
- Aye, aye, sir.
Lateral vibrations,
force two, captain.
- Force three.
- Engineering, then ion pod.
Aye, aye, sir.
- Engineering.
- One-third more thrust.
Working.
Ion pod.
- Stand by to get out of there, Ben.
- Aye, aye, sir.
Force five, sir.
Steady as she goes, Mr. Hansen.
Freeze that.
If the court will notice, the log plainly
shows the defendant's finger
pressing the jettison button.
The condition signal reads
yellow alert, not red alert,
but simply yellow alert.
When the pod containing Lieutenant
Commander Finney was jettisoned,
the emergency did not as yet exist.
But that's not the way it happened.
Captain's log, stardate 2949.9.
The evidence presented by the visual
playback to my general court-martial
was damning. I suspect even
my attorney has begun to doubt me.
- Computers don't lie.
- Are you suggesting that I did?
I'm suggesting that maybe
you did have a lapse.
It was possible, you know,
with the strain you were under.
There's still time to change our plea.
I could get you off.
Two days ago, I'd have
staked anything on my judgement.
- You did. Your professional career.
- I spent my whole life training
for decisions just like that one.
My whole life.
Is it possible that when
the moment came?
No.
I know what I did.
You can pull out if you want to.
There's no place to go,
except back to court
and hear the verdict.
- Kirk here.
- Captain.
I have run a complete megalite
survey on the computer.
I'll tell you what you found.
Nothing, right?
You sound bitter, captain.
Not bitter enough to forget
to thank you for your efforts.
- Further instructions?
- No.
It's not all bad, Mr. Spock.
Who knows? You may be able
to beat your next captain at chess.
Kirk, out.
Chess.
Jame.
- This is Finney's daughter.
- Miss Finney.
Mr. Cogley, you've got to stop this.
Make him take a
ground assignment.
I realise it wasn't his fault.
I won't make any trouble.
- Make him change his plea.
- It's too late for that, Jame.
But I'm glad you don't blame me
anymore for what happened.
I was just so upset that night.
I'm sorry.
- Don't say anymore.
- But I have to.
I never realised how close
you and Dad had been
until I read through some
of the papers he wrote.
Letters to Mother and me.
I don't know how I ever
could have thought that you...
Mr. Cogley, ruining Jim won't
change what's happened.
That's very commendable,
Miss Finney, but most unusual.
After all, Captain Kirk is accused
of causing your father's death.
And the evidence
would indicate his guilt.
- I was just thinking of Jim.
- I know, and I thank you.
I have to go and change.
You ready?
No,
but I may be getting ready.
Bishop, half level right.
- Well, I had to see it to believe it.
- Explain.
They're gonna lop off the
captain's professional head,
and you're sitting here playing
chess with a computer.
That is true.
Mr. Spock, you're the most
cold-blooded man I've ever known.
Why, thank you, doctor.
I've just won my fourth game.
- That's impossible.
- Observe for yourself.
Rook to king's pawn four.
Bishop, half level right.
Now, this is the computer's move.
And now mine.
Checkmate.
Mechanically,
the computer is flawless.
Therefore, logically, its report
of the captain's guilt is infallible.
- I could not accept that, however.
- So you tested the programme bank.
Exactly. I programmed it myself
for chess some months ago.
The best I should have been
able to obtain was a draw.
Well, why are you just sitting there?
Transporter Room, stand by.
We're beaming down.
Court is now in session.
The board will entertain motions
before delivering its verdict.
Counsel for the prosecution?
Sir, the prosecution rests.
Counsel for the defence?
Sir...
...the defence rests.
Mr. Cogley.
- Mr. Cogley.
- Sir.
Some new evidence has just been
brought to my attention,
- and I'd like to ask the court to...
- Objection.
Counsel for the defence
has rested his case.
- Of what nature is this evidence?
- I can't tell you.
- I have to show you, sir.
- Mr. Cogley is well-known
for his theatrics.
Is saving an innocent
man's career a theatric?
Counsels will kindly direct
their remarks to the bench.
I'd be delighted to, sir, now that I've got
something human to talk about.
