The Circuit Riders

"The Circuit Riders" by R. C. FitzPatrick tells a science fiction story set in a future where emotions are measured and sent through a deAngelis board, a technology used to track people's feelings. The story follows police officers who watch these emotional signals to stop crime, focusing on their interactions with reporters and an old man whose unstable emotions become a major concern. As the old man's emotional readings become more intense, the police prepare to confront him, which results in an unexpected meeting with a young girl. This story examines the nature of emotions, how well technology can predict what people will do, and the difficult moral choices in a world where feelings are controlled and watched by a technology.