Cadet Stevenson

CADET STEVENSON

Real Name: Stevenson (first name unrevealed)

Class: Human technology-user

Occupation: Judge cadet

Group Affiliation: None

Known Relatives: None

Aliases: None

Base of Operations: Mega-City One, 2045 AD

First Appearance: Judge Dredd #1 (August, 1994)

Powers: Cadet Stevenson was trained in law enforcement, wore body armor, and was armed with firearms.

History: (Judge Dredd #1, 2) - The Judges of Mega-City acted as judge, jury and if needed executioner, and the most notorious of the judges was Judge Dredd. The President ordered that police officers arrest criminals before being judged, but Dredd repeatedly ignored the new protocols. A dirigible was reported for unauthorized use of airspace, and when Dredd hopped his motorbike aboard the flying machine he found it full of cybernarcs, so he shot the dealers inside and exploded the dirigible, getting him flack from his handler Becker and Judges Solomon, Fillmore and Burns. The cybernarcs disappeared from the crash, and Dredd suspected police corruption. Judge Fargo called him in, congratulating him for keeping the spirit of the law if not the letter, and asked him to train cadets Maclean, Stevenson and Lewis. Dredd took them to the rehabilitation facility, where he found a man he'd sentenced earlier signing in, and told him he was late, adding 60 days to his sentence. Lewis thought he was being harsh, but Dredd replied that there was no trust in the law without fear. Dredd showed them the spy-eye station, and discovered Becker was working an illegal gambling racket with Officer Frye. He said he'd go easy on him if the spy-eye showed who took the cybernarcs. Becker said some crooked cops took the drugs to Mickey the Stump, so Dredd gave him 99 years in prison instead of 100. He went to Stump's himself, but fell into an ambush. Dredd promised to take out as many of Mickey's men as he could, but he was ambushed by Officer Frye, who knocked him out with an ax-handle before dying himself in the crossfire. Mickey decided to hold Dredd for ransom, using his inside officer Manfredi to deliver the ransom note. Solomon, Fillmore and Burns panicked, because while they'd secretly be glad if Dredd was dead they know Fargo might use his death as an excuse to push the power of the Judges against the President. Judge Dredd kept waking up and shooting Mickey's men, so Mickey plugged him into a cybernarc cart, hoping the experience would lobotomize him. The Judges emptied their life savings, and told Manfredi to bring back Dredd. Mickey decided he didn't want to share the cash, so he shot Manfredi, but was killed in turn by his elderly fiancée, whose son was a cop. The cadets, particularly Lewis, were distraught by Dredd's disappearance, and Officer Goodwill, who was suspicious of Manfredi, reported where Dredd was held captive. They wrecked the power generator, disrupting the cybernarc carts, and the users went berserk. Dredd ordered the death penalty for his kidnappers, and let the junkies carry out the execution. As a result of his investigation 175 officers were jailed for corruption, and Lewis complained that all she and the other cadets got was a thank you. Dredd told Solomon, Fillmore and Burns they were under arrest for paying a ransom in violation of anti-terror statues. They reminded him they'd tried to save his life, and Judge Dredd said that was their mistake.

(Judge Dredd #3) - Judge Dredd and cadets Maclean and Stevenson responded when the Video Liberation Army held the board of the Cellular Videonet hostage, demanding free videos for all of Mega-City. Dredd tried negotiating, telling the cadets the public's trust in law enforcement was at an all-time low because of the corruption ring he uncovered. When one of the radicals tossed a board member to their death that gave Dredd all the excuse he needed to swarm the building and gun down the perps. The CVN board was thrilled at the ratings on their own network's coverage of the hostage situation. Cadet Lewis tried to keep the peace during the police shortage, making sure perps were judged and booked in a timely fashion. She told Dredd she was worried criminals wouldn't wait for them to get reorganized, and he reminded her they had to clean up their own house if they were to be effective peacekeepers. Dredd met with Fargo, telling him he was suffering hallucinations from his time in the VR world, and reported that post-perp Richard Magog was in the hospital after trying to jump the police wire at the hostage situation. Fargo said he'd pay Magog a visit, since Fargo's conviction of him as a young prosecutor led to his rise to power. Fargo said times were changing, and called a meeting of all the Judges, telling them they were all fired.

(Judge Dredd #4, 5) - Cadets Maclean and Stevenson walked through the Institute for Ethical Violence, and found that new recruits were being trained to kill perps, not subdue or main them like in their day. Fargo called a press conference, going over the history of the Judges, which began in 2038 after President Frankowski dissolved the judiciary branch thanks to Fargo's influence. He blamed Judge corruption on police corruption, saying the President had to leave policing entirely to judges and disband the police. The first class of Institute Judges would bring a new era to street justice, but in the meantime he was installing Justice Machines around the county, where officers could deliver perps and have them judged. He admitted there would be no judiciary system for 48 hours, but he retained Dredd as a judge to keep an eye on things. Riots broke out in the streets, and Dredd arrested a crowd of 148 after he convinced them he meant business, throwing grenades and using flamethrowers against them. He called Cadet Lewis at the Hall of Justice, and she warned him the jail was already almost full of perps. Officer Rusk was gunned down by a biker gang wearing Judge uniforms, and Dredd rushed him to the infirmary, but couldn't save his life. He returned to the Hall of Justice to deal with the full house, and Lewis told him they couldn't find most of the arresting officers to figure out who was charged with what. Dredd got the sentencing rolling by putting a gun to each perp's head to force them to tell him what they were arrested for. Once everyone was processed Lewis looked out the window and saw the biker gang waiting for them. Sergeant Macgregor went to confront the gang and was gunned down. Maclean and Stevenson used the spy-eye to listen in on the gang, learning that they were called the Ministry of Fear and were systematically destroying Halls of Justice around the city. They wanted Dredd taken alive, so Dredd came up with a plan, dressing all the officers present as judges, but telling them they in no way had earned the honor. They attacked the Ministry en masse, and the Ministry refused to use lethal force because they weren't sure which judge was Dredd, giving them a disadvantage. The Ministry fled, but Dredd subdued on of the members, who shot himself in the head rather than answer any questions about the Ministry.

