10 Weirdest Laws In The Star Trek Universe
7. The Death Penalty For Talos IV
Talos IV is one of the earliest planets ever introduced in Star Trek, with Rigel and Earth being among the others. Captain Pike visited the planet when he commanded the USS Enterprise, encountering the Talosians. They were a powerfully telepathic race who had the ability to beam images into others' minds from vast distances. Once their business on the planet was complete, Starfleet issues a directive that called for the death penalty, should any officer ever visit again.
It was also called the only crime for which the death penalty still applied. However, both General Order 4 and General Order 7 were also called the only examples of this. Admiral Katrina Cornwell told L'rell in 2256 that the Federation had no such penalty. This was after Pike's visit to Talos, yet before the events of The Menagerie, when it is explicitly stated on-screen.
To further complicate matters, Sulu states in 2269 that there is only one exception to the death penalty, with only one example which goes unnamed. It can however be inferred that high treason is grounds for punishment as well, which would then be another break clause.
The only time that the original Talos-related law is broken comes with Spock's abduction of Pike. Here, Starfleet waves punishment due to Pike's own standing within the fleet. It is, to say the least, complicated!