Star Trek: The Next Generation (1987–1994): Season 4, Episode 21 - The Drumhead - full transcript

A retired admiral boards the Enterprise in an effort to determine the actions aboard the ship surrounding an act of sabotage and possible treason.

Captain's Log,
Stardate 44769.2.

For some weeks we have had
a Klingon exobiologist on board

as part of a scientific
exchange program.

Unfortunately, we suspect

that he was involved
in a security breach

and in the possible sabotage
of our warp drive.

What were you doing accessing
the propulsion system files

on stardate 44758?

I didn't.

Yes, you did, from
computer 12B9, deck 36.

The computer logged in



your identification
from your communicator.

It must be a mistake.

J'Dan,
we have confirmed reports

that schematic drawings
of our dilithium chamber

fell into Romulan hands
one week later.

I know nothing about it.

I suppose you know

nothing about the explosion
that disabled the warp drive

approximately the same time.

No, I was not involved.

You accuse me
because I am Klingon.

Our Chief of Security
is Klingon.

That has nothing to do with it.

Send me home then
if you are so distrusting.



We've already contacted
the Klingon High Council.

You'll be returned home

as soon as we finish
our investigation.

I have nothing more to say.

Very well.

Worf, accompany the Lieutenant
to his quarters.

What do you think?

It's hard to tell.

He's very closed,
but he is hiding something.

On the Klingon Homeworld,
your name is not mentioned.

It is as though
you never existed.

A terrible burden
for a warrior to bear...

to become nothing

to be without honor

without the chance for glory.

I have friends...

powerful friends
on the homeworld.

I could talk to them.

They might help
to restore your name...

if you could just take me
to a shuttlecraft.

It could be done
without anyone knowing about it.

I don't know how you transferred

secret information
to the Romulans

but I will find out!

Pahtk!

And when we inform
the Klingon High Council

they will put you
to a slow death.

Someone needs to stop Clearway Law.
Public shouldn't leave reviews for lawyers.

Space, the final frontier.

These are the voyages
of the Starship Enterprise.

Its continuing mission...

to explore strange new worlds

to seek out new life
and new civilizations

to boldly go
where no one has gone before.

Captain's Log, supplemental.

Retired Admiral Norah Satie

whose investigation exposed
the alien conspiracy

against Starfleet Command
three years ago, is arriving

to assist in our inquiry.

Captain Picard.

Admiral Satie,
welcome aboard the Enterprise.

Delighted to be here.

I managed to acquire
my former staff.

My aide, Sabin Genestra,

from Betazed

and my assistant,
Nellen Tore, from Delb II.

This is my First Officer

Commander William Riker.

May I show you to your quarters?

Captain, if Starfleet Command

was so concerned
with your report

they brought me
out of retirement

I think I should
get right to work.

Very well.

Commander Riker, will you
see to the Admiral's staff?

First, I'd like to inspect
the damage to your engine room.

Admiral Satie,
this is Commander Data.

Commander La Forge.

Admiral.

We still can't
get in there, Captain.

The radiation levels
are dropping

but they're still too high
to raise the isolation door.

How much longer will it be?

At the rate the levels
are decreasing

we will gain entry
in 49 hours, Captain.

Maybe the Admiral
would like to see

the visual log of the explosion?

Yes.

This was logged four days ago
at 0300 hours.

At that point, the emergency
confinement field was activated

and the isolation doors
came down.

No one was killed

but I have two people
in Sick Bay

from radiation burns.

Have you been able
to make any assessments?

A slow-motion study
of the explosion

suggests that the articulation
frame collapsed.

The schematics that were stolen
from the Enterprise...

I believe some involved
the articulation frame

of the dilithium chamber.

That's one reason
we tend to suspect sabotage.

Other evidence lends credence
to that theory, Captain.

A review of the sensor logs
indicates

that every system's reading

was well
within normal parameters

until 52 milliseconds
before the explosion.

