Tribunal of Zare Leonis This tribunal was held at the Arkanis Academy against Zare Leonis for crimes against the Galactic Empire while training as one of its cadets . At the tribunal , Leonis was charged with numerous offenses against the Galactic Empire and plead guilty to them all . For his crimes , he was sentenced to death , but the sentence was not carried out , as he escaped and with help rescued his sister before fleeing from the Empire . Prelude . Zare Leonis ' s enlistment as a cadet with the Galactic Empire was , from the beginning , a deception , as his goal was to discover the fate of his sister , Dhara Leonis , and if possible , rescue her from the Empire ' s clutches . To this end , he regularly worked with rebels impeding the Empire ' s operations , while also absorbing the Empire ' s lessons in order to pass himself off as the perfect cadet . After a time at the Academy for Young Imperials on Lothal , Leonis was transferred to the officers academy on Arkanis . There , he continued his deception , faking his way into a secretive group known as the Commandant ' s Cadets . It was then that things went wrong , as Leonis was spotted by Beck Ollet , a friend of his that had been captured by the Empire and brainwashed as part of Project Unity . Ollet called Leonis out as a traitor and Leonis was subjected to interrogation and torture , then forced to attend a military tribunal to determine his fate . Tribunal . Leonis ' s tribunal was conducted Colonel Julyan , his instructor in Strategy and Tactics at the academy , before his fellow Commandant ' s Cadets and their leader and academy overseer Commandant Brendol Hux . Also present was the deeply disturbed Lieutenant Chiron , who had served as both a friend and mentor for Leonis , and Sergeant Pocarto , another of the academy ' s instructors . For the tribunal , Leonis was made to wear his dress uniform , something he found darkly amusing . The tribunal was held in a ceremonial chamber in Area Null , a secret area within the Arkanis Academy grounds . Leonis expected a lengthy review of his offenses and was surprised when Julyan moved straight to the point . He told Leonis to rise and quickly read off the numerous charges that Leonis was facing : fraudulent enlistment , making false official statements , perjuring his oath as a cadet , refusal to obey lawful orders , conduct unbecoming of a cadet , dereliction of duty , destruction of Imperial property , conspiracy , providing aid and comfort to enemies of the Galactic Empire , espionage , assault on Imperial personnel , attempted murder of Imperial personnel , sedition and treason . He noted that Leonis had been given the chance to review the evidence against him and asked how he pleaded . Leonis replied that he was guilty on all counts . Julyan asked if he had anything to say in his defense . After scanning the faces of those around him , Leonis spoke his piece . He said that he had only ever wanted to be a servant of the Empire , to make the galaxy a better place . The Empire , however , was guilty of numerous crimes , including ruining the environment of his adopted homeworld , Lothal , spreading terror among its populace , suppressing lawful dissent and kidnapping his sister , a sister who had wanted to serve the Empire even more than he did . Leonis finished by stating the Empire couldn ' t kill all of those like him , or it would be an Empire that ruled nothing , that was nothing . Julyan was entirely unimpressed by Leonis ' s speech . He told him that the first part of his punishment was that he was expelled from Imperial service , a punishment that would be conducted by his fellow cadets . At that , the Commandant ' s Cadets rose and stripped him of his uniform , leaving him only a t - shirt and knee - length shorts . Julyan then told him that the second part of the punishment was that he was to be executed by firing squad the next morning . Until then , he was to be returned to his prison cell . Aftermath . Zare Leonis was sent back to his prison cell , where he received a visit from Lieutenant Chiron . Chiron was still trying to save him . He had tried before to help Leonis find his sister and wondered why Leonis didn ' t come to him with his concerns . He told Leonis that the things he had seen were perversions of Imperial policy , but Leonis felt otherwise , that he had seen the true face of the Empire . Chiron offered to have his sentence commuted to enrollment in Project Unity , the same project in which his friend Ollet was enrolled , but Leonis was adamantly against this idea . Chiron insisted that Leonis at least talk to Ollet . Leonis agreed , but found the conversation unproductive , as the brainwashed Ollet simply tried to convince him that Project Unity had been helpful to him and there were shadowy individuals convincing people to rebel . He ordered Ollet to get out and then Chiron offered him a last meal and his choice of who would deliver it . Leonis used the meal as a trick by ordering two jogan fruit s , the smell of which he used to remind Ollet of his family ' s jogan fruit orchards in the Westhills . The two then put into a action a hastily - concocted plan to rescue Leonis ' s sister . Behind the scenes . The stripping of Zare ' s uniform and breaking of his saber was inspired by Han Solo ' s expulsion from the Imperial Academy in the " Star Wars " Legends titles " Han Solo at Stars ' End " and the " Dark Empire Sourcebook " .