Contact across the Solar System

On Trial

Some months later, Amin was put on trial, and the trial became big news. Paul Jenkins grumbled that it was a committee of five judges instead of a jury, and he wrote "Did you know that Switzerland has abolished jury trials in criminal cases?" This provoked a lot of arguments in CTIE's forums about judges vs. juries.

Amin's lawyer Erich Hasenfuss asked for some testimony about SSC people and telepathy, in his attempt to argue that his client had something big to fear. The judges agreed, and they decided to invite some SSC members to testify about their telepathic abilities. Orthon was willing to testify about that, though he preferred to stay on Venus. The presiding judge agreed, and the judges, the prosecutor, and Amin's lawyer then quizzed him over interplanetary space about this ability.

"Why have you been so reticent about your ability?"

"Because we are concerned that we would alarm the people of your world if we discussed it openly. I've seen what some of you say — it's the last bastion of privacy."

"Please give us a quick introduction to your telepathic abilities."

Orthon then explained mind reading and thought projection, noting that some people have more advanced abilities, like mind manipulation and memory reading. He also explained that they are rather short-range abilities, about 2 or 3 meters, though some people have longer ranges.

"Would you use your mind reading in a police investigation?"

"Yes. In fact, we do so on our worlds."

Then the questioning got to side effects of telepathy.

Orthon explained that mind reading seems to cause few or no ill effects on its targets.

"So you could read my mind without me knowing it?" asked one of the judges.

"Yes, in most cases."

Orthon also explained that residents have to avoid projecting thoughts, because it can cause headaches and nightmares and the like for those not experienced in telepathy. However, residents could do thought projection in self-defense if necessary. Several residents have successfully fought off robbers and other criminals by this means, he explained.

Some other Contact-Committee members also testified. Kalna described how she used telepathy to catch a shoplifter when she worked as a cashier. "I noticed someone thinking 'I have to get this stuff out of the store without being spotted' and I looked them over and I found some rather stuffed clothes." She also described how she was careful to avoid attributing her discovery to her telepathy.

Erich then explained that all these facts about SSC telepathy show that his client had very valid concerns about the defense of the Earth against the people of the SSC. The prosecutor responded that what the SSC people testified shows otherwise, and that it is consistent with what was known of SSC people's Earthly activities. He even said that the SSC people were commendably responsible with their telepathy.

"I'd be lying if I said that the thought of telepathy does not make me queasy sometimes. Yet as far as we can find out, the Solar System Community people have done a commendable job of avoiding causing trouble with their abilities."

After taking all the testimony and doing all their cross-examinations, both across interplanetary space and across the courtroom, the judges deliberated and found Amin Iskandari guilty of weapons smuggling, attempted criminal damage, and attempted assault.

"There was enough evidence from the defendant's statements and actions that he had intended to commit those attacks, that he had the weapons for doing so, and that he had attempted to get within range for doing attacks. We considered the defendant's argument that he was defending against SSC telepathy, and we decided that the threat from SSC telepathy was too small to be a significant mitigating factor."

The anti-espionagers considered it yet more proof of the SSC people's villainy, with their willingness to violate people's privacy with their telepathy. "Is getting any of their technology worth the price of letting them read our minds?"

A Watcher, however, noted that the SSC people seem to recognize very well that "with great power comes great responsibility." "They could be blackmailing us like crazy if they wanted to. Think of all the secrets that they could discover if they wanted to. Looking at how we behave, they seem almost too kind to us."

Not long afterward, the people of Switzerland voted in their referendum on continuing to contact the SSC. They voted to continue by a sizable margin, despite Erich Hasenfuss and others campaigning on such issues as SSC mind reading.