Air Force Secretary reports 54 cases of rape, assault at Academy...

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[Maedhros]

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[Maedhros]

Air Force Reports 54 Rapes, Assault
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By ROBERT GEHRKE, Associated Press Writer

WASHINGTON - The Air Force has identified 54 cases of rape or sexual assault in its investigation into impropriety at the Air Force Academy and there are likely many more cadets who will not come forward, Air Force Secretary James Roche said Thursday.



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"The part that is the saddest thing ... whatever we see, whatever the number is, 25, 50, there are probably a hundred more that we do not see," Roche said during a hearing of the Senate Armed Services Committee (news - web sites). It wasn't immediately clear when the assaults occured.


"We're learning enough to realize that change must occur — change in the climate, change in how we manage" the academy, Roche said.


Roche said cases are being identified that will be the top priority for follow-up by the Defense Department's inspector general, focusing efforts on cases "where the person who placed the accusation felt the system let them down."


Roche also said Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. John P. Jumper was traveling to the Air Force Academy Thursday to meet with cadets. Jumper planned to remind cadets that they have a duty to report anything they might know about any alleged assaults, he said.


Sen. Wayne Allard (news, bio, voting record), R-Colo., said he believes the situation at the academy is worse than the 1991 Tailhook Scandal — when dozens of women complained they were groped or assaulted by drunken pilots at a Navy booster group's convention — because the system has failed the cadets in this case.


"The entire support and legal system at the academy appears to have failed," Allard said. "We really do need to instill confidence in the system so victims know when they report rape they know the rape itself will not jeopardize their career."


Meanwhile, Rep. Tom Tancredo, R-Colo., has accused the academy's top commanders of mishandling rape allegations and said they should be removed. But a spokesman for Roche and Chief of Staff Gen. John P. Jumper issued a statement refusing to blame the academy's top brass.


"We believe this regrettable situation has resulted from a climate at the academy that has evolved over time," Lt. Col. Chester Curtis said. "We will not make a scapegoat of anyone nor offer pre-emptive judgments on any issue, but will ensure justice is served on all levels."


In the last 10 years, there have been two cadets charged with rape. One was acquitted, the other pleaded guilty at a court martial and was sentenced to seven months in jail. In other cases, administrative action was taken because there was not enough evidence to prosecute, Roche said.


Allard had criticized Air Force investigators for leaving Colorado without talking with 10 current cadets who have said they were raped. He also said he was unhappy the investigators did not consult a civilian rape crisis center whose counselors say they have heard from 22 cadets in the past 15 years who reported being assaulted.


Sen. James Warner, R-Va., chairman of the committee, told the heads of each branch of the military that they have a responsibility to examine their service academies to make sure the same thing is not happening there.

[hobbes1]

And all During one visit by the Former C-in-C....lol

[zarf]

Put some ice on it.....

[Britton J Wingfield]

Time to bring back flogging.

[Indy Pendance]

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,80448,00.html

Foxnews

WASHINGTON — The Air Force has identified 54 cases of rape or sexual assault in its
investigation into impropriety at the Air Force Academy and there are likely many more
cadets who will not come forward, Air Force Secretary James Roche said Thursday.

"The part that is the saddest thing ...
whatever we see, whatever the number is,
25, 50, there are probably a hundred more
that we do not see," Roche said during a
hearing of the Senate Armed Services
Committee. It wasn't immediately clear
when the assaults occured.

"We're learning enough to realize that
change must occur -- change in the
climate, change in how we manage" the
academy, Roche said.

Roche said cases are being identified that
will be the top priority for follow-up by the
Defense Department's inspector general,
focusing efforts on cases "where the
person who placed the accusation felt the
system let them down."

Roche also said Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. John P. Jumper was traveling to the Air Force
Academy Thursday to meet with cadets. Jumper planned to remind cadets that they have
a duty to report anything they might know about any alleged assaults, he said.

Sen. Wayne Allard, R-Colo., said he believes the situation at the academy is worse than
the 1991 Tailhook Scandal -- when dozens of women complained they were groped or
assaulted by drunken pilots at a Navy booster group's convention -- because the system
has failed the cadets in this case.