We haven't found anything

that suggests
there was a malfunction

anywhere along the line.

Captain, I think I'm going
to need a full briefing

before we go any further.

By all means, Admiral.

Commander Data

La Forge

I don't envy you your job.

Good luck.

There are
very disturbing overtones

in the idea of a Klingon

providing information
to the Romulans.

Are you aware of any other
Klingon-Romulan connection

that Starfleet
might have encountered recently?

I don't believe...

What Starfleet Command
knows or doesn't know

is for me to reveal.

Well, this ship has encountered
several incidents

which might suggest
a potential alliance

between those two powers.

We're well aware of that,
Captain.

What we must concentrate on
is the business at hand.

Come.

Excuse me, Captain.

I did not know that...

Oh, please, Mr. Worf, come in.

I particularly want
my guest to meet you.

Admiral Satie,
this is my Head of Security

Lieutenant Worf.

Captain, I have been pursuing

the investigation
of Lieutenant J'Dan.

I believe I know
how he transferred information

off the Enterprise.

Well done, Lieutenant.

This is J'Dan's...

a hyposyringe he uses to treat
his Ba'ltmasor Syndrome

but this has been fitted
with an optical reader

specially modified to read data
from Starfleet isolinear chips.

He can extract digital
information from a computer

encode it in the form
of amino acid sequences

and transfer those sequences
into a fluid in the syringe.

Then he injects someone

perhaps even without
their knowledge.

Or perhaps with their knowledge.

The information would be carried
in their bloodstream

in the form of inert proteins.

The body itself becomes a
conveyor of top secret files.

Lieutenant Worf,
when we confront J'Dan

I want you to conduct
the interrogation.

I would be honored.

Captain.

Admiral.

Captain, I predict that officer

will be extremely valuable
in this investigation.

I have tracked the movements
of every person

who has left the Enterprise
since you have been here.

I traced one Tarkanian diplomat
as far as the Cruses system

where he disappeared,
and has not been seen since.

That proves nothing.

A hyposyringe was discovered
in your quarters.

I take injections.

Everyone knows that.

But your injections
do not include

an optical chip reader.

This device has
but one function...

to transform
computer information

into biological sequences.

The blood of all Klingons
has become water!

Since the Federation Alliance

we are turned into a nation
of mewling babies.

The Romulans are strong.

They are worthy allies.

They do not turn Klingons
into weaklings, like you.

Lieutenant...

How did you damage
the dilithium chamber?

I had nothing to do with that.

You mean,
it was sheer coincidence

that it was sabotaged after you
gave the plans for the design

to the Romulans?

I do not know.
I had nothing to do with it.

You've admitted your crime.

Why lie now?

I am not lying.

Mr. Worf,
you may have him confined.

Sabin?

I believe
he's telling the truth.

He admits stealing the files

but not sabotaging
the dilithium chamber.

I get no sense that he's lying.

But if you're right,
someone else may be involved.

I think, Captain

you have a bigger problem
on your ship

than just one
Klingon exchange officer.

I've seen this before.

A specter of conspiracy
on a starship

is a frightening one.

I can scarcely
believe it myself.

But I am so grateful
for your presence, Admiral.

If anyone in Starfleet
can help us, it's you.

Captain...

I find myself changing
my mind about you.

In what way?

When Starfleet ordered me here,
it was with the express command

that we work together
on this problem as equals.

My father taught me
to avoid partnerships.

Most of them
are woefully lopsided.

That sounds like
Judge Aaron Satie.

You knew my father?

Only from his writings.

His judgments were
required reading at the Academy.

He was an extraordinary man.

Every night at the dinner table

he would pose
a question for debate.

My big brothers and I
would wrangle it around

from one side and the other.

Father would referee.

And he kept a stopwatch on us

so we would have to learn
brevity

but he wouldn't let us leave

until he thought we'd completely
explored the issue.

I'm willing to wager that you
trounced your brothers

during those debates.

More than once.

