Star Trek: 10 WORST Things Captain Picard Has Ever Done

10. Let A Planet Die

Boraal II was facing an extinction level event by the seventh season episode of The Next Generation, Homeward. As Captain of the Enterprise-D, Picard was tasked with monitoring the event. Monitoring, but not interfering. Boraal II contained a pre-warp civilisation, fully sentient and intelligent, save for their lack of space travel capability.

For this ‘crime’, they fell under the boot of the Prime Directive. 

Officially, Starfleet could intervene to save them, but they chose not to. Then-Lt. Worf’s brother, Nickolai, was on the planet’s surface as the disaster approached. He was working undercover, so as not to arouse suspicions, and came to deeply care for these people. Upon meeting with Picard, he pled with the man to help save these people, whatever the cost. Picard, stalwart to duty, refused. 

Though Nickolai’s actions following this refusal led to the salvation of that race, Picard’s decision to uphold the Prime Directive would haunt him for years to come. It is fair to say that his decision to help the Baku stemmed directly from this incident, and perhaps the guilt of knowing he had chosen to save Sarjenka years before.