Rights, sir, human rights.
The Bible.
The Code of Hammurabi
and of Justinian.
Magna Carta.
The Constitution of the United States.
Fundamental Declarations
of the Martian Colonies.
The Statutes of Alpha III.
Gentlemen...
...these documents
all speak of rights.
Rights of the accused
to a trial by his peers.
To be represented by counsel.
The rights of cross-examination.
But most importantly,
the right to be confronted
by the witnesses against him.
A right to which my client
has been denied.
Your Honour, that is ridiculous.
We produced the witnesses
in court. My learned opponent
had the opportunity to see them,
- cross-examine them...
- All but one.
The most devastating witness
against my client is not a human being.
It's a machine.
An information system.
The computer log of the Enterprise.
And I ask this court adjourn
and reconvene aboard that vessel.
- I protest, Your Honour.
- And I repeat. I speak of rights.
A machine has none. A man must.
My client has the right
to face his accuser.
And if you do not grant him
that right,
you have brought us down
to the level of the machine.
Indeed, you have elevated
that machine above us.
I ask that my motion be granted.
And more than that, gentlemen.
In the name of a humanity fading
in the shadow of the machine,
I demand it. I demand it.
Captain's log, stardate 2950.1.
After due consideration, the general
court-martial has reconvened
onboard the Enterprise.
How many games of chess did you
win from the computer, Mr. Spock?
Five in all.
- May that be considered unusual?
- Affirmative.
Why?
I personally programmed the
computer for chess months ago.
I gave the machine an understanding
of the game equal to my own.
The computer cannot make an error,
and assuming that I do not either,
the best that could normally
be hoped for would be stalemate
after stalemate.
And yet
I beat the machine five times.
Someone, either accidentally
or deliberately,
adjusted the programming,
and therefore,
the memory banks of that computer.
Could that have had an effect
on the visual playback we saw?
Object. The witness
would be making a conclusion.
- Sustained.
- Hypothetically, Mr. Spock.
Hypothetically, Miss Shaw.
If what you suggest
had been done,
it would be beyond the
capabilities of most men.
- Is that true?
- Affirmative.
What man aboard ship
would it not be beyond?
The captain, myself
and the records officer.
And at the moment,
you have no records officer.
Affirmative. Until he was lost,
our records officer
was Lieutenant Commander Finney.
Captain Kirk,
will you tell the steps you took
to find Mr. Finney after the storm?
I instituted a Phase 1 Search.
Describe a Phase 1 Search.
It's a painstaking, thorough attempt,
in and around the ship,
to find a man who is presumably
injured and unable to respond.
It presupposes, does it not,
that a man wishes to be found?
- I beg your pardon?
- If you start a search for a man,
you assume, don't you, that he
wants to be found? He's not hiding.
Yes.
On a ship of this size,
could a man evade such a search?
Possibly.
Gentlemen,
I submit to you that Lieutenant
Commander Ben Finney is not dead.
Mr. Cogley, we are waiting for
proof of the extraordinary statement
- you made in the briefing room.
- And you shall have it.
But first I need the cooperation of this
court in conducting an experiment.
- Captain Kirk.
- Gentlemen.
For the purposes of this experiment,
it will be necessary for all personnel,
except for members of the court
and the command crew,
to leave the ship. I am ordering
all others to report
- to the Transporter Room.
- Including myself, sir.
This court is by no means adjourned,
Mr. Cogley.
I have an errand ashore
of vital importance
to the purpose of this court,
and I will return.
- Very well.
- Thank you, sir.
Captain, are you maintaining
an engine crew aboard?
Our impulse engines
have been shut down.
- We'll maintain orbit by momentum.
- And when the orbit begins to decay?
We hope to be finished
long before then.
- Ready, Mr. Spock?
- Affirmative, captain.
Gentlemen, this computer
has an auditory sensor.
It can, in effect, hear sounds.
By installing a booster,
we can increase that capability
on the order of one
to the fourth power.
The computer should be able to bring
us every sound occurring on the ship.
All personnel have left
the ship as ordered, sir.
Dr. McCoy?
