Object

Data's Regular Status Reports on Lal

A chronological packet of periodic status reports—primarily transmitted digital logs with occasional printed copies—detailing Lal's developmental milestones, behavioral observations, diagnostic readouts, timestamps, and Data's authored annotations. Documents carry Starfleet headers and terse technical phrasing alongside unusually tender observational notes. Characters consult these pages and console readouts as concrete evidence, fingers scrolling or flipping through entries while custody tensions harden.

2 appearances

Purpose

To record and communicate Lal's cognitive, behavioral, and maintenance progress to Starfleet command and interested parties; to provide an auditable, dated account of caregiving and developmental interventions.

Significance

Functions as the decisive documentary evidence that anchors the custody conflict: the reports prove Data's sustained caretaking, frame his moral claim to parenthood, and expose the admiral's institutional designs. They operate as a narrative lever that converts private care into a public administrative dispute and escalates the episode's central ethical stakes.

Appearances in the Narrative

When this object appears and how it's used

2 moments

S3E16 · The Offspring

Haftel's Claim: The Battle for Lal

Data references his regular status reports as concrete evidence of his responsible caretaking — the reports operate narratively as material proof of oversight and a bridge between private parenting and institutional scrutiny.

Before: In Data's possession as transmitted digital logs and copies previously sent to the admiral; functionally archived in Data's files.

After: Still in Data's records and in possession of the Daystrom/Starfleet channels that have received them; cited but not physically transferred in this scene.

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S3E16 · The Offspring

Custody of Lal — Parent Versus Protocol

Data references his 'regular status reports on Lal' as a factual basis for the admiral's interest and as evidence of his responsible stewardship — the reports function narratively as both protective documentation and inadequate legalistic proof against an institutional claim.

Before: Compiled and transmitted to the Daystrom annex/Haftel as ongoing documentation of Lal's development.

After: Remains part of Starfleet/Daystrom records; referenced in the argument but insufficient to resolve custody questions in the ready room discussion.

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