Army disqualifies 588 soldiers after sexual assault review

[msanthrope]

1. This comes as an explosive Army sexual assault trial is about to get started....

The stunning resignation of the military lawyer who was prosecuting an Army general on a charge of forcible sodomy is raising new questions about how commanders are handling sexual assault cases.

It is widely believed that Army attorney Lt. Col. William Helixon resigned in protest because he believed Army commanders were being too aggressive in their prosecution of Brig. Gen. Jeffrey Sinclair.

“It’s clear that the commander wanted something done that Lt. Col. Helixon thought was problematic from an ethical standpoint,” said Eugene Fidell, a military law expert who teaches at Yale Law School.

Sinclair’s trial is set to begin March 4, a rare court-martial for a general officer. The charges include forcible sodomy and adultery related to an extramarital relationship and inappropriate conduct with several women. Lawyers for Sinclair filed a motion made public Tuesday asking military judge Col. James Pohl to throw out the case. Sinclair’s lawyers argued that testimony from the primary witness against him is unreliable and that top Pentagon brass improperly meddled in prosecutorial decisions.

http://www.armytimes.com/article/20140226/NEWS06/302260006/Prosecutor-s-departure-fuels-debate-over-command-influence-sexual-assault-cases

I generally think that prosecutors should be the ones deciding charges....not command brass.