"The entire support and legal system at the academy appears to have failed," Allard said.
"We really do need to instill confidence in the system so victims know when they report
rape they know the rape itself will not jeopardize their career."

Meanwhile, Rep. Tom Tancredo, R-Colo., has accused the academy's top commanders
of mishandling rape allegations and said they should be removed. But a spokesman for
Roche and Chief of Staff Gen. John P. Jumper issued a statement refusing to blame the
academy's top brass.

"We believe this regrettable situation has resulted from a climate at the academy that has
evolved over time," Lt. Col. Chester Curtis said. "We will not make a scapegoat of anyone
nor offer pre-emptive judgments on any issue, but will ensure justice is served on all
levels."

In the last 10 years, there have been two cadets charged with rape. One was acquitted,
the other pleaded guilty at a court martial and was sentenced to seven months in jail. In
other cases, administrative action was taken because there was not enough evidence to
prosecute, Roche said.

Allard had criticized Air Force investigators for leaving Colorado without talking with 10
current cadets who have said they were raped. He also said he was unhappy the
investigators did not consult a civilian rape crisis center whose counselors say they have
heard from 22 cadets in the past 15 years who reported being assaulted.

Sen. James Warner, R-Va., chairman of the committee, told the heads of each branch of
the military that they have a responsibility to examine their service academies to make
sure the same thing is not happening there.

[k2blader]

How sad, and how sick.

[CholeraJoe]

But a spokesman for Roche and Chief of Staff Gen. John P. Jumper issued a statement refusing to blame the academy's top brass.

When I was AD USAF, any installation commander that failed to prosecute even one such offense was risking his career.

[sinkspur]

"We believe this regrettable situation has resulted from a climate at the academy that has evolved over time,"

"We believe this regrettable situation has resulted from a climate in the Catholic Church that has evolved over time," said any excuse-making member of the hierarchy in the US or at the Vatican.

Cultures for which secrecy is one of the mainstays are subject to abuse. Those in power feel that that secrecy will protect them from the judgments that affect other mortals. Watch these rats, just like the episcopal rats, hide behind protocol or some other such lame excuse.

If heads don't roll here, then the US Air Force will join the National Conference of Catholic Bishops in the hall of shame.

[George W. Bush]

Sad. Start the courtmartials. Commandant and senior staff probably have to be retired or replaced.

You know, there was lot fewer rapes in the military before we let the women in there. It would be better to outlaw fraternization between unmarried soldiers altogether.

[L,TOWM]

Well spoken, sir.

[cynicom]

Officers, gentlemen and ladies??? Must be some mistake.

[Mr. Jeeves]

Were these real rapes or feminist-defined rapes?

[Centurion2000]

Funny how this should get published TODAY of all days.

[Ford Fairlane]

We're learning enough to realize that change must occur

I realize some here may not agree with me, but the best change would be to not allow any women in the military

[CatoRenasci]

There was a thread on this several weeks ago here on FR, and I'm glad to see the situation is finally being dealt with. It's despicable and those involved should be shipped.

The Superintendant and the Commandant both must be cashiered, immediately. The have permitted an atmosphere to exist in which cadets do not treat each other with respect. They probably need to ship a couple of hundred cadets as well.

As a VMI man from the late '60s, I'm not a fan of women in the academies, but once the command decision to have women was taken, the chain of command has an absolute obligation to ensure that no cadet is the subject of assault or unwanted sexual advances. Unbelievable. At VMI, we have had some problems with women and sex, but I cannot imagine anything on this scale going on. If for no other reason than the women would be able to go to their class officers or honor court representatives to have the matter handled by the Corps, which would surely do so. And Rat women would surely be able to go to their senior mentors (dykes - the term refers to the cross belts on the dress uniform and has been in use since before the Civil War), or if their senior mentor was the problem, to their own classmates, or to the EEO officer at last resort.

[Thud]

ping

[montomike]

Looks like the male cadets have decided to try out a new kind of airplane.

It is despicable that the powers that be let it go so far. Why can't the military realize that the males and the females need to be kept separate and allowed to concentrate on studies and training without the hormones interfering?

When you are 20 and you see a fairly attractive woman (the female cadets are in good shape, smart, and probably in the top 20th percentile as far as looks)...biology takes over. I don't condone the rape on the part of the male cadets who should be prosecuted to the point where their rapee quotient increases considerably.