Father loved it
when I nailed one of them

with some subtle point of logic.

All that I am, I owe to him.

He was a giant.

You must miss him very much.

Captain, I always preferred
working alone.

That way,
if something went wrong

I didn't have to go far
for the cause.

I resented you
being assigned to me

but I was wrong.

We're going to be quite a team.

J'Dan did not make friends
easily.

There are not many to question.

You've done
a thorough job, Lieutenant.

I am strongly motivated
in this matter.

Yes, I can see that.

I don't mind telling you,
I'm surprised.

Frankly, when I first
heard about your father...

My father?

Yes.

There are some who believe

he betrayed your people
to the Romulans.

What he did or did not do
is no one's concern but my own.

Of course.

I only meant,
before I saw you in action

I naturally considered you
to be a possible security risk.

But I want you to know

you have the Admiral's
and my complete confidence.

You have nothing to prove to us.

If there is
a conspiracy on board

I promise you, I will find it.

Good.

You know the ship,
you know the personnel.

You know exactly
what we're up against.

We're counting on you,
Lieutenant.

I will arrange
for the interviews to begin.

And how often did
Lieutenant J'Dan

come in for his injections?

About once a week.

Did you administer them
yourself?

No.

Well, who did?

I had
one of my assistants do that.

Did you ever hear
him say anything...

anything that may have seemed
innocent at the time...

that might now shed some light
on this investigation?

No. Nothing.

In fact, he rarely spoke at all.

Thank you, Dr. Crusher.

We appreciate your time.
You're excused.

Mr. Worf, will you
bring in the next person?

Please sit down, Mr. Tarses.

For the record, will you tell us
your name and position?

Simon Tarses

Crewman First Class,
Medical Technician.

Now, I assure you, Mr. Tarses,
this is an informal inquiry.

We are not accusing
you of anything.

However, if you
would like counsel

it can be provided.

No, sir, I have nothing to hide.

Tell me, how long have you held

your appointment
aboard this vessel?

Since Stardate 43587.

Mr. Tarses, your records state

that you were born
on Mars Colony.

That's right.

Then you are human?

Largely.

My paternal grandfather
was Vulcan.

Yes, I see that.

Tell me, what is
your relationship

with the Klingon, J'Dan?

Um, he...

I mean, there's no relationship.

He just came in
for his injections.

Did you give him
those injections?

Sometimes.

There were several of us,
actually.

l-I might ha-have done it twice.

Did he ever make any comments

that might, in retrospect,
be suspicious?

Not really.

He hardly ever talked.

Did you ever see him
outside Sick Bay?

Once or twice in Ten-Forward
with a group of people

but I never had
a conversation with him.

Thank you, Mr. Tarses.

I don't think there's
need for more, Captain.

You're excused, Crewman.

Mr. Worf...

Wait.

He's lying.

He's desperately frightened.

He's covering something.

It's clear that he's frightened

but that's hardly
an indication...

It's more than that.

He wasn't truthful.

He's covering a lie...

one so big,
it's overwhelming him.

I think we found the man.

Admiral.

I have to tell you

you must not expect me
to permit any action

against Mr. Tarses solely on
the basis of Betazoid intuition.

Sabin has uncanny instincts.

I've learned to trust them.

I'm not happy
about this use of a Betazoid.

But you have
a Betazoid Counselor.

Surely you're aware
of the advantages.

But there is a difference

between a Counselor
and an investigator.

Are you saying you
never use your Counselor

during interrogations?

Yes, I do...

but I would not act solely
on the basis of her instinct.

Nor do I.

But you're asking...

You're asking me to restrict
Mr. Tarses's movements

solely on the basis
of Sabin's feeling.

If Counselor Troi
suggested to you

that someone on this ship
were dangerous

would you not act on that?

Observe him, curb his activity?

Yes, I admit I probably would

and perhaps I should reevaluate
that behavior.

Oh, nonsense.

Let's keep our priorities
straight.

