New | US general's dramatic court martial weighs heavy on Senate's military sex abuse bill
The results of the military trial of a US general who was involved in a sex scandal with a junior officer could shape the high-stakes debate in Congress, which will consider a bill that would remove military commanders’ authority to prosecute sexual assault and other crimes, according to .
Brigadier General Jeffrey Sinclair, a married paratrooper and former chief of the 82nd Airborne Division, is under court martial for allegedly having a long-term affair with a female army captain – who is 17 years his junior – and sexually assaulting her twice.
There undeniably remain reasonable grounds to believe that the accused committed sexual assault offences
The junior officer has testified that Sinclair, on two occasions in Afghanistan, forced her to perform oral sex against her will, among other charges.
He is only the third Army general to face court-martial in more than a half-century, the report said on Tuesday.
The trial, which comes after two years of preparation and investigation by the prosecution and defence, will take place this week at Fort Bragg, North Carolina, and is seen as a test case for the army’s willingness to hold senior leaders accountable for sex crimes, the said.
Sinclair has admitted to the affair but pleaded not guilty to all charges.
