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Fiction. © Copyright 1998, Jim Loy
"I was investigating the death of Dr. Smithson. And I was questioning our investigator robot, R. Jomiot."
"You do know that questioning a robot should be done by a roboticist?"
"I knew what I was doing. I can ask questions as well as you can."
"Your interrogation seems to have caused the robot to damage his positronic brain. Does that sound like you knew what you were doing?"
"How was I to know?" he asked, as he squirmed.
"You are a detective. You know the rules. Why break the rules?"
"Hey, the robot killed a man. I was there. I saw it happen. The robot admitted it to me, too. We got that part on tape."
"And a robot cannot kill a human."
"'Cause of those 'Laws of Robotics?' Robots can probably break those laws anytime they want."
Could they? Pearson, the roboticist, showed Detective Striker part of the tape:
Detective R. Jomiot (robot): The man I shot, did I kill him?Detective Striker (human): I can't give you that information.
Then the robot became rigid, and never moved again.
"Why did you tell him that you couldn't give him that information?"
"I figured that I better not tell it that it killed a man. Who knows what it might do, then? Just what happened, maybe. It might go catatonic. Who knows?"
"But, if he had not killed Dr. Smithson, you would have reassured him. So, the robot knew, from your refusal to give that information, that it had killed Dr. Smithson. That is why he shut down. Because you confirmed that he had killed a human."
"Jeez. I didn't mean it."
"You're right. You didn't mean it. You just made a mistake. Ok, that's all for now."
Pearson was a police roboticist. He dealt with the robot detectives. And, he helped investigate the few crimes in which robots played a part. There were always rumors about robots committing crimes in the distant past. But, there were never any documented cases.
He knew that Detective R. Jomiot carried a pistol. He would load it with stun charges, and use it for emergency only. A robot couldn't kill. It was part of "the First Law of Robotics." So, he would never load the pistol with real bullets. This pistol had one real bullet in it. Could R. Jomiot have made a mistake. Could he have loaded a real bullet into his gun? It was difficult to believe that a robot could make such a mistake. But, that was a much simpler solution than any other scenario.
Pearson studied Striker's report. Striker was questioning Dr. Smithson about a crime. There had been a break-in at Smithson's laboratory. Detective R. Jomiot was observing this from a distance. Dr. Smithson pulled a gun, from his desk, and pointed it at Striker. Striker flinched, as he thought that Smithson was going to shoot him. R. Jomiot fired and Smithson fell dead.
Not a murder, anyway. Why had Smithson pulled a gun? That didn't make sense. He calls the police, to report a break-in, and then pulls a gun on the police.
Pearson read the robotics lab report. R. Jomiot's shutdown had damaged his positronic brain. There might still be some information in it. But it was unlikely. They were still studying the brain.
Maybe R. Jomiot had given his gun to Detective Striker to be loaded. Maybe it was Striker's mistake. He would have to ask Striker some more questions.
Later that day, Pearson went to Striker's office to ask him some more questions. He stopped outside Striker's office. He could hear a conversation going on.
"Hey Striker, I didn't do anything. Why you pickin' on me?"
"I'm askin' the questions here, punk."
Pearson didn't hear any more. He was stunned, as if someone had hit him between the eyes. He didn't know how long he stood there. "I'm asking the questions here." That is how a robot should be dealt with. "The man I shot, did I kill him?" "I'm asking the questions here." The robot's question would remain unanswered. He would not shut down. And it was exactly what Striker would say. Was Striker that smart? Did he plan the whole thing? Did he set up Dr. Smithson's death?
Pearson turned around and knocked on the door of the Chief's office. "I need to know all about Detective Striker."
Striker was smart. His dumb-cop act was just that, an act. It turned out that Striker and R. Jomiot had been partners for two months. He could learn a lot about robots that way. No college courses in robotics. Did he know enough about a robot, to be able to destroy it's mind with a well-planned comment?
Pearson imagined Striker questioning Dr. Smithson about the break-in. "Do you keep any firearms here?" "Yes, I have a gun right here in my desk." "May I see it?" Smithson pulls out the gun. Striker says, "I want to try something, here. Point it at me." Striker flinches away as Smithson points the gun at him. And, the robot shoots Smithson.
Why? Maybe Striker was involved in the break-in, somehow. Maybe Smithson could identify one of those involved. Maybe, somehow, Striker knew that in advance. Maybe. Maybe.
Pearson explained his theories to the Chief. It was all hypothetical. But, the Chief had it all investigated. And they found that Striker had been involved in the break-in, with two other men. Smithson had seen one of the men, who had fled. Striker had also been involved in many other crimes, over a 25 year period. He went to jail. But, he never admitted to loading a bullet into Detective R. Jomiot's gun. They never convicted him of murder by robot.
Author's note: It would be satisfying to confront Striker with the above information, and have him confess or make some self-incriminating comment. But, Striker is too smart. Sorry.
Striker was involved in the break-in. He was present, when the robot killed Smithson. He had the opportunity to change bullets. He had the motive. Wouldn't a jury convict him of murder? Maybe. Maybe not. It's still pretty hypothetical. I have my doubts. So does the jury.