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Tag: Sinclair trial

  • Army General Receives Wrist-Slap in Sex Abuse Case

    A two-year court case involving allegations of sexual abuse in the highest levels of the military came to an end today as Brig. Gen. Jeffrey Sinclair was sentenced.

    According to a New York Times report, Sinclair has been ordered by a military judge to forego $5,000 of his pay per month for four months. The general was not discharged from the military and will be allowed to keep his pension and benefits. The general’s chief defense lawyer has stated that Sinclair will be retiring with haste.

    The sentence was far more lenient than many following the case had expected. Sinclair had faced up to life in prison if convicted of several of the more serious charges he was facing.

    Sinclair was originally charged with eight charges related to sexual assault, including forcible sodomy, indecent acts, and conduct unbecoming an officer. The general pleaded not guilty to the charges.

    Sinclair was accused of forcing a female captain to perform oral sex on him and issuing death threats against the woman and her family. The general has since admitted that the woman was his mistress while he was stationed in Iraq and Afghanistan.

    The case was further complicated when the case’s former lead prosecutor, Lieutenant Colonel William Helixon, asked that the more serious charges against Sinclair be dropped. The colonel reportedly argued while in tears that he believed Sinclair’s accuser had lied about evidence found on her phone and had lied under oath.

    Earlier this week Sinclair agreed to plead guilty to lesser charges of misconduct through a plea deal with the prosecution. The deal led to the dismissal of the sex abuse charges, though adultery (a crime in the military) was still included.

    Shortly before the sentencing Sinclair had offered an apology for his conduct and to his accuser. The general called his actions “selfish” and “self-destructive” while stating that he felt “shame and remorse.”

    Image via U.S. Military

  • Army Sex Case: General Sinclair Is Going To Court

    Brigadier General Jeffrey Sinclair is most likely facing jail time as a prime suspect in sexual misdemeanors that include sodomy, assault, and threatening behavior.

    Although the lead prosecutor, Lt. Col. William Helixon, emotionally urged top military officials to drop some of the serious charges, his display of tears and pleading did not change their minds.

    The army wants to prosecute the senior ranking official for what they think are unforgivable sex crimes. Sinclair faces life in prison if convicted of the sexual assault charges.

    Sinclair has pleaded not guilty to eight sexual assault charges, including forcible sodomy and other indecent acts, according to the AP. He could be the most senior member of the U.S. military ever to face trial for sexual assault.

    Sinclair is accused of repeatedly abusing a female in the junior ranks of the military, all the while forcing the young female officer to keep her mouth shut – threatening he would kill her if she didn’t.

    Lawyers said Sinclair, the married father of two, carried on a three-year extramarital affair with a female captain under his command during tours in Iraq and Afghanistan. Pointing out that his admission of an affair will almost certainly end his Army career.

    Last month prosecutor Helixon said he believes the primary accuser in the case lied under oath when she testified that the general forced her to perform oral sex on him and that it is her word against his.

    Helixon, who worked on the case for almost two years, was removed as prosecutor after a superior officer took him to a military hospital for a mental health evaluation, according to the AP.

    Defense attorney Richard L. Scheff said that Helixon left the case because he felt “ethically bound” after failing to convince his superiors to drop the charges against Sinclair, according to the Los Angeles Times.

    “Helixon repeatedly stated that the case against Sinclair should not be prosecuted, but that the Army was forcing the case to move forward,” Scheff wrote in the case for dismissal.

    However, Helixon’s replacement, Lt. Col. Robert C. Stelle, adamantly denied that Helixon believed the general was not guilty of sexual assault, or that he had withdrawn from the case for ethical reasons.

    “At no time did LTC Helixon state that the accused is not guilty of the charged offenses,” Stelle wrote, continuing that Helixon “did not have legal, ethical issues with the case going forward.”

    This is despite the breakdown Helixon exhibited, and regardless of why he is no longer on the case, the trial is going ahead.

    Image via YouTube