Posted on 09/06/2007 7:05:47 AM PDT by billorites
The decorated ex-commander of the historic USS Constitution may be forced to walk the plank after a naval hearing today on charges he assaulted a sailor and forced him to lie in a report, in a scandal that could sink his career for good.
Four months after he was fired, Thomas C. Graves, 43, of Marblehead will stand before the military equivalent of a grand jury, accused of assaulting a petty officer who, Graves’ lawyer said, failed to note in the ship’s morning report that a shipmate had been late.
Graves faces charges of assault, cruelty and maltreatment, forcing someone to falsify a record and making a false statement. He is accused of having the petty officer “correct” the report and of denying that he hit the officer.
“The Navy lost confidence in his ability, so his career could be over,” Navy spokesman Mike Giannetti said.
Graves’ lawyer, Charles Gittins, said, “The petty officer was incompetent and, in frustration, the captain handed the papers back to him,” allegedly hitting him in the chest with them. “In his mind, he didn’t hit the sailor.”
But Giannetti said, “It’s my understanding there were witnesses.”
If convicted of all charges at a general court-martial, he faces up to 11 years and six months in prison.
In 2005, Graves assumed command of the 210-year-old national landmark, a job considered a plum position, given the ship’s role in the War of 1812, when it became known as “Old Ironsides” because British cannonballs were unable to penetrate its wooden hull.
He was fired in May, two months before his two-year term was to expire, for what the Navy described at the time as an “administrative matter.”
Commanders may be fired for many reasons, including failing to enforce safety rules and fostering a poor command climate.
“Because of the significance of the Constitution, typically (a commander’s) record and performance would be heavily scrutinized before they were appointed,” Giannetti said.
A 1987 U.S. Naval Academy graduate, Graves served as the engineering officer on the USS Underwood and the USS Philippine Sea and was promoted to commander in 2003. He has received several awards, including two Navy Achievement Medals and the Navy Meritorious Service Medal.
In addition to the military lawyer the Navy has provided him, Graves hired Gittins, who has represented high-profile defendants in military courts-martial, including Lt. Ilario Pantano, a Marine accused of shooting unarmed Iraqi captives; Spc. Charles Graner, who was involved in the Abu Ghraib scandal; and Maj. Harry “Psycho” Schmidt, who bombarded a platoon of Canadians in Afghanistan after being told to hold his fire.
Pantano was acquitted, and the charges against Schmidt were dropped.
“Rip the shirt, how cliche.”
LOL! I haven’t heard that in a very long time.
Rum, sodomy and the lash.
Make me pine for my old navy days. Of course, that was when the ships were of wood, and the men were of iron.
Thanks for the graphic.
I suspect it will make it onto a homemade “hang in there” card to
a colleague undergoing “trials” while working in liberal academia.
Actually, in the old days, any sailor bringing charges for an offense this slight would have been ignored.
Garde la Foi, mes amis! Nous nous sommes les sauveurs de la République! Maintenant et Toujours!
(Keep the Faith, my friends! We are the saviors of the Republic! Now and Forever!)
LonePalm, le Républicain du verre cassé (The Broken Glass Republican)
Wasn't there a similar situation to this one where the captain (Cagney) orders his first lieutenant (Fonda) to correct a report so the ship would have a perfect record?
Did I miss it in the story, or did they never give his rank?
‘May have lost confidence....’?
The guys done.
Flogging? I think any British sailor could have been flogged, with the possible exception of officers, including midshipmen.
“A 1987 U.S. Naval Academy graduate, Graves served as the engineering officer on the USS Underwood and the USS Philippine Sea and was promoted to commander in 2003.”
Well, since the story earlier refers to him as an ex-commander, I didn’t know if they meant commander as a rank or as a job on a ship.
Yeah, it wasn’t well written. It would have been more appropriate to use the term “commanding officer” rather than “commander” to avoid confusion. But his rank is commander.
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