(Judge Dredd #7) - Fargo had a meeting with Clarence Suskind, head of the Institute for Incarceration, who assured Fargo he could handle the predicted huge influx of new prisoners that would arrive in the prison system once the Justice Machines began operation. Dredd reported to Fargo about the Ministry, and Fargo said he should let the police handle them, because he was too valuable to risk his life going after them. Cadet Lewis told Dredd she'd requisitioned advanced weaponry for their Hall of Justice so they'd be prepared if the Ministry struck again. Magog brought Dredd to the World, showing him that Suskind was using it as a VR torture center for the unconscious prisoners he'd taken in. Magog destroyed the virus he'd corrupted the World with, waking the prisoners, who rose up, killing Suskind and his guards. Dredd rounded up his cadets and they quelled the prison riot.

(Judge Dredd #8) - Dredd expected the Ministry of Fear to attack his hall of justice again, and had Cadets Lewis and Stevenson monitor their movements. Judge Fargo arrived to inspect, and when the Ministry headed south Dredd wanted to go after them. Fargo reiterated that he wanted Dredd to leave them to the police, and asked for a tour of the hall. Fargo met officer Anderson, who admired him, but when they shook hands Anderson had a psychic vision of the Ministry storming Washington and killing the President. Over Fargo's objections, Dredd left the hall, using an experimental flying Justice Machine to fly to D.C. The Ministry had just massacred Congress and were attempting an assault on the White House. Dredd met President Frankowitz, who initially thought Fargo had sent Dredd to execute him. Dredd said he was following the Judiciary Responsibilities Act, which made the President's safety in a state of emergency a judge's number one priority. They fled to the Lincoln Memorial, with Minister Synn and underlings reluctant to shoot for fear of hitting Dredd. After cornering Dredd they overwhelmed him, beating him into submission, and aimed their weapons at the President. Frankowski recently acquired a psi-ballistic vaporizer from visiting aliens, and used it to incinerate members of the Ministry. Minister Synn had him in his sights, but Dredd jumped in front of the bullet, taking it in the arm. Synn realized he'd failed the Overseer by injuring Dredd and committed suicide, shooting himself in the head. Dredd and the President's public popularity soared after Mega-City saw their heroics, with fans calling for Dredd to replace VP Robert Booth. Dredd returned to the hall of justice, where Lewis told him Fargo had lost it after he left against orders, demoting her and the other cadets back to basic training as punishment. Dredd said he was following the law, and after saying a quick goodbye pondered that there was something wrong with Fargo, who'd just started training a new group of judges.

(Judge Dredd #10) - The Justice Machines systematically processed thousands of new perps for prison, and VP Booth assassinated the President. Since he was under Fargo's thumb he agreed to hand control of federal police over to the judiciary, making Fargo a de facto ruler of Mega-City One. Judge Dredd learned that the Ministry had been using advanced weapons from the Institute of Ethical Violence, and pieced things together, realizing Fargo was behind the Ministry. He went to confront Fargo, and ran into his former Cadets, who were all pleased to see him except Lewis.

(Judge Dredd #11) - Fargo had shot Dredd with simu-death bullets, putting him in a state of suspended animation, and Fargo intended to wake him after his own death. In 2099 Fargo reached mandatory retirement age and died, while Dredd was revived during Fargo's funeral, which was attended by Lewis, Maclean and Stevenson. Dredd was ushered to see interim Chief Judge Goodman, who led him to a room where a holovid was to play Fargo's will. Fargo appeared as a holovid and told Dredd he couldn't allow him to interfere with his plans for a new world order, and hoped he understood. After Dredd's "death" President Booth pushed the nuclear button, destroying all of America except for Mega-City One, Mega-City-Two and Texas City. The people revolted, leading to a massacre, but Fargo and his newly trained judges responded, battling Booth's mek army and executing the president, leaving the judiciary as the sole government, and achieving Fargo's life goal. Fargo made plans for Dredd to be appointed Chief Judge after his death, and revealed that he had his own consciousness stored in the Hall of Justice mainframe so he could offer Dredd continued guidance. Dredd rejected his plans, saying he was guilty of mass murder, and with Goodman's help erased Fargo's consciousness from the mainframe. Dredd told Goodman he would stay on as administrator because Dredd was a lawman, not a bureaucrat, and taking the position would make him complicit in Fargo's crimes after the fact. Dredd was ready to pick up where he left off.

Comments: Created by Andy Helfer & Michael Avon Oeming.