Illegal Alien

"No," said Dale. "No, it stank to high heaven. Don’t you see? A whole population of people were treated like suspects solely because they were rales in a likely age group. They weren’t forced to donate blood, but ~r idea caught on like wildfire in the community — and anyone who didn’t make a donation was suspect. See? It was a gross violation of civil rights. Suddenly people were being compelled to prove themselves i

"But they’re only seven of them!"

"It’s still a civil-rights issue," said Dale. "Trust me."

"So the prosecution won’t try to introduce the blood evidence?"

"On the contrary, I’m sure they will. It’ll be a fight, but we’ll win — at least on that point."

"You’re sure?"

Rice took another bite of his sandwich. "Well — nothing’s ever completely certain."

Frank frowned. "I was afraid of that."

Pretrial motions were supervised by the same judge who would preside over the actual trial: Drucilla Pringle. Pringle was forty-nine years old. She was the kind of woman usually referred to as "handsome" rather than "beautiful," with smooth, cold features. Her skin was white; her hair chestnut brown, cut short. She wore wire-frame glasses and little makeup.

The biggest fight at this stage was over whether the trial should be televised. Judge Pringle ultimately ruled that it would be, given the extraordinary interest the peoples of the entire world had in the outcome of the case. But there were dozens of other motions as well:

"Your Honor," said Dale, "we move that the jury be sequestered. The media interest in this trial will be huge, and there’s no way to keep the jury from being exposed to possibly biased coverage."

"Your Honor," said Ziegler, "I think we’ve all been conscious ever since Simpson of the incredible hardship sequestration poses. Surely with a trial that may go on at great length, we can’t make prisoners out of all the jurors and alternates."

"I’ve read your brief on this, Mr. Rice," said Drucilla Pringle, "but I agree with Ms. Ziegler. The jurors will be instructed to avoid media coverage, but they will get to go home and sleep in their own beds each night."

"Very well," said Dale. "We move that no photographic evidence of Dr. Calhoun’s corpse be introduced. Such evidence could only serve to inflame the jury."

"Your Honor," said Linda Ziegler, rising, "the People vigorously oppose any limitation on photographic evidence. The jury questio

Judge Pringle frowned while she considered this. Finally: "You lose this one, Mr. Rice. But, Ms. Ziegler, I will shut you down so fast it’ll make your head spin if your use of the photos ever goes beyond the merely probative."

’Very well," said Dale, "but we further move, Your Honor, out of deference to Dr. Calhoun’s family, that only the jury be shown the photos of the corpse and removed organs."

"The public is entitled to something, Mr. Rice," said Pringle.

’’We suggest stylized drawings be made, representing the injuries."

’You’re setting me up for another battle with the media lawyers," said Pringle, "and I’m not convinced your concern is over the family’s feelings.

You’re hoping for a hung jury, and don’t want to inflame the potential jurors for any second trial."

Dale spread his arms. "You do me a disservice, Your Honor."

Pringle scowled, unconvinced. "Pending review of the arguments fom the media attorneys, I’ll agree to a ban on publication of the pictures while this trial is in progress; I’ll reserve judgment on whether the ban should remain in place following the handing down of a verdict."

Thank you, Your Honor," said Dale. "Next, the defense moves…"

The jury questio

In addition, it asked about the prospective juror’s beliefs concerning the legal process: Do you believe that a defendant in a criminal case should testify or produce some evidence to prove that he or she is not guilty? If yes, please explain why.

To each of the following statements, indicate if you strongly agree, agree, disagree, disagree strongly, or have no opinion: a. "If the prosecution goes to the trouble of bringing someone to trial, the person is probably guilty." b. "Celebrities are treated better by our court system than other people."

The questio

Which of the following best describes how you would describe the media coverage overall? Biased in favor of the prosecution?

Biased in favor of the defense? Basically fair to both sides?

It also asked about the Tosoks: What was your first reaction to hearing that one of the Tosok explorers was a suspect in this case?

Have you ever seen a Tosok in person? If yes, please explain the circumstances.

Will you hold the prosecution to a higher standard than is legally required because the defendant is from another planet?

Because of possible repercussions for the human race?

Does the fact the defendant comes from a civilization more technologically advanced than our own make it unlikely in your mind that he could commit murder?

And then came what Linda Ziegler had dubbed the "space-cadet questions":

Before the arrival of the Tosoks on Earth, did you read any nonfiction books, articles, or magazines concerning life on other worlds? If yes, please specify, and briefly describe what you recall having read.

Have you ever read any fiction (including science fiction) dealing with life on other worlds, or with aliens having come to Earth? If yes, please specify, and briefly describe what you recall having read.

Which of the following TV series have you watched regularly now or in the past? For those that you have seen, indicate whether you agreed with, disagreed with, or had no opinion about the portrayal of alien lifeforms:

ALF

Babylon 5

Lost in Space

Mork Mindy

Any Star Trek series

The X-Files Members of LASFS, the Los Angeles Science Fantasy Society, helped in putting together a series of such questions. Apparently, anyone who agreed with the ALF, Star Trek, or Mork Mindy portrayals of aliens would be biased in favor of the defense, whereas those who liked the Babylon 5, Lost in Space, or X-Files portrayals would be biased toward the prosecution.

Regardless of which way they leaned, any out-and-out SF fans or space buffs had to be disqualified, hence these questions:

What’s the name of Mr. Spock’s father?

Do you know what the initials SETI stand for?

Have you ever attended a science-fiction convention?

Have you ever seen a UFO?