Naval Academy case: Records requests scrutinized

[unhappycamper]

http://hamptonroads.com/2014/02/naval-academy-case-records-requests-scrutinized

Naval Academy case: Records requests scrutinized
By Annys Shin
The Washington Post
© February 16, 2014

WASHINGTON

A highly publicized sexual assault case at the U.S. Naval Academy has turned a microscope on military legal procedure, including the authority of military commanders to charge or punish defendants and the cross-examination of alleged victims before trial.

Now, another standard practice in military sexual assault cases is quietly being challenged in courtrooms across the country: the review and release of an accuser’s mental health records.

Over the past several months, lawyers for the alleged victim in the Naval Academy case have been trying to block a judge from reviewing years of counseling records. The young woman sought therapy after three former Navy football players allegedly assaulted her at a drunken off-campus party in 2012. Charges were dropped against two of the midshipmen, but a third, Joshua Tate, is scheduled for court martial next month.

If the case goes forward, the therapy records could wind up being used against the alleged victim. The latest appeal by her attorneys is pending, but the presiding judge in the case, Col. Daniel Daugherty, has already reviewed some of the records and agreed to release portions to the defense.