The Circuit Riders

The Circuit Riders is a science fiction novella by R. C. FitzPatrick, written in the early 1960s. Set in a future society where emotions are quantified and transmitted via a technology known as the deAngelis board, the story follows police operators who monitor emotional signals to prevent crimes. As tensions rise around an unstable old man whose emotional readings suggest he may pose a threat, the narrative explores the implications of emotion-monitoring technology on human behavior and moral judgment.