Captain Lianne Marcus

Best known for her exemplary service during the Federation-Cardassian War, Captain Marcus is perhaps one of the most commonly debated figures in modern fleet ethics. During her service aboard the U.S.S. Skyfall, then Lieutennant Marcus used her position as tacticle officer to methodically pick apart Cardassian ships with a terrifying efficiency. She maintained warm, benevolent tendencies for the majority of her command. However, when the situation demanded it, she was reportedly never hesitant to discard traditional Starfleet mercy for emotionless, tactical brutality. Even though she never breached Starfleet regulations at these times, she would push them to their limits, often times relying on combat strategies with high success rates and unmatched lethality, leaving few to no survivors on multiple occasions. Lianna Marcus (49) was born on Lunar Colony 4 in 2321 to a family of geological ecologists. When she was 16 she was accepted into starfleet academy where she struggled with the regorous work/life balance required of cadets. As a student on the science officer career track her studies focused on adaptive alien culture and collective nonlinear dynamics. In 2344 Marcus graduated without particular distinction and was stationed on Setlik III, a relatively unimpressive colony on the edge of Cardassian space, where she conducted palentological research under the direction of senior scientist Taylor Maxwell. By 2347, Marcus had earned the rank of lieutenant junior grade in the normal course of her duties. It was around this time that the Cardassian Union launched a surprise attack at the colony, leading to the Setlik III Massacre. As chaos broke out, Marcus rounded up as many colonists as possible and secured a small section of the colony, allowing some survivors to hold out until help arrived. After a gruling 12 hour standoff, the remaining colonists were rescued by a starfleet security force lead by Chief Miles O'Brian. Marcus' heroism in the face of certain death gained her a much heretofor lacking notoriety which helped secure a quick promotion to lieutenant and a bridge position aboard the U.S.S. Cambridge, a Centaur-class destroyer. Shortly after being relocated however, the Cardassian-Federation War broke out, forcing scores of exploration ships to be retuned and repurposed for battle. The Cambridge had roughly half of her scientific bays scrapped and replaced with tactical upgrades and torpedo bays. During the retrofit, Marcus was transferred to the Skyfall. During the next several years, Marcus proved to be a frighteningly apt tactician. Her commanding officer notedly reported thusly to Starfleet Command.

I cannot stress how difficult it would be to exagerate the tactical apptitude of LtCmd Marcus. Her intuitive approach to warfare has single handedly won us countless engagements. Our crew owes their lives to Marcus several times over.
Captain Adam Welch: Referal of promotion for Lianne Marcus, 2353 SEY

However, word of her questionable methods spread just as fast, if not faster, as her fame. She consistently pushed the bounds for what can be considered appropriate wartime actions for a Starfleet officer. Her methods often disregarded civilized terms of engagement and resulted in countless Cardassian casualties, not all of which were strictly military targets. As a result of her antics, she was twice brought up on war crimes charges. Though the charges were ultimately dismissed, such charges are never leavied lightly. She became the only Starfleet officer to be brought to trial twice for war crimes. It is rumored that she may have been guilty, but, because she was vital to the war effort, backroom negotiations lead to the Admiralty Board clearing her charges so that she could return to the front lines hastily. Regardless of her innocence, her mixed reputation made her less than ideal for the quick rise to Admiral that many who fought along side her believe she deserved. Instead, she was relegated to the role of a first officer throughout the war. In 2365 she was officially promoted the the rank of Captain, but, in another unconventional maneuver, was not given command of a starship. Instead, she became the captain of the U.S.S. Carina, a Nebula-class battlecruiser which was the wartime flagship of Fleet Admiral Alynna Nechayev. Because of this, while Marcus was captian of the ship, she was never in command. Following the establishment of the Federation-Cardassian neutral zone, ending the war, Marcus was transfered, and the U.S.S. Electra was placed in her care. While this appointment was less prestigious, she had the freedom to run the ship the way she wanted. With its mission to explore strange new worlds in Federation space, many theorize that Starfleet Command gave her this appointment to see how she would develop in a less militarized role, potentially paving the way for a promotion to admiral one day. See here for more information about the current U.S.S. Electra Crew.
See here for more information about the U.S.S. Electra.