It is also obvious that the air force needs to be more selective in who they admit to the academy. It may also, sadly, be a reflection of the general attitude among young men toward women that they have taken away from MTV, our Hollywood role models, the general acceptance of pornography, etc.

[kellynla]

Well one thing is for sure, we definitely know there are some males who do not belong in the AF academy...I don't know the housing situation at the AF academy but in th USMC we have separate boot camps for men and women. Semper Fi

[MudPuppy]

Women have a place in today's military and they serve there with Pride. No one deserves to be raped!
Those criminals need to be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law and immediately kicked out of the military.

Do you want a rapist commanding any troops? all male or mixed? Show's a definate integrity / moral problem. Not worthy of leading anyone let alone a military unit.

Clean up this mess the sooner the better.

God Bless the military!!

[Bush2000]

I went to the Naval Academy in the early 80s. One of the big issues at the service academies is that male and female cadets/midshipmen are not permitted to date one another. It's called fraternization. It still happens, of course, but it's considered a serious offense if two cadets are caught in a compromising position in the dorm. I happen to know of a particular case in which a woman was involved with a number of midshipmen. She got caught and, rather than get disciplined or possibly discharged, she alleged sexual assault. Nearly all of the midshipmen involved were discharged. These cases happened more often than people really realized but, in most of them, it was found to be consensual, the individuals involved were disciplined, and life went on.

I'm not suggesting that the rape charges in the Secretary's report were trumped up. But I am suggesting that a powerful motive exists to allege sexual assault in the event that a relationship is discovered. The bottom line is that we should be careful in trying these cases. The military's penchant for expediency is not known for protecting the rights of the accused. It worries me that the service academies will now bend over backwards to discharge cadets on the flimsiest of evidence.

[Uncle Miltie]

My 12 year old daughter aspires to the Academy. PLEASE get this cleaned up, or I will be unable to endorse her effort.

[EternalHope]

Time to bring back flogging.

Speaking as an Air Force Academy grad, I agree completely. Provided they then lock 'em up and throw away the key.

Knowing their political leanings, the media may have exagerated the extent of the problem. However, exagerated or not, this problem has got to be stopped, completely, right NOW.

One of the most important things the military academies are supposed to teach is: HONOR.

[judgeandjury]

When you are 20 and you see a fairly attractive woman ...biology takes over.

But the decision to rape a woman is made in a man's mind.

[af_vet_rr]

I realize some here may not agree with me, but the best change would be to not allow any women in the military

It's not the women being in the military that caused the rapes here, it's the men who couldn't follow rules and regulations. Don't try and make excuses for the perps, they broke the laws, not the women. If they can't follow the rules and regulations, they have no business serving in our military.

[GovernmentShrinker]

Yeah, right, that'll fix everything. These thugs will just go back to raping women who aren't in military service, and we don't need to worry about them. < /sarcasm>

The problem here is that we have rapists being prepared, at taxpayer expense, to be officers in our armed forces. Some of us find that to be unacceptable. The occupations of their victims have no bearing on the rapists' guilt and unfitness to serve in our armed forces.

[Thud]

The Air Force Academy is the key element in creating the Air Force's institutional culture. This issue is deadly serious. Rape as institutional value is suicidal. The Air Force seems to have gone Serb.

[drjimmy]

Funny how this should get published TODAY of all days.
What exactly do you think is funny about this sad piece of information? It was published TODAY because the information was revealed TODAY by the Air Force secretary during a hearing of the Senate Armed Services Committee.

[rabidralph]

My 12 year old daughter aspires to the Academy. PLEASE get this cleaned up, or I will be unable to endorse her effort.

Send her to a real academy: The U.S. Naval Academy. Maybe some female mids ought to go over there and straighten out those Zoomies.

[pepsionice]

When you start looking at the junior Air Force officer corps today (from a retired enlisted guy, who still works around AF operations)...there are definite 'problem children' who have wrapped up their academy days and in the real world now. I would make a guess that at least 3 percent of them need a mental check-out, and probably need to be limited to four years in the Air Force. As for the reasons for the problems...lower standards for entry, sports importance over studies, lack of leadership shown from the mainstream AF officers, and 'fill the squares' attitude constantly thrown at them.