All right, Mr. Spock.
Turn it down a little.
Gentlemen, that sound
is caused by the heartbeats
of all the people onboard the ship.
Dr. McCoy
will use this white-sound device
to mask out each person's
heartbeat so that it will be eliminated
from the sounds we are hearing.
First, the captain.
Mr. Spock.
And lastly, myself.
That's all of us, except the crewman
in the Transporter Room.
Mr. Spock, eliminate his heartbeat.
That accounts for everyone.
Finney.
Localise that.
B Deck. In or near Engineering.
Seal off B Deck,
sections 18-Y through 23-D.
Acknowledged.
- So Finney is alive.
- It would seem so.
Commodore, this is my problem.
I would appreciate it if no one
left the bridge.
Sam Cogley had gone ashore
to bring Jame Finney onboard.
We both felt that Jame's presence
would make Finney easier to handle
in the event
Finney really were alive.
Ben.
Ben Finney.
Mr. Spock, encountering variance.
- Compensate.
- What does that mean?
The orbit is beginning to decay.
Ben, where are you?
Hello, captain.
Nothing to say, captain?
I'm glad you're alive.
You mean you're relieved because
you think your career is saved.
Well, you're wrong.
Ben.
Ben, it's not too late.
We can help you.
Like you helped me all along?
Kept me down.
Robbed me of my own command.
I'm a good officer.
As good as you.
I've watched you for years.
The great Captain Kirk.
They told you to do it to me.
You all conspired against me.
You ruined me.
But you won't do it anymore.
- Put the phaser down, Ben.
- Oh, I wouldn't kill you, captain.
Your own death would
mean too little to you.
- But your ship...
- What about my ship?
It's dead. I've killed it.
I tapped out your primary
energy circuits.
Mr. Spock. What's our orbit status?
- Decaying, captain.
- Variance at second level
depreciating unusually fast.
You're out of power.
I know this ship too.
The Enterprise should've been mine.
You kept me from it.
Ben.
- Why kill innocent people?
- Innocent?
Officers and gentlemen,
captains all.
Except for Finney,
and his one mistake
a long time ago,
but they don't forget.
I logged the mistake, Ben.
Blame me, not them.
But they are to blame.
All of them.
I was a good officer.
I really was.
I loved the service more
than any man ever dared.
Mr. Spock,
we're running out of time.
Gentlemen, if you'll please hurry
to the Transporter Room.
Mr. Spock, the court has
not yet reached a verdict.
- We will hear this witness out.
- Very well, sir.
It's not too late.
You can be helped.
- But if you kill all those people...
- Why shouldn't I?
They killed me, didn't they?
It's a fair trade.
Is Jame included in that deal?
What do you mean?
She's onboard by now.
- Yes, she's onboard.
- Why did you do that?
Why did you bring her here?
Beaten and sobbing, Finney told me
where he had sabotaged
the prime energy circuits.
The damage he had caused
was considerable,
but not irreparable.
With luck, I would be able to effect
repairs before our orbit
decayed completely.
Power returning, Mr. Spock.
Up 14 points and rising.
Activate port impulse engines.
- One-third power.
- One-third power.
Variance fading.
Orbit stabilising.
All secure, sir.
Unless the prosecution
has an objection,
I rule this court be dismissed.
Absolutely no objection, sir.
How long will it be this time
before I see you again?
At the risk of sounding like a mystic,
that depends on the stars.
Sam Cogley asked me
to give you something special.
It's not a first edition
or anything, just a book.
Sam says that makes
it special though.
I didn't have much of
a chance to thank him.
He's busy on a case.
He's defending Ben Finney.
- He says he'll win.
- I wouldn't be a bit surprised.
Do you think it would cause
a complete breakdown of discipline
if a lowly lieutenant kissed a starship
captain on the bridge of his ship?
Let's try.
See, no change.
Discipline goes on.
And so must the Enterprise.
Goodbye, Jim.
Goodbye, Areel.
Better luck next time.
I had pretty good luck this time.
I lost, didn't I?
She's a very good lawyer.
- Obviously.
- Indeed, she is.