“If convicted on one of the sexual battery charges, it would have been mandatory life in prison,” one attorney said. “So the stakes were extremely high.”
Air Force Maj. Gen. James Eifert's message to his troops comes after a media report in March revealed the Guard was facing ongoing investigations into allegations of sexual misconduct and coverups that date back a decade.
President Donald Trump declared Monday it “looks” like Iran was behind the explosive attack on Saudi Arabian oil facilities. But he stressed that military retaliation was not yet on the table in response to the strike against a key U.S. Mideast ally.
The four servicemen planned to make “sexual contact” against Army Staff Sgt. Logan Melgar as he was hazed on video in his bedroom, a Navy prosecutor alleged.
The Pentagon's nominee for vice chairman of the Joint Chiefs may face blowback on the hill following revelations of sexual assault accusations. But the service has cleared him of any wrongdoing.