Rapist has Conviction Expunged by his USAF Commander.

So the woman was raped by a fellow service member and he was convicted by a jury of his peers. But his commander took it upon himself to wipe his record clean.

Decision to wipe clean the conviction of air force commander will be reviewed by the Pentagon, US defense secretary says

A victim of military sexual assault whose attacker’s conviction was wiped clean by his US air force commander has said she is “shocked and scared” by the decision, in her first detailed comments since the decision.

The woman, a physician’s assistant, was sexually assaulted by Lt Colonel James Wilkerson, 44, the 31st Fighter Wing inspector general, as she lay sleeping, a military jury concluded in November.

But last month Lt General Craig Franklin, commander of the Third Air Force based at Ramstein in Germany, exercised his discretion under the Uniform Code on Military Justice and concluded that the entire body of evidence was insufficient to meet the burden of proof beyond a reasonable doubt. As the “convening authority”, Franklin, who did not interview the victim, was not required to provide further explanation for his ruling and his disposition is final.

The Raw Story: Victim of sexual assault: I’m ‘shocked and scared’ after military purged attacker’s conviction

reply to post by Circumstance

It doesn't really surprise me. These guys think they are Gods or something. We really need more women in command in the armed forces.

Well reading other sources on this case it appears that there were some irregularities. Certain defense testimony wasn't allowed, this guys wife has a weird story...the crime itself, fondling and digital penetration, whatever that is, while the woman just slept is really strange.

Don't you wake up if someone crawls into bed with you and starts fondling you? Apparently it was the guys wife that came in the room and woke the lady up before kicking her out. Very strange.

Why did the jury only give him 1 year prison when they could have given him up to 30? What do they know that we don't.

It sounds like this entire thing was going to be overturned on appeal also.

You see this type of behavior a lot among officers, covering for each other's crimes. Not so much committing crimes themselves, but the covering up.

While they are very quick to hammer the enlisted personnel for the smallest of things.

reply to post by Circumstance

No surprise.

DynCorp, Halliburton, KBR employees were busy trafficking humans, buying and selling girls and women as sex slaves.

When the Pentagon sought to make it illegal, these and other defense contractors put a stop to it:

U.S. stalls on human trafficking.

I'm just not seeing the differences between branches of the military and fraternity houses.

Both have a pledging period where they're humiliated and debased, then the sense of belonging to a larger group becomes greater than the individual, then they all determine they're the very best because they say so.

So boring...

She was 49 years old. Hmmm. Something doesn't jive.

And lets not forget that this was a legal action under the UCMJ that was put in there for a reason. I would say, from what I can gather, that this case is not beyond a reasonable doubt by any stretch.

I certainly feel for the woman if this was true but there's no way its a slam dunk. I think he was justified in exercising his discretion. I doubt it would happen if this case had so much evidence that the Lt. General would look like he was playing favorites and tarnish his own reputation to get a buddy off.

I believe it took the jury less than 2 hours of deliberation to come back with the most minimal sentence they could which tells me there wasn't enough solid evidence to discuss and base a punishment on.

And why was the victims history of lying not allowed in as evidence?

reply to post by Hopechest

And why was the victims history of lying not allowed in as evidence?

It called 'Rape Shield Laws', cant use a victim's past against them, and its VERY true, I know someone that was accused of sexual battery, he worked in an ER as an orderly, the so-called 'victim' accused him of sexual battery, sued the hospital, got a settlement. She had a history of accusing people of sexual battery at different medical facilities the suing the facilities and receiving settlements. Yet because of this law, they could NOT bring this into defense evidence to establish a pattern. This guy was eventually convicted, did time, and has to register as a sex offender for the rest of his life because of this law. The can use a suspects past against them, but the 'victim's' isnt allowed

Originally posted by HomerinNC
reply to post by Hopechest

 

And why was the victims history of lying not allowed in as evidence?

It called 'Rape Shield Laws', cant use a victim's past against them, and its VERY true, I know someone that was accused of sexual battery, he worked in an ER as an orderly, the so-called 'victim' accused him of sexual battery, sued the hospital, got a settlement. She had a history of accusing people of sexual battery at different medical facilities the suing the facilities and receiving settlements. Yet because of this law, they could NOT bring this into defense evidence to establish a pattern. This guy was eventually convicted, did time, and has to register as a sex offender for the rest of his life because of this law. The can use a suspects past against them, but the 'victim's' isnt allowed

I did not know that,

Thanks for explaining it. That does make sense. I imagine if the hospital was under the UCMJ that they probably would have expunged the man in your example also then.

Originally posted by hp1229
She was 49 years old. Hmmm. Something doesn't jive.

What's that?

49 year old's are impervious to rape?

I'm not saying we have to believe her story, just because she says it happened, but to question her ordeal based on ageism?

Bad form.

As for the rest of it, well this is what happens in any military that is given the power of life and death over others. Especially when they've been taught that they are better that everybody else.

Pretty easy to rape somebody you don't consider equal to yourself. At least to a psychopath it is.

~Tenth

reply to post by Circumstance


I just finished working on a documentary on Rape in the military. The information I learned is that most rapes are never reported because the victim is even further victimized by the system; It's common knowledge of women in the military. Men are raped as well and almost never reported.

Originally posted by tothetenthpower

Originally posted by hp1229
She was 49 years old. Hmmm. Something doesn't jive.

What's that?
49 year old's are impervious to rape?
I'm not saying we have to believe her story, just because she says it happened, but to question her ordeal based on ageism?
Bad form.
As for the rest of it, well this is what happens in any military that is given the power of life and death over others. Especially when they've been taught that they are better that everybody else.
Pretty easy to rape somebody you don't consider equal to yourself. At least to a psychopath it is.
~Tenth

True. However I'm not sure where you reside(country) but I havn't seen too many 49 year olds worth the trouble for someone who is serving the Military and that a Commander would jeopardize his/her position to save someone. I mean she is 49 and he was 44. We cannot possibly conclude the real motivations which to me seems more that she approached him or possibly were involved somehow and things got out of hand during their private moment? Seen one too many such affairs at work.

The fact of the matter is.... there are some individuals in the military who are Too important to have anything get in the way of their continued service in the Armed Forces. They have far too many secrets and are in on too many active classified matters. Are they above the law? No, we all would hold them accountable, but our Government thinks otherwise. Until the value of that individual comes to an end, much of what they do will be swept under the rug. Of course, this is not 'every' case, but you can be sure that certain individuals hold such importance that they will never face any charges. The USMJ 'can' defer prosecution if it is in their best interest and of National secutity, don't think for a minute they can't and don't.

reply to post by Circumstance



was it rape? I only read sexual assault and there was also insufficient evidence.

A man is innocent until proven guilty.

The Military comes down hard on sexual crimes (as they should). However, because they are so hard it can be scary to serve as a man sometimes. If a male soldier messes up I take him aside and talk/yell at him, if a female messes up I take her aside with a witness (preferably another female) and talk/yell at her. Monthly counseling for a male is a one on one thing to let a troop know what he is doing well and what he should improve. Monthly counseling for a female involves counselor, counselee, and a witness (preferably female).

Even today as a civilian females around me think I am cold, aloof, sexist, or uninterested. When actually I am just considering how to defend myself against accusations of impropriety,

I have no respect nor sympathy for a person that commits such a crime. However, I know that in the military men are considered guilty until proven innocent,

reply to post by hp1229


I have to hope I am misreading your posts.

She wouldn't have been raped because she was 49? If you believe that, please try to get some help.

ANYONE can be a victim of rape. Male/female, young/old, sick/healthy, ugly/beautiful, fat/skinny.