Free The Copy by Grant Boshoff Page B

as you put it?"
    "Not well," said Bartell. "Not well at all. The backlash was unimaginable. And swift."
    "In what way, sir?"
    "The Bioethics Alliance immediately filed suit against us. A Congressional Subcommittee was launched within a matter of days. Our offices, and even my home, were mobbed by protestors. The Christian Coalition, Green Peace, PETA, you name it, they came in droves. The public outcry was so intense that within the week, and despite the law, the FDA had filed an injunction against us to cease all experimental research."
    "You say 'despite the law', Mr. Bartell. Do you mean to imply that your research was not in violation of extant legislation at the time?"
    "I certainly do," Bartell said, looking far less certain than he sounded. "It's a complicated matter. There has been various legislation of one kind or another regarding cloning since the nineties, however there exists to date no federal ban on cloning as such. Some states have implemented outright bans while others denied public funding for research. The boundaries have fluxed back and forth over the years."
    "But at that time specifically, Mr. Bartell, was there a federal ban on such research?"
    "Objection, Your Honor," McBride said rising to his feet. "Question calls for expert testimony."
    "Your Honor," responded May quickly, before the judge could rule, "the witness surely has sufficient depth of knowledge and involvement in the field to qualify as such."
    The judge rubbed his chin while he considered this, then nodded at the defense attorney. "I'll allow it. Read back the question, please."
    After the court reporter read the question, Geoffrey Bartell leaned towards the microphone and said clearly, "No, there was no federal ban on cloning nor stem cell research."
    "I see," said May, nodding sagely, "and was there, at the time, any legislation in this state outlawing such research?"
    "No, there was not."
    "Just to be clear, was there any state legislation whatsoever which might have prevented your research in any direction?"
    "There was not."
    "Thank you, Mr. Bartell. Now, what were the ramifications of this backlash against GenLabs?"
    "It almost destroyed us," said Bartell. A shadow seemed to have passed over him. His eyes took on a glassy effect and his mouth was tight as he spoke. "Customers abandoned ship due to the PR mess. Our stock price plummeted. Within weeks eighty percent of our public funding had dried up. The company was in a tailspin."
    "And what effect did this have on your personally?"
    "I was in a bad way. The company had to be salvaged, new funding sourced, new lines of research developed, and all the while I was being called to testify before congress on a recurring basis. Even working twenty hour days, which I did six out of seven, I couldn't keep up. My wife -" He stopped and looked with anguish at Camilla. A stillness filled the room as something seemed to pass between them, then Camilla carefully reached up and removed her sunglasses, set them in her lap atop the lace gloves, and lifted her eyes to her husband.
    Geoffrey swallowed, then clearing his throat continued slowly, painfully. "My wife was pregnant at the time. With our first. I desperately wanted to be with her, to console and care for her on the bad days, and share those perfect moments on the good. But-" Geoffrey swallowed hard and looked down into his lap.
    "But you couldn't, could you?"
    "No. No, I couldn't. I had responsibilities from which I couldn't turn away. Hundreds of families relied on GenLabs for their livelihood. And who knows how many more lives we would touch through our research, how many millions who might have a future because of the work we were doing." Geoffrey shook his head, slowly as if he carried the weight of the world upon him. "I couldn't turn my back on them."
    "So you came up with a solution, didn't you?"
    "Yes," Geoffrey said evenly, "yes I did."
    "And might I presume this to be mistake number two, this solution?"
    "Yes. Although I didn't