"...Comrade Leeds is in a terrible situation. I will not countenance cutting her down until she is heard out."

It's said quietly, but with absolute conviction. Jean could, should, have been another dead Rat from the Backstreets, unloved and unmourned. They showed their ugliness to others here, and those people had the temerity to accept Jean anyway. They won't take that gift only to turn around and see it denied to others out of hand.