Fort Bragg Hearing Opens Against General Accused of Sex Crimes Against 5 Women, Other Charges
Fort Bragg Hearing Opens Against General Accused of Sex Crimes Against 5 Women, Other Charges
U.S. Army prosecutors offered the first details of a rare criminal case against a general, alleging in a military hearing Monday he committed sex crimes against five women, including four subordinates and a civilian.
An Article 32 hearing on evidence in the case against Brig. Gen. Jeffrey Sinclair opened Monday at Fort Bragg, a sprawling post that is home to the 82nd Airborne Division. Officials said it was expected to last at least two days.
Sinclair faces possible courts martial on charges including forcible sodomy, wrongful sexual conduct, violating orders, engaging in inappropriate relationships, misusing a government travel charge card, and possessing pornography and alcohol while deployed. He served as deputy commander in charge of logistics and support for the division’s troops in Afghanistan from July 2010 until he was sent home in May because of the allegations.
Before prosecutors could begin presenting their case Monday, defense lawyer Lt. Col. Jackie Thompson said military investigators had violated Sinclair’s rights by reading confidential emails he had exchanged with his lawyers and wife discussing the accusations against him.
Under questioning from Thompson, the lead investigator in the case acknowledged she had read the confidential e-mails, violating the terms of the subpoena used to obtain them from Sinclair’s service provider. Those e-mails were later turned over to prosecutors, who are barred from seeing Sinclair’s communications with his counsel.