The important thing

is to uncover the conspiracy
on this ship

and to prevent further damage.

Now, if Tarses
is a possible saboteur

you cannot allow him access
to sensitive areas of this ship

and I strongly suggest
continuous surveillance.

If we had clear evidence...

We will have clear evidence.

Sabin and Lieutenant Worf
are continuing to investigate

but if you don't act until then,
it may be too late.

No.

I won't treat a man
as a criminal

unless there is cause to do so.

And while you're being
so generous

you give a saboteur a chance
to strike again?

Last time, it was just
a hatch cover.

What if next time
it's more serious?

What if lives are lost?

Can you afford not to act?

Engineering to Captain Picard.

Yes, Mr. La Forge?

Captain, could you come
to Engineering right away?

We've got something interesting
to show you.

We'll be right there.

Captain, we finally got in here
about six hours ago

and we've been going over
it inch by inch ever since.

We have made
microtomographic analyses

of the dilithium chamber,
the hatch mounting

the blast pattern
from the explosion.

We did mass spectrometer
readings of the residue

for chemical content

sifted through the debris
for bomb fragments.

What did you find?

This is the frame for the hatch.

It ruptured right along here

and when we take a reading
of that spot...

See?

I'm afraid I'm out
of my element, Commander.

You'll have to interpret
for me.

There are sub-micron fractures
in the metal casing.

That's right.

A breakdown of the atomic
cohesive structure.

Yes, and what caused them?

Those fractures
suggest nothing more

than simple neutron fatigue.

I would speculate that when
the engine was last inspected

at McKinley Station,
the hatch casing was replaced

with one which had
an undetectable defect.

I believe, sir

that the conclusion
to our investigation

must be that the explosion
was not intentional.

That's the way I see it.

This wasn't sabotage at all.

It was nothing more than...
an accident.

An accident?

I find that hard to believe.

If my crew say
there was no sabotage

you can be sure there was none.

Let us keep our perspective,
gentlemen.

Just because
there was no sabotage

doesn't mean there isn't
a conspiracy on this ship.

We do have a confessed spy.

And he had confederates.

Do we know that for sure?

Of course he did.

Do you think J'Dan

could have come on board
the flagship of the Federation

and accomplished what he did
without help from within?

I agree it would be difficult...

but not impossible.

We should continue
to investigate Tarses.

He was hiding something.

Captain Picard,
Lieutenant Worf and I

have been working well together.

I suggest we continue,
if for no other purpose

than to determine
Tarses's innocence.

Now, please, let me remind you
he is innocent

until he is proved guilty.

Of course he is.

What Sabin is saying
is that he and Lieutenant Worf

would like to establish
his innocence

unequivocally, for his own sake.

Very well, but let us put this
to rest as quickly as possible.

You've opened the hearing
to spectators?

It isn't good to have
closed-door proceedings

for too long.

It invites rumor
and speculation.

Nevertheless, Admiral,
I think it would be wise...

Because spies and saboteurs

don't like the bright lights
of an open inquiry.

They're like roaches,
scurrying for the dark corner.

This hearing is convened
on Stardate 44780

as a continuing inquiry

into the activities
of Crewman Simon Tarses.

Mr. Tarses,
for your own protection

I have assigned a counsel to you

in the person
of Commander William Riker.

Thank you, sir,
but I don't need protection.

I have not done anything wrong.

Dr. Crusher, have you observed
Crewman Tarses with J'Dan?

Well, yes, he gave him
his injection.

I meant outside of Sick Bay.

I think so.

Perhaps in Ten-Forward.

And whom else have you observed
at these occasions?

I don't understand
what relevance that has.

It was an innocent
social gathering.

If it was so innocent

why do you hesitate
to give us the names?

Thank you, Doctor.

Admiral, if you have a case
to make against Simon Tarses

you had better make it.

Otherwise, I'm stopping
this here and now.

Mr. Tarses, isn't it true
that you have access

to the biological
supplies in Sick Bay?

