Paul took a quick look toward the members again. Did they notice Silver got the name of the equipment wrong? That's a small but telling error.
"I was startled and upset. Who wouldn't be? I'd been let down by my leading chief petty officer. It happens sometimes. I knew that. But I hadn't expected it because Chief Asher appeared to be a capable sailor."
Oh, man, it's a good thing Sheriff Sharpe isn't listening to this. Or any chief from the Michaelson. They'd probably jump the gate and break Silver's jaw.
"What did I do? I endeavored to solve the problem as quickly as possible. If I'd had to involve my department head and my commanding officer, I would certainly have done so. But by using initiative and acting calmly, I was able to acquire the needed spare in the nick of time." Lieutenant Silver paused, nodding toward everyone in the courtroom. "That's what a good officer is supposed to do. I didn't and don't ask for praise for doing that. I didn't even tell anyone because whoever got credit for fixing that equipment wasn't important. Getting it fixed was what counted. Then I made another mistake."
Silver drew in a deep breath, his expression now bearing a shade of sorrow. "I entrusted the spare to Chief Asher on Saturday morning. How was I to know he'd try to install it single-handedly? I can understand why the chief didn't want his own lapse to be widely know, but I never guessed he'd take that kind of risk."
Paul noticed Commander Carr's hands. They were gripping a light metal rod so tightly the fingers were white, and the rod was slowly bending under the pressure. You and me both, Commander Carr. Right now I'm wishing the stuff Silver's accused of carried the death penalty.
Lieutenant Silver shook his head. "Apparently, Chief Asher chose to do so. Don't ask me how he got multiple authorization codes. I'm certain he didn't have mine. If only the engineering logs hadn't been damaged, they'd prove this."
"I agree as well that I should have been more forthcoming with Captain Hayes, but the night of 19 September I had no idea of what Chief Asher had attempted. It never occurred to me to link the problem with the power transformer to the explosion and subsequent fire. Once I began to realize what might have happened, it rattled me. I admit that. My concern for Chief Asher caused me to provide an inadequate report to my commanding officer that night. Not deliberately, but out of distress engendered by concern for my personnel."
"As to the other charges, I took care of my equipment. The equipment losses in Forward Engineering are tragic, but nowhere near as tragic as the loss of Chief Asher. I don't know what drove him to his actions, but I do regret them. To fault me for those actions and their consequences is not only unfair, but would set a dangerous precedent for every other officer whose equipment was damaged or lost due to unforeseen events."
"I did not damage the information in the ship's engineering logs! I don't even possess the necessary software to do that. Did those who searched my stateroom find such software? No. Do they have any evidence I was the one responsible for the damage to those logs? No. Ask them. They know what I say is true."
"Manslaughter? My God. Is every officer who loses a sailor under tragic circumstances to be charged with causing that death? I did not order Chief Asher to repair that piece of equipment contrary to safety regulations. Ask them about that. Do they have any evidence I did so? Could they produce anyone who heard such an order? No, they could not, because it did not happen."
"I admit I committed some errors of omission in my statement to Captain Shen's investigation, but this was an error of the heart. I honestly believed any misconduct on Chief Asher's part would cause the Navy to deny his family the benefits they deserved, as well as besmirching the reputation of a man who could no longer defend himself."
Paul noticed a sharp pain, and looked down to see his hands clenched so tight the nails were digging into his palms.
Lieutenant Silver looked around the courtroom again, his expression confident once more. "Of course I mentioned this concern to my division. Of course I did. I deeply regret that they so misinterpreted my remarks. But none of them, not one, claims that I ordered them to lie. Because I had nothing to ask them to lie about."
"I ask that you acquit me of all of these unfair charges. In the name of justice. In the name of honor. In the name of refusing to scapegoat an officer for an accident he could not prevent, and a death which will always shadow his own life. Thank you. Thank you for giving me a chance to defend myself. Thank you for judging me as you would wish to be judged in my place."
Lieutenant Silver stood and began walking back toward the defense table. Paul heard a small sound and leaned closer to Commander Carr. He could barely make out the words she was muttering under her breath. "Five minutes. Give me five minutes to cross-examine that contemptible weasel. Just five minutes."
Paul leaned back again, trying to suppress his own anger. But Commander Carr won't get five minutes. Or one minute. Because Silver's unsworn statement can't be subjected to cross-examination, or questioning by the members. No gets to pick apart his self-serving lies and throw them back at him. And the worst part is that everything Silver said sounded so reasonable. Invert the truth, the truth as I believe the evidence proves it, and it sounds perfectly reasonable. It's all Chief Asher's fault. The fault of a man who can no longer defend himself. Chief Asher, I swear, if Lieutenant Silver somehow beats these charges, I'm keep after him until I find charges that will stick. I owe that to you. Silver's not going to walk away from this, no matter how good an actor he is.
Judge Halstead had also kept his reaction to Lieutenant Silver's statement to himself. Now he looked at Commander Carr. "Is trial counsel prepared for closing argument?"
"Yes, Your Honor." Commander Carr's voice was as smooth and confident as Lieutenant Silver's had been. She strode to the center of the court, facing the members. "Captain Mashiko, members of the court, you've all heard the evidence. There's no need for me to restate everything. No need to go back over Lieutenant Silver's knowingly false statements to his commanding officer. No need to recite the many errors he deliberately made in his sworn statement to Captain Shen. No need to point out Lieutenant Silver's inexplicable disappearance from his duties as command duty officer during exactly the time period when the engineering logs of the USS Michaelson were damaged. No need to review the quality of Chief Asher's service, which had never been questioned prior to this. Not even any need to point out that in his statement Lieutenant Silver repeatedly failed to correctly name the equipment which needed repair in Forward Engineering. Equipment which was his responsibility as main propulsion assistant, yet he is so unfamiliar with it even now that he cannot identify it properly.
"No, I want you to consider three facts. The first is that Lieutenant Scott Silver's commanding officer, Captain Hayes, no longer has any confidence in Lieutenant Silver. What does it take to convince a commanding officer that one of his officers is untrustworthy? Such a determination, as you all know, is not made at the drop of a hat.
"Secondly, Captain Shen, the officer whose investigative report initially cleared Lieutenant Silver of fault, no longer believes his conclusions were correct. He, too, expressed a lack of confidence in Lieutenant Silver. What does it take to independently convince two commanding officers than another officer is untrustworthy? Two officers entrusted with command of warships of the United States Navy, two officers with extensive experience and great responsibilities, and neither of them believes Lieutenant Silver."
"Thirdly…" Commander Carr spun around suddenly, her arm raised and finger pointed at Lieutenant Silver. "When cornered, what did Lieutenant Silver do? Who did he blame for everything that went wrong? A dead man." A ragged edge of fury crept into Commander Carr's voice. "A dead chief petty officer. A professional who had demonstrated years of selfless service to his comrades, to his superiors, to the Navy and to his country. That's who Lieutenant Silver blames. Someone unable to defend himself. Someone no longer able to counter Lieutenant Silver's self-serving and totally false statements. Someone who gave his life in the service of his country. Lieutenant Silver claims he doesn't care who gets the credit, but he doesn't hesitate to attach blame to the dead! And worst of all, Lieutenant Silver didn't even care how his actions and orders endangered Chief Asher, does not even now accept responsibility for his culpable and criminally careless behavior which forced Chief Asher into a the situation which caused his death."