I had an assignment once...and found out that the boss was going to be a legendary major. A number of us had heard about the guy who as a 2LT had a female airman come up and tell him that a 1LT in the office was harrassing her....for months. The new 2LT walked up to the 1LT and told him that he was out of order and to knock it off. The 1LT told him to just shut...he didn't know the real story. The 2LT grabbed the dimwit by the collar, dragged him into a broom closet and whooped the 1LT up by the head...causing a definite blackeye. The reason this young Lt could do so...was his college days at Kent State, on both the football and rugby squads, and his dedication to principals. The 1LT fell to the floor in total shock. And the young 2LT simply said....rules are rules...if you aren't smart enough to obey them...then you need pain to set things right. The commander found out about the knock-down, and tried to tell the 2LT not to do this again. In less than year, he repeated the same procedure with a NCO. Years later, here I was, working for this individual...I felt absolute leadership in his presence and respect for rules. Almost all of the junior officers and enlisted came to that conclusion. And if any dimwit had harrassed a female member of the flight...we each would have taken the individual out to the broom closet for a whoop session.

What we are missing today...are people who mean just what they say. We don't need square fillers...we need actual leaders. There isn't a single reason why there ought to be a single case of rape at the academy in a average year.

[Destro]

God save the Republic from young college girls with morning after regrets.

What is that old Army saying? It is not rape in the top bunk.

I know what I am saying is harsh, but women cry rape all the time, especially drunk girls at a college party with guilty consciences.

[Destro]

Charges of rape are not proof of rape-even against the Serbs.

Where is the spike in pegnancies/abortions and STDs in Bosnia and Kosovo after such mass rapes?

[Illbay]

I have a very, very good idea. Let's create a "women-only" service academy to serve all four branches. Mixing the sexes in the service academies was ALWAYS a bad idea.

I'm not letting the rapists off the hook (assuming it WAS rape; remember that rape has been redefined for some time now; it occurs even if the woman was willing at the time but had regrets subsequently). Catch them, drum them out of the academy, then prosecute them to the fullest extent of the law.

But it is ridiculous to assume that "sensitivity training" is the answer.

[Illbay]

Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. John P. Jumper was traveling to the Air Force Academy Thursday to meet with cadets.

What an unfortunate name, under the circumstances.

[Illbay]

If it helps, I've ALWAYS been of this opinion. The unisex military has been a failure on many levels. Check out the statistics on pregnancy on board ships at sea.

I don't know how long it's going to take for the p.c. pendulum to swing back, but it couldn't happen too soon as far as I'm concerned.

[Illbay]

No one is excusing rape. But in the first place I would be interested to know how "rape" is defined. On some college campi, "rape" is defined as any sexual coupling that the woman regrets, whether before, during or after the fact.

Second, the sexes don't need to be commingled in the service academies. The first priority needs to be service to the country, not social experimentation.

[leadpenny]

What is your guess? Could this spill up and over into the ranks of those officers now on AD? Could it be as big as the Tailhook witch hunt? I'm retired Army but not an Academy grad. I remember the cheating scandal at the USMA in the 70's when they brought Gen. Goodpaster (sp?) back on AD to straighten the place out. I think the USNA has had their own cheating scandal since then also.

[GovernmentShrinker]

As a graduate of a womens' college, I think that's a good idea, which I would modify. These incidents seem to be happening almost exclusively between upperclass men and first or second year women (mostly first, I gather). Keeping the men and women separate for the first two years would solve most if not all of the problem, and putting them together for the final two years would avoid the problem of their not being well-prepared to work together after they graduate.

[cynicom]

Annapolis???? Surely you jest....Not too long ago, the middies were running a hot car ring there, among other querstionable activities.

Not to long ago, three of their staff wanted to dust me up for asking them to cease their drunken vulgar language in a popular Annapolis eatery. Guess the booze and the fact they outnumbered me three to one gave them courage, plus they could see I was was rather elderly.

[Thud]

That's not a bad idea.

[Ford Fairlane]

I figured I would get flamed, and I'll probably get more for this

I dont know anything about 53 of the 54 incidents, but I know at least one was the result of a female cadet offering to exchange favors with an upperclassman for preferential treatment.

