No witnesses or arguments at Air Force Academy sexual assault hearing
The Colorado Springs Gazette reports:
The academy said the brief hearing came amid changes in military procedures for evidence hearings. In January, military rules limited the scope of the hearings and allowed victims not to testify.
Those changes aside, lawyers are allowed to argue their case and call witnesses. Tuesday’s hearing was the first in recent years in which prosecutors declined to call witnesses.
Eugene Fidell, an expert in military law and lecturer at Yale, said similar instances have been rare.
“There are times when government, defense, and complainant(s)’ interests may all align to frustrate the public’s right to a public hearing,” Fidell wrote in an email.
Brian Purchia, a spokesman for the Washington, D.C., advocacy group Protect Our Defenders, which is pushing for enhanced protection of military victims of sexual assault, said the prosecution’s handling of the hearing raises some concern.
