How would a "Q framed me" defense work out in court?
- Thread starter marsh8472
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Things like "energy beings stowed away in my lunch box and now they're trying to reproduce themselves with the help of a 3D printer". That kind of insane.
If someone were using the Q defense in a deceptive way they could bring in a telepath who could sense their deception like in TNG "Drumhead". The accused would need to claim that Q is sending the telepath false signals all the time making it appear as if they are being deceptive. If they used a Vulcan mind meld in an attempt to prove innocence like in TOS "Turnabout Intruder" evidence but actually ended up suggesting that they are making up the Q thing, the accused would have to claim Q is giving the Vulcans false messages in their mind meld. The conspiracy would reach the level of absurdity from the point of view of the jury. But at the same time Q is capable of doing all of that so it is what it is.
If Q really can control minds, then there can never be any defense against him. He can do whatever he wants, force the judge, jury and both attorneys (prosecution and defense) to think what he wants.
And even if there’s any evidence which might help you, Q can simply wish it out of existence. Reality ITSELF can be shaped at his whims. How can there possibly be any way to fight against that?
You go up against Q, you literally cannot win.
It wouldn’t be a case of Q framing you; he can alter reality itself so that you really are guilty.
And even if there’s any evidence which might help you, Q can simply wish it out of existence. Reality ITSELF can be shaped at his whims. How can there possibly be any way to fight against that?
You go up against Q, you literally cannot win.
It wouldn’t be a case of Q framing you; he can alter reality itself so that you really are guilty.
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If Q really can control minds, then there can never be any defense against him. He can do whatever he wants, force the judge, jury and both attorneys (prosecution and defense) to think what he wants.
And even if there’s any evidence which might help you, Q can simply wish it out of existence. Reality ITSELF can be shaped at his whims. How can there possibly be any way to fight against that?
You go up against Q, you literally cannot win.
agreed, if it's the court system vs Q then the court system doesn't have a chance. But if it's a criminal trying to get away with a crime by using Q as a theory to explain away the appearance of guilt, could a criminal get away with a crime on those grounds? Based on your comment could the court just declare him guilty and say "if Q's against you then you're just as good as guilty anyway since we can't do anything about it so we might as well declare you're guilty then"
Well, no. If Q were framing him, he wouldn't be able to get away with it. Hell, it would really be inconvenient if the criminal said "Q did it" and right that very instant Q shows up and declares "No I didn't."
You go up against Q, you literally cannot win.
Unless the point of the game is to make everybody else only think it without it being true.
Most people believe in God, but no one can use the defense that, "God framed me". If God frames me, I'm screwed. If Q frames me, I'm screwed. That is just the way it has to be. 
Or "God made me do it".
Though I was in a tabletop Star Wars game once where our group started joking around that anything that happened...or didn't happen...was simply the Will of the Force.
"Hey, if the Force doesn't want me to massacre that village, it won't happen!"
Though I was in a tabletop Star Wars game once where our group started joking around that anything that happened...or didn't happen...was simply the Will of the Force.
"Hey, if the Force doesn't want me to massacre that village, it won't happen!"
^^And I doubt that "will of the Force" worked in Republic courts.
You could always call Q to the stand. He's just arrogant enough to come (assuming we are starting from a point that Q did do it), and too arrogant to get away with lying.
"We call to the stand Q."
Q appears.
"What's up?"
"Q, did you frame the defendant of the crimes of which he is accused?"
"Of course, I did. But it doesn't matter, he's still going to prison for it."
"I am?"
Q snaps fingers, accused disappears.
Q appears.
"What's up?"
"Q, did you frame the defendant of the crimes of which he is accused?"
"Of course, I did. But it doesn't matter, he's still going to prison for it."
"I am?"
Q snaps fingers, accused disappears.
Picard has a history with Q that few others have, at least that we've seen (Maybe Riker and Janeway). He's also been possesed by an alien force on more than one occasion. Picard wouldn't be concerned with defending himself in court in this situation, he'd be concerned with getting to the truth.
Very unlikely he would be prosecuted in this situation, and if he did I suspect it would be thrown out.
Other defences would be the Redjac defence, the Lonely Among Us defence, the Ux-Mal defence, the Sex alien of Sub Rosa defence, the Tieran defence, Sargon, Komar, etc. etc.
"Of course I didn't rape her! It was the plasma ghost that lives in her candle!"
"The candle you vaporized with a phaser?"
"Oh boy, it seemed like such a good idea at the time."
In this scenario where Q framed somebody for murder, he'd probably be doing it to prove some point or to entertain himself. Just changing reality to make a person guilty accomplishes neither of those goals. He'd probably be doing it to show Picard the failings of his beautiful evolved society he's so proud of.
Could Picard make the Q defense? For him, maybe. Because he's got a significant history of being tormented by Q, and he's got a history of obsessive honesty, not to mention a whole lot of people who owe him their lives.
If Q instead chose to torment some random person this way, definitely not, but why would he do that? He would never frame anyone for murder he didn't like.
Could Picard make the Q defense? For him, maybe. Because he's got a significant history of being tormented by Q, and he's got a history of obsessive honesty, not to mention a whole lot of people who owe him their lives.
If Q instead chose to torment some random person this way, definitely not, but why would he do that? He would never frame anyone for murder he didn't like.
It could be some other member of the Q continuum that we're not familiar with to judge what he/she would or would not do.
Related question.
Would the ‘Mirror universe me did it’ defense work?
Would the ‘Mirror universe me did it’ defense work?
It depends on how much a guilty verdict is worth. If they always throw out these unfalsifiable, baseless, hypothetical situations as valid defenses that cast reasonable doubt then maybe 999 times out of 1000 they'll get it right and prevent an injustice. But 1 out of 1000 times they'll punish an innocent man. If punishing 1 innocent man is worth stopping 999 guilty men from going free then they'd probably decide to use those standards. Kinda like deciding to us capital punishment while knowing some are probably innocent.
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