This was an eagerly awaited lecture. Budd Hopkins is a much respected and well-loved figure in Ufology, and this rare appearance in Britain undoubtedly secured the sell-out Saturday audience at Leeds. Budd has worked with many abductees, and has written several ground-breaking books based on his research. Where John Mack has moved from the constraints of scientific academia towards a holistic model to investigate abduction cases, Budd Hopkins is an artist turned scientific researcher. Or, at least, he concentrates his efforts on establishing factual and material evidence to back up each case.

His strong personal skills, particularly his empathy and his humour, have allowed him to establish excellent therapeutic relationships with his ‘clients’, and have gained him an enviable reputation in the field. Furthermore, he comes across very well on camera, and is often called upon to appear on television to share his knowledge and insights.

Hopkins considers that the abduction events have a negative effect psychologically on the Experiencers…that the "agenda of the aliens causes collateral damage to the humans". Because of this psychological and emotional scarring the investigator becomes a ‘de facto therapist’. He notes that many investigators, including himself, do not have a professional health background to substantially prepare them for this role, which is one of the concerns often raised by professionals who comment on abduction research, particularly with regard to the use of regressive hypnosis.

(I would counter that the abduction researchers at least show an unconditional positive regard for the abductees, whose accounts are so often dismissed in more secular circles. Does this tacit acceptance of the value of the account by an amateur abduction researcher mean more to an abductee than a course of professional therapy conducted by a sceptic? In a client-centred approach this is surely the case.)

Hopkins notes that the Experiencers often fall back on their own spirituality when coming to terms with these life-changing events, and that this transformation is the ‘gift from the therapist through the healing intervention.’

"Human spirituality is the core from which I perceive", says Hopkins.

Further pieces of supporting evidence had been added to the case in recent years. These included new witness testimony, further details about the occupants of the motorcade (including, it seems, Lech Walesa), and reports of electro-mechanical effects at the time. The number of witnesses to the case now stood at 24, and none of them have retracted their stories. Significantly, many have taken and passed lie-detector tests. He also described the effect whereby members of the motorcade remembered different aspects of what was happening in the skies above them, perhaps indicating that the ‘anaesthetic effect’ kicked in at different times.

Another issue, albeit rather minor, is that of the coloured sketches provided by the witnesses, one of whom is special agent ‘Richard’. They bear a remarkable resemblance to each other. Although clearly made by different people, the focal emphasis of each depiction is exactly the same. What also troubles me is that these two independent witnesses sent their drawings to Hopkins at all…would they not feel self-conscious displaying their amateur artwork to one of New York’s celebrated professional artists? But perhaps this is just my slant because I paint myself, and am typically critical of my own work. Nevertheless, intuitively at least, I’m troubled by these pictures.

Finally, this has been a celebrated case for some time now. As such ‘new developments’, particularly where they involve new witnesses, should be treated with caution. Budd Hopkins makes much of the fact that Linda Cortille was granted several audiences with Cardinal O’Connor of New York, particularly given her quite ordinary background. He took this to indicate that the Roman Church regarded this case as significant. Perhaps it does. As he says, the Church values reports of miracles and ecstatic visions of the Madonna, etc, so perhaps this kind of witness testimony holds similar significance. The lecture on Sunday by Graham Birdsall took up this general theme. But one must not lose sight of the fact that this case is now famous, and not just in the UFO Community, so the Cardinal’s curiosity might just as well be attributed to that.

As an historical record, the Brooklyn Bridge case will not hold water if based upon a set of witnesses whose identity has been withheld ad infinitum. At some point, this issue needs to be addressed. Perhaps by showing the photos of ‘Dan’ for the first time, Budd Hopkins is starting to come round to this way of thinking. After all, right now, post World Trade Centre atrocity, the intelligence services have much greater things to worry about than a bunch of Ufologists learning the identity of two of their psychologically disturbed agents.