Thomas Leighton Dr . Thomas " Tom " Leighton was a male Human civilian in the 23rd century . He was an empirical research scientist ; Spock , who knew of him , described him to James T . Kirk as " steady , reputable , occasionally brilliant . " In 2266 , he lived with his wife , Martha Leighton , on Planet Q . In 2246 , he was living on Tarsus IV when four thousand people were executed on the orders of Governor Kodos . Leighton was one of nine eyewitnesses who could identify the governor on sight . Leighton and Kirk appeared to have been personal acquaintances , perhaps as a result of their shared experiences on Tarsus IV . He was tormented by what happened that day for the next twenty years . In 2266 , Leighton diverted the to Planet Q , ostensibly to confirm his discovery of a new synthetic food that could totally end the threat of famine on Cygnia Minor , a nearby colony . In fact , he diverted the " Enterprise " because he believed that Anton Karidian , a traveling performer , was actually Kodos . He hoped Kirk , another of the eyewitnesses , would help him in his quest to bring Kodos to justice . Kirk wasn ' t convinced until , ironically , Leighton was found dead . Lenore Karidian , insanely desperate to protect her father from his past , had murder ed Leighton ; he was the seventh victim of her quest to eliminate all those who could identify Kodos . Leighton was survived by his wife Martha . ( ) Background information . Thomas Leighton was portrayed by William Sargent . In the final revised draft script of " The Conscience of the King " , Dr . Leighton was initially described merely as " a contemporary of Kirk ' s . " Although it was not explicitly stated , conversational context strongly suggested that the left side of Leighton ' s face was ruined during the massacre at Tarsus IV . The script didn ' t specify this injury , merely referring to Leighton having a " crippled body " instead . In a deleted scene from " The Conscience of the King " , Leighton was established as having lost his parents and two brothers during the massacre , and having experienced , ever since then , nightmare s about the incident . ( " Swept Up : Snippets from the Cutting Room Floor " , " " special features ) Later in the script , upon Kirk breaking the news to Spock that there hadn ' t actually been any synthetic food samples and Spock replying that would need to be noted due to the seriousness of diverting a starship , Kirk remarked , " " Well , a black mark against Dr . Leighton isn ' t going to hurt him now . " " " Who ' s Who in Star Trek 1 " mistakenly calls him Robert Leighton . Apocrypha . Leighton appears as a supporting character in the 2018 " " novel " Drastic Measures " , which positions he and his parents as friends of Jim and Winona Kirk in the Tarsus IV capital , New Anchorage . It ' s revealed that Leighton ' s disfigurement came from suffering phaser burns when Governor Kodos ordered the execution of 4 , 000 colonists in the city ' s amphitheater , and being in proximity to phasers set to disintegrate . Leighton watched in horror as his parents were murdered , and when a Starfleet relief ship arrived to the planet , Leighton was treated for his injuries , and was virtually catatonic . While convalescing , Jim made an effort to find a photograph of Kodos in the colony ' s computer systems , and soon thereafter , both Kirk and Leighton met Commander Philippa Georgiou , who was engaged in a manhunt for Kodos on the planet ' s surface .