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| Disgraced Army general, Jeffrey A. Sinclair, gets $20,000 fine, no jail time | Disgraced Army general, Jeffrey A. Sinclair, gets $20,000 fine, no jail time |
| (about 1 hour later) | |
| A disgraced Army general who admitted carrying on a long and sordid war-zone affair with a junior officer and having improper relationships with two other women was reprimanded and fined $20,000 by a military judge Thursday. | A disgraced Army general who admitted carrying on a long and sordid war-zone affair with a junior officer and having improper relationships with two other women was reprimanded and fined $20,000 by a military judge Thursday. |
| Brig. Gen. Jeffrey A. Sinclair, whose court-martial made him the public face of the military’s struggle to prevent and police sexual misconduct in the ranks, dodged a jail sentence. | Brig. Gen. Jeffrey A. Sinclair, whose court-martial made him the public face of the military’s struggle to prevent and police sexual misconduct in the ranks, dodged a jail sentence. |
| Sinclair, a paratrooper and veteran of the Iraq and Afghan wars, hugged his lawyers and friends after the sentence was pronounced by Col. James Pohl, the military judge, according to reporters in the courtroom at Fort Bragg, N.C. | Sinclair, a paratrooper and veteran of the Iraq and Afghan wars, hugged his lawyers and friends after the sentence was pronounced by Col. James Pohl, the military judge, according to reporters in the courtroom at Fort Bragg, N.C. |
| “The system worked. I’ve always been proud of my Army,” Sinclair told reporters after the sentence was imposed. “All I want to do now is go north and hug my kids and my wife.” | |
| He could be punished further financially. His lawyers have said they expect he will have to retire from the Army at a lower rank, which would diminish his pension benefits. | He could be punished further financially. His lawyers have said they expect he will have to retire from the Army at a lower rank, which would diminish his pension benefits. |
| The judge’s decision ended a tumultuous, criminal investigation and court-martial that began in March 2012 when a female captain on Sinclair’s staff in Afghanistan reported that they had been having an affair for three years. | The judge’s decision ended a tumultuous, criminal investigation and court-martial that began in March 2012 when a female captain on Sinclair’s staff in Afghanistan reported that they had been having an affair for three years. |
| Adultery is a crime in the military, and it is particularly taboo for a married officer to have sex with someone directly under his command. Even worse, Sinclair’s accuser said the general forced her into oral sex on two occasions and once threatened to kill her and her family if she revealed their relationship. | |
| The accuser’s attorney, Jamie Barnett, a retired Navy rear admiral, said he spoke to her after the sentence was announced and that she was “obviously devastated” that the punishment wasn’t more severe. | |
| “It’s a terrible outcome, and by failing to render justice today, the Army’s going to face the reality that this could happen again,” said Barnett, now a lawyer in private practice. “It’s really beyond disappointing. It’s a travesty for the Army and military justice in general.” | |
| The Washington Post generally does not identify alleged victims of sex crimes. | |
| Sinclair admitted the affair but vigorously denied assaulting or threatening the woman. His lawyers portrayed her as a jealous mistress who tattled after she read suggestive e-mails he had sent to other women, and because he refused to divorce his wife. | Sinclair admitted the affair but vigorously denied assaulting or threatening the woman. His lawyers portrayed her as a jealous mistress who tattled after she read suggestive e-mails he had sent to other women, and because he refused to divorce his wife. |
| The Army aggressively prosecuted the case amid a national uproar over skyrocketing reports of sexual assault in the military and doubts about the Pentagon’s commitment to dealing with the problem. | The Army aggressively prosecuted the case amid a national uproar over skyrocketing reports of sexual assault in the military and doubts about the Pentagon’s commitment to dealing with the problem. |
| In the end, however, the Army agreed to a plea bargain with Sinclair and dropped the sexual assault charges. Prosecutors admitted they had doubts about the accuser’s reliability, and the judge found evidence that the Army allowed politics to influence its decisions on how it handled the case. | In the end, however, the Army agreed to a plea bargain with Sinclair and dropped the sexual assault charges. Prosecutors admitted they had doubts about the accuser’s reliability, and the judge found evidence that the Army allowed politics to influence its decisions on how it handled the case. |
| Sinclair was only the third Army general to be court-martialed in the past 60 years. Under his plea deal with the Army, he faced a maximum prison sentence of 18 months. But prosecutors did not press for him to spend time behind bars, and the judge declined to incarcerate him. | Sinclair was only the third Army general to be court-martialed in the past 60 years. Under his plea deal with the Army, he faced a maximum prison sentence of 18 months. But prosecutors did not press for him to spend time behind bars, and the judge declined to incarcerate him. |