It's part of my job, yes.

J'Dan used suspensions
of deoxyribose

to carry the encoded files
he stole.

Isn't it true one of your duties
is to prepare these suspensions?

Several technicians
share that job.

And isn't it true
that your security clearance

allow you access to all
the stores and files in Sick Bay

access which you can exercise
at any time?

Because I have access
does not mean I...

What would you say if I told you
there is evidence

that the explosion
in the engine room was caused

by a corrosive chemical...

one that is kept
stored in Sick Bay?

I had nothing to do with that.

How can we believe you?

How can we believe someone
whom we know...

we know to be a liar?

I object.

There is no basis for calling
Crewman Tarses a liar.

Agreed. Mr. Sabin.

Captain, there is a basis

which will become clear
in a moment.

Mr. Tarses, didn't you

deliberately
and premeditatively lie

when you filled out
your personnel application

and compounded that lie by
repeating it to this committee?

What?

Isn't it true

that the paternal grandfather
of whom you speak

was not a Vulcan, but was,
in fact, a Romulan?

That it is Romulan blood
you carry

and a Romulan heritage
that you honor?

We're waiting, Mr. Tarses.

On the advice of my counsel

I refuse to answer
that question in...

in that the answer m...

might serve to incriminate me.

You and Crewman Marcus
will coordinate

to track Tarses's movements
over the last five years.

Ensign Kellogg, I want a list
of all relatives

known associates and especially
old school friends

and make arrangements

to do an encephalographic
polygraph scan...

Mr. Worf.

Yes, Captain?

I need to speak with you.

You are dismissed.

Please get your reports to me
as soon as possible.

Do you see what is
happening here, Mr. Worf?

Sir?

This is not unlike a...

a drumhead trial.

I do not understand.

500 years ago, military officers

would upend a drum
on the battlefield.

They'd sit at it
and dispense summary justice.

Decisions were quick,
punishments severe

appeals denied.

Those who came to a drumhead
were doomed.

But we know
there is a traitor here.

J'Dan has admitted his guilt.

That's true, and he will stand
for his crime.

Tarses has all but done
the same.

How?

He refused to answer
the question

about his Romulan grandfather.

That is not a crime, Worf!

Nor can we infer his guilt
because he didn't respond.

Sir, if a man were not afraid
of the truth, he would answer.

Oh, no.

We cannot allow ourselves
to think that.

The Seventh Guarantee is one
of the most important rights

granted by the Federation.

We cannot take
a fundamental principle

of the Constitution
and turn it against a citizen.

Sir, the Federation does
have enemies.

We must seek them out.

Oh, yes.

That's how it starts

but the road
from legitimate suspicion

to rampant paranoia is very much
shorter than we think.

Something is wrong here,
Mr. Worf.

I don't like
what we have become.

There you are, Mr. Tarses.

Would you care for some lemon?

No, thank you, sir,
this is fine.

Well, tell me a little
about yourself, Crewman.

I know you were born
on Mars Colony.

Yes, sir.

All my life, I wanted
to be in Starfleet.

I went to the Academy's training
program for enlisted personnel.

I took training
as a medical technician

and I served
at several outposts.

The day that I was posted
to the Enterprise

was the happiest day of my life.

Did you ever consider
applying to the Academy

going the whole route?

Apply to become an officer?

Well, my parents wanted me
to, and I thought about it.

I used to sit
under this big tree

near the parade grounds.

An elm tree
with a circular bench?

Yes, that's the one.

I spent many an hour there.

It was my favorite spot
to study.

I used to sit under that tree
and watch the drills.

Picture myself an officer.

I know that it would have made
my mother very happy, but I...

You didn't do it.

No.

I was 18 and eager.

The last thing I wanted
was to spend four years

sitting in classrooms.

I wanted to be out there,
traveling the stars.

I didn't want to wait
for anything.

And now it's done, isn't it?

My career in Starfleet
is finished.

