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Airforce cadets raped { February 18 2003 } Original Source Link: (May no longer be active)
http://morningsun.net/stories/02182003/usw_20030218007.shtmlhttp://morningsun.net/stories/02182003/usw_20030218007.shtml
Story last updated at 1:08 a.m. Tuesday, February 18, 2003
Air Force cadets claim they were reprimanded for reporting rapes
DENVER (AP) - When five female Air Force Academy cadets reported that they had been raped by classmates, they sought some support from the military. Instead, they were treated as if they were either crazy or promiscuous, says a former Air Force captain and founder of a group that tracks sexual assaults in the military.
The women say they were reprimanded for reporting the attack, and four have left the academy. Now, the military has ordered a review of how the academy handles sexual assault allegations.
"They have attempted to talk about it or find some assistance within the system. Instead they have systematically been told to shut up by other cadets or the system itself," said Dorothy Mackey, a former Air Force captain who says she resigned her commission in 1992 after two other officers harassed her. Her lawsuit against the men was ultimately rejected by the U.S. Supreme Court.
The Air Force Academy allegations have led Sens. Wayne Allard, R-Colo., and John Warner, R-Va., to ask the Pentagon for an investigation.
On Friday, the office of Air Force Secretary James Roche announced that a special review panel had been formed to review sexual assault policies in the military branch, "with a particular emphasis on the Air Force Academy."
The academy commandant, Brig. Gen. Taco Gilbert, defended the school's conduct in a written response to questions about one alleged assault in October 2001, in which a cadet said she was raped after a night of drinking and a strip poker game.
After a hearing the academy decided not to press charges against her attacker, and the cadet said Gilbert criticized her conduct.
"I take all reports seriously. I investigate every allegation and take action on every assault," Gilbert said.
He said there was "no justification" for the alleged assault, but added, "when you put yourself in situations with increased risk, you have to take increased precautions to mitigate those risks.
"For example, if I walk down a dark alley with hundred-dollar bills hanging out of my pockets, it doesn't justify my being attacked or robbed, but I certainly increased the risk by doing what I did."
Another woman told KMGH-TV of Denver she left the academy after commanders responded to her rape allegation by charging her with violating rules against drinking, fraternization with upperclassmen and having sex in the dormitories.
An academy amnesty program, set up to encourage the reporting of sexual assaults, promises that in general, an assault victim who violates lesser rules will not be punished.
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