No, I'm not going to name names, and for the record I think both parties involved should be dismissed from the academy.

[INSENSITIVE GUY]

The "women's movement"in the bathroom is behind this!I don't believe a word of it.

[Uncle Miltie]

"The U.S. Naval Academy."

I have repeatedly heard first hand accounts of how Navy Ships are sex-mobiles. Rape is common and unpunished, and consensual sex is rampant. I have heard of women who have taken dishonorable discharges to avoid continued un-controlled rape.

I'm as big a military booster as you will find. And, women in the military present challenges. But, friends, our daughters are there, and deserve better.

Services: Get A Grip!

[Gunrunner2]

>>. . .but I cannot imagine anything on this scale going on. . .<<

Agree.

I think what we may have here is an unhealthy dose of feminist rhetoric at work.

It is constantly reported that "harassment" comes in many forms, and eye contact can even count as harassment. That is why feminist usually say half of ALL women are victims of some sort of harassment (the other half are the feminists, no doubt).

A little more information is necessary here, like what does one consider "harassment?" In an organization I was in, we had a feminist that had the foulest mouth, but one day she decided some off-color remark (not directed at her) was inappropriate so she ran to the EEOC office. Of course, this skewed the numbers.

What I m saying is we must be careful when such claims are made and not rush and believe every darned word of this.

Remember, people, this is being reported by the media and the brass are scared and doing the Tail-hook Butt-Cover dance. . . .regardless of the validity of the allegations and regardless of the merit of the allegations.

Stand back, let the system work, and do not be surprised if you discover that many of these so-called harassment charges are not the result of a woman suffering true sexual harassment, but of a definitional problem spun out of control.

My gawd, and we are to have women serving as officers that cannot tell the difference between a boorish joke and true harassment? Are we to field officers that can't defend their sensitive self-esteem? We are to place our trust and security in the hands of officers that, on the one hand demand to be treated as one of the boys, and on the other hand cry when they are present when an off-color joke is made.

I was in a fighter squadron where the first female fighter pilot was stationed. Overnight we were no longer able to BE fighter pilots, no more rough and tumble insults and chest-thumping bar talk. No more were we allowed to maintain a "Hog Log," a racy and profane journal that described fights and engagements, boneheaded actions and silly screw-ups. Why? Because we were sensitive to offending the female fighter pilot.

So, we end up stomping out the warrior spirit and hypersensitive feminists rule.

I spent two years with the RAF in the UK. Great guys and gals. The RAF women retained their femininity (God bless them), but they also did not put up with any "harassment" and could hold their own. They did not cry and sue, they stood up and slapped down (rhetorically) the offending cad.

Hold off on judgment here, there is much more to this than "all males are bad and all women are victims."

[VMI70]

Bingo!

There sure are a lot of people around here taking this at face value--the usual suspects.

Here we go with another tailhook "scandal".
Who is next--the Army or the Marines? They haven't felt the full brunt of a "scandal" yet, as defined in present day terms.

[berserker]

Funny how this should get published TODAY of all days

How is this funny?

What day should information on rapes and sexual assaults at the USAF Academy be published? After all, the Academy forfeited any right to control this story by covering it up and protecting the (alleged) criminals in these cases.

[CatoRenasci]

I understand your concern and desire for more information. There was a thread a couple of weeks ago on this, where details of particular cases were reported and there was a fairly extensive discussion, including comments from some Cadets, AFA alumni, and some friends of cadets. As a VMI man, I want to encourage the warrior spirit, but when I was a cadet, the warrior spirit didn't mean mistreating women. Perhaps that was in part because of VMI being a very Southern institution, but I think it was more typical of the era.

[berserker]

the best change would be to not allow any women in the military

Great logic, a woman gets rape and your solution is to not allow any women in the military. That must be because:

1. The women are the cause of the rapes

2. Male USAF Academy Cadets cannot help themselves when women are around, and will rape unless the women are removed

Or am I missing something in your logic for bringing that up?

[af_vet_rr]

Second, the sexes don't need to be commingled in the service academies. The first priority needs to be service to the country, not social experimentation.

If they can't mingle together at college or one of the academies, then what's going to happen in the real world of the military where they have to rely on one another.