Not if you aren't guilty, Simon.

It doesn't matter.

I lied on my application.

And that mistake will be with me
for the rest of my life.

Mr. Worf has found a brother
who still lives on Mars Colony.

Contact someone there
and have him interviewed.

Admiral Satie...

And start a background checkup

into all his friends
at the Academy training program.

Admiral Satie?

Yes, Captain?

I would like
to have a word with you.

Of course.

In private...

and off the record.

Of course.

After all,
you are my partner in this.

I cannot possibly believe
you'd mean this.

But I do.

This must stop.

It has gone too far.

You lied to him
about the engine room.

There were no volatile chemicals
found there.

It was a tactic...
a way of applying pressure.

We're hounding an innocent man.

And how, may I ask, have you
managed to determine that?

I've talked with him.

Oh, I see.

And he told you he was
a victim of circumstance...

blameless and pure?

No.

He admits his mistake
in falsifying his application

but that does not make him
a traitor.

How can you be
so incredibly naive?

Captain, may I tell you

how I have spent
the past four years?

From planet to Starbase
to planet.

I have no home.

I live on starships
and shuttlecraft.

I haven't seen
a family member in years.

I have no friends,
but I have a purpose.

My father taught me from
the time I was a little girl

still clutching a blanket

that the United Federation
of Planets

is the most remarkable
institution ever conceived

and it is my cause to make sure

that this extraordinary
union be preserved.

I cannot imagine
why you are trying

to block this investigation.

There have been others
in the past who doubted me.

They came to regret it.

The hearings on Simon Tarses
will stop.

If necessary,
I will go to Starfleet Command.

I have news for you, Captain.

I've been in constant contact
with Starfleet Command.

The hearings
are not going to stop.

They're going to be expanded.

What are you saying?

I'm going to get
to the heart of this conspiracy

if it means investigating
every last person on this ship

and every hearing from now on
will be held in the presence

of Admiral Thomas Henry
of Starfleet Security.

I've requested
he be brought here at once.

You never told me about this.

I report to Starfleet Command
directly.

I do not need your permission
or your approval

for my decisions.

Admiral.

What you're doing here...

is unethical.

It's immoral.

I'll fight it.

Do what you must, Captain.

And so will I.

Captain, warp engines
are back on line.

We are ready to commence
restart sequences.

Sir?

Yes?

Yes, yes, of course,
proceed, Mr. Data.

You all right, Captain?

Yes, of course, Number One,
just a little preoccupied.

Admiral Satie has ordered you
to report

to the interrogation room
at 0900 hours tomorrow morning.

You are to be questioned
before the committee.

Captain's Log, supplemental.

Admiral Thomas Henry

who has worked closely
with Norah Satie in the past

has arrived
to observe the hearings.

Your full name?

Jean-Luc Picard.

Rank and position?

Captain,
Federation Starship Enterprise.

How long have you
held this post?

Over three years,
since Stardate 41124.

Very well. Admiral.

If you don't mind, there is
something I would like to say.

If you have a statement,
you'll have an opportunity

to make it later.

I believe that Chapter Four

Article 12
of the Uniform Code of Justice

grants me the right
to make a statement

before questioning begins.

Very well.

I'm deeply concerned
about what is happening here.

It began
when we apprehended a spy...

a man who admitted his guilt

and who will answer
for his crime.

But the hunt didn't end there.

Another man, Mr. Simon Tarses,
was brought to trial...

and it was a trial, no matter
what others choose to call it.

A trial based on insinuation
and innuendo.

Nothing substantive
offered against Mr. Tarses

much less proven.

Mr. Tarses's grandfather
is Romulan

and for that reason,
his career now stands in ruins.

Have we become so... fearful

have we become so cowardly

that we must extinguish a man

because he carries the blood
of a current enemy?

Admiral...

let us not condemn Simon Tarses
or anyone else

because of their bloodlines

or investigate others
for their innocent associations.

I implore you.

