fixing a hole where the rain gets in

[didorothy]

[DI Tyler is on the Plane with - big surprise - stacks of paperwork. It's been a long absence.]

Right. Inspect Javert, you wanted a word? And Dr House, I want a word with you.

[Sam moves one of the folders filled with paperwork - distracted or distracting?]

And if anyone else needs anything, now's a good time to ask.

Comments

[didorothy]

[oh god, not this]

Undeniably true. All efforts to change this, however, have resulted in catastrophic losses for my team of police officers. I'm not inclined to throw them to the wolves when they're still recovering.

[bringme24601.livejournal.com]

Still recovering? What happened to your men?

[didorothy]

[Sam is holding tightly to his professionalism; it gives him composure and strips away emotions - grief, guilt, anger, hate]

In protecting our city, we came into conflict with one of the criminal elements here. My team was caught and held prisoner. The network I've set up provided the back-up we needed to escape, but we did not leave without---our own losses.

[bringme24601.livejournal.com]

While your men clearly performed admirably, these are risks we expect to take. And whether or not it is convenient, it is my opinion that it is absolutely necessary that we establish unquestioned order here. I have no doubt that it will be difficult and may require resources and sacrifices, but it must be done.

[didorothy]

Do you have any special abilities, Inspector? Superstrength? Amazing speed? Can you control fire? Can you rip a man's arm off with your bare hand? Do you have even mild telepathic abilities?

[bringme24601.livejournal.com]

I have the law on my side.

[didorothy]

The French law? What year? What about the British law, 2007 or 1974, take your pick? Time Lord law? American and Canadian law, about 2008?

[bringme24601.livejournal.com]

The French law is all I need. It is how I have lived my life and it is what I intend to die for.

[didorothy]

And the rest of the people here are to obey that law as well?

[bringme24601.livejournal.com]

Absolutely. Monsieur the Detective Inspector, are you suggesting that this place should be considered beyond the jurisdiction of French law? In my thoughts I have decided that while I do not know what this place is, I can infer one of three things: 1) Since I seem to stumble upon this place while in France, it is merely a part of France that is hidden and thus is subject to French law. 2) Since everyone here speaks French, I can only assume they are French and are thus subject to French law, whether or not this place is. 3) If this place is, for whatever impossible reason, not in France, I have found it, and judging from its anarchical state, it is clearly under no governing body, and thus I claim it in the name of France, making its people subject to French law.

Even disregarding this, there is absolutely no reason we should not enforce that which is absolute good in a place that is clearly in desperate need of it.

As my superior officer, I obviously will not act without your consent. However, I strongly advise that you not throw this land--strange as it may be--to the wolves.

[didorothy]

[while the third one is actually fairly reasonable, Sam is amazed by the first two]

No one here actually speaks French. Well, Diva does. I'm talking in English right now. By your reasoning, this place is also part of Britain and Japan and God knows where else.

[bringme24601.livejournal.com]

...Monsieur the Detective Inspector, are you feeling alright? You are speaking perfect French, just as I am.

And even if you were not mistaken, as fair as I have seen, neither Britain nor the orient have lay any sort of claim to this land, let alone try to display some degree of order. No, the law is left to us to uphold.

You are... fair-minded, Detective Inspector Tyler, but if you don't mind my saying so, this is best left to a judge. We are expected to enforce the law, not consider its worth or interpretation. Its worth is self-evident and its interpretation is left to the court. If we allow any doubt into our minds, criminals will abuse it. Surely you know this as well as I.

[didorothy]

The Machine that's in control of this place translates everything we say. It gets inside our heads.

I agree that we enforce the law, but leaving the rest to the courts and the legislators has the problem that we don't have any courts or legislators here. Moving past the second one, there are no judges here, and we can't bring criminals back to the judges in France. We could get a jury of peers here, but not a judge.

[bringme24601.livejournal.com]

Things that we do not have can be built and arranged, Detective Inspector Tyler. Problems, yes, but not insurmountable ones.

[didorothy]

All right, then. Any suggestions on what we should do as far as judges go? And attorneys.

[bringme24601.livejournal.com]

There seem to be quite a variety of individuals here. I'm sure someone can rise to the occasion. Still, I believe we are getting ahead of ourselves. While we waste time chasing down all of the little pieces that shall make up the arm of the law here, we allow many to go unpunished.

I suggest our first action should be to find a means to restrain and contain individuals here such that they cannot simply spirit themselves away as I have seen. I know little about this place so I know not of who might be knowledgeable enough to provide this, but I am certain that it can be done.

Once that is in place, we can begin to administer justice in the first-hand sense. We may detain criminals for as long as it may take to provide judges and attorneys should they feel they are in need of one. Then the rest shall fall into place.

At least, that is how I would do it.