Academy sex assault case won’t go to civilian court
Air Force Times, Staff report, Friday Jan 12, 2007 10:26:47 EST
Eric Gay / The Associated Press
Capt. Joseph Harding departs a hearing at Randolph Air Force Base in San
Antonio on June 24, 2005, when he was a first lieutenant. Civilian prosecutors
said Wednesday they won’t file charges against the officer accused of
sexually assaulting a female cadet whose allegations sparked a scandal at the
Air Force Academy.
Civilian prosecutors said Wednesday they will not file charges against an
officer accused of sexually assaulting a female cadet while both attended the
Air Force Academy, according to The Associated Press.
Prosecutors said they weighed Colorado laws with the investigative reports on
Capt. Joseph Harding, whose alleged assault on a fellow cadet in 2000 sparked
a scandal at the academy.
Chief prosecutor Diana May said authorities concluded they could not meet
the required burden of proof.
In September, a military judge dismissed a rape charge against Harding
because the accuser’s therapist refused to release her medical records
on grounds that they were confidential.
The accuser, Jessica Brakey, was among the first of dozens of women who said
they were punished or ignored when they reported being sexually assaulted. The
scandal, which broke in 2003, prompted several investigations and toppled the
school’s top commanders.
Brakey has agreed to have her name used publicly.
“It does say something important that the civilian office felt it
necessary and appropriate to review the case,” her attorney, Wendy Murphy,
said Wednesday.
Harding has maintained his innocence, and his attorney David Sheldon said
they weren’t surprised at the decision, given “how weak the case
was from the beginning.”
“The true person who was the victim was Harding, because he was denied
the opportunity to fully defend himself and clear his name,” Sheldon said.