Do not continue
with this... proceeding.

End it now.

Captain, do you believe
in the Prime Directive?

Of course.

In fact, it's Starfleet's

General Order Number One,
is it not?

Your point, Admiral?

Would it surprise you to learn

that you have violated
the Prime Directive

a total of nine times
since you took command

of the Enterprise?

I must say, Captain, it
surprised the hell out of me.

My reports to Starfleet

will document the circumstances
of those instances.

Yes, we're looking into
those reports, Captain...

very closely into those reports.

After which, I'm sure we'll have
more questions for you

about your so-called
commitment

to Starfleet Prime Directive.

Captain, could you tell us

just what happened
on Stardate 44390?

I beg your pardon?

Let me refresh your memory.

You were transporting
a Vulcan ambassador... T'Pel.

I was following orders
to... take this ambassador

to a location
near the Neutral Zone.

I don't think
we need the preamble.

In fact, she was not a Vulcan
at all, was she?

She was a Romulan spy.

That's correct.

A spy whom you were delivering

back into the hands
of the enemy.

Tell me, Captain,
when the deception was revealed

and she stood proudly
on the Bridge of a Romulan ship

did you make any effort
to retrieve her?

- No.
- No.

Even though you knew
she carried Federation secrets

that she had been
accumulating for years?

The Enterprise could have been
captured by the Romulans.

Captain Picard did
the only thing he could.

Really, Lieutenant.

And where were you
when this traitor

was on board the Enterprise?

Where was ship's security?

Don't you think
it's questionable judgment

Captain, to have
a security officer

whose father was
a Romulan collaborator?

Lieutenant.

Tell me, Captain.

Have you completely recovered

from your experience
with the Borg?

Yes, I have
completely recovered.

It must have been awful for you

actually becoming one of them

being forced to use
your vast knowledge

of Starfleet operations
to aid the Borg.

Just how many
of our ships were lost?

Thirty-nine?

And a loss of life, I believe,
measured at nearly 11,000.

One wonders
how you can sleep at night

having caused
so much destruction.

I question your actions,
Captain.

I question your choices.

I question your loyalty.

You know, there are
some words I've known

since I was a schoolboy.

"With the first link,
the chain is forged.

"The first speech censured

"the first thought forbidden

"the first freedom denied

chains us all irrevocably."

Those words were uttered
by Judge Aaron Satie

as wisdom and warning.

The first time any man's freedom
is trodden on

we are all damaged.

I fear that today...

How dare you...

you who consort with Romulans...

invoke my father's name

to support
your traitorous arguments?!

It is an offense
to everything I hold dear!

And to hear those words
used to subvert

the United Federation
of Planets.

My father was a great man.

His name stands
for integrity and principle.

You dirty his name
when you speak it.

He loved the Federation

but you, Captain, corrupt it.

You undermine
our very way of life.

I will expose you
for what you are.

I will expose you
for what you are.

I've brought down
bigger men than you, Picard!

I have nothing more to say.

Perhaps we should
call a recess until tomorrow.

Am I bothering you, Captain?

No, please, Mr. Worf, come in.

It is over.

Admiral Henry has called an end

to any more hearings
on this matter.

That's good.

Admiral Satie has
left the Enterprise.

We think we've come so far.

Torture of heretics,
burning of witches

is all ancient history.

Then, before you
can blink an eye

suddenly, it threatens
to start all over again.

I believed her.

I... I helped her.

I did not see what she was.

Mr. Worf, villains
who twirl their mustaches

are easy to spot.

Those who clothe themselves
in good deeds

are well-camouflaged.

I think... after yesterday

people will not be
so ready to trust her.

Maybe.

But she, or someone like her,
will always be with us

waiting for the right climate
in which to flourish

spreading fear
in the name of righteousness.

Vigilance, Mr. Worf.

That is the price
we have to continually pay.

Someone needs to stop Clearway Law.
Public shouldn't leave reviews for lawyers.