The Army says the coordinator of a sexual assault prevention program at Fort Hood, Texas, is under investigation for “abusive sexual contact” and other alleged misconduct. He has been suspended from all duties.
The announcement Wednesday evening came just days after the arrest of the Air Force’s head of sexual assault prevention on charges of groping a woman in a northern Virginia parking lot.
The Army said a sergeant first class, whose name was not released, is accused of pandering, abusive sexual contact, assault and maltreatment of subordinates.
For those playing score at home, that’s two of the four major branches of the military.
Newton to the rescue: Embattled Missouri Senate Candidate Todd “Legitimate Rape” Akin may have been abandoned by the Republican establishment, but he’s not entirely without friends: Akin is getting an assist from failed presidential candidate and “Definer of Civilization“ Newt Gingrich, who will be attending a $500-a-plate fundraiser for Akin’s candidacy this Monday (Photo credit: AP). source
Everyone loved him and he made everyone happy. I knew that if I said anything he would just deny it.A woman referred to as “Witness 9” • Discussing sexual abuse allegations she made against George Zimmerman, who is currently facing trial in the shooting of Trayvon Martin. The victim, who is two years younger than Zimmerman, says that the incidents took place between the ages of 6 and 16, and she’s tried to block them out of her mind ever since. The witness also claimed that Zimmerman and his family showed prejudiced tendencies. The witness’ testimony came to light as part of an evidence release by Special Prosecutor Angela Corey. (Editor’s note: Audio of the testimony is available, but is very graphic; be advised. This post only touches basic details covered in the testimony.)
Jerry Sandusky’s lawyers finished putting on their case Wednesday without calling the former Penn State assistant football coach to the stand to rebut child sex abuse allegations that could put him in prison for the rest of his life.
The trial has lasted seven days, with jurors hearing from eight men - now 18 to 28 - who said the former coach sexually assaulted them after they met him through the charity he founded.
Sandusky was known during the early parts of the media circus around this case for speaking to the press even at his peril — most notably a very uncomfortable Bob Costas interview which the prosecution used against him in this trial.
» And parents were protesting outside: Roughly three dozen parents and supporters protested outside the L.A.-area school Monday, which has been rocked by two shocking but unrelated allegations of sexual molestation. The first case, involving a former teacher accused of doing unspeakable things to his students (note: trigger warning), was shocking enough; the second case, involving a teacher active until last week, only worsened things, as the allegations against him came out only as a result of the first case. The initial allegations did not lead to parents keeping their children home en masse (as the school had over 90 percent attendance throughout last week), but the second case, however, did. Low attendance hurts the school’s funding, so this hurt financially, but the school will also close Tuesday and Wednesday for emergency staff meetings, so the pain could go even deeper for the school. And things might go deeper: A third allegation at a different school in the region led to the arrest of a janitor.
Trigger warning: We have to warn you that this story is NOT pleasant, so please take care when reading.
Mark Berndt, a 61-year-old teacher who taught for three decades at Miramonte Elementary School in South L.A., is accused of lewd acts with 23 children between the ages of 7 and 10 — allegedly tying children up and putting giant cockroaches on their faces. And something else we’re not going to print. Berndt, who was fired in March and is being held on a $2.3 million bail, wasn’t caught as the result of children coming forward, but a photo-processor who turned pictures of some of the heinous acts over to the authorities. The L.A. Times has more, including a felony complaint. This is just appalling.
A court in Egypt has forbidden the Army from carrying out so-called virginity tests on female detainees. The verdict was delivered in the case of Samira Ibrahim, a 25-year-old marketing manager and activist brave enough to defy the country’s Army.
In March of this year, military forces violently broke up a sit-in of protesters who had continued to camp out in Tahrir Square after Mubarak’s ouster. Women as well as men were arrested. According to testimony they gave to international human-rights groups, the women were insulted, accused of prostitution, beaten, and tortured. At a military camp to which they were transported, seven of the women—those who were unmarried—were subjected to “virginity tests,” stripped and inspected by a male military doctor while soldiers and officers looked on.
One person makes a difference: There were numerous reports of said “tests” being carried out by the Egyptian army, but Samira Ibrahim was the only woman to come forward publicly and file a lawsuit. “On that day, I truly wished for death,” she said in a video testimony. “I kept telling myself, people get heart attacks and die, why don’t I get one?” Problem is, Egyptian courts don’t have jurisdiction over military personnel, so while policy will change to reflect the ruling, it’ll be up to the military itself to press charges against any of its officers. So far, it has announced that it will charge one army doctor with “public indecency and violation of orders.”
There’s no question in my mind that I conveyed to (university officials) that I saw Jerry with a boy in the shower and that it was severe sexual acts going on and that it was wrong and over the line.Penn State assistant coach Mike McQueary • Describing his handling of the alleged sexual abuse incident involving Jerry Sandusky back in 2002. McQueary made the statements while speaking at the pre-trial hearing for Tim Curley and Gary Schultz, two former Penn State officials charged with covering up Sandusky’s crimes by not acting upon McQueary’s evidence. The assistant coach, currently on leave, emphasized that when he went to the officials, he expected something to be done: “In my mind, that is the police. I want to make that clear.” In regards to the controversy around his handling of the incident, McQueary, who was “shocked” and “horrified” by what happened, said he wasn’t thinking straight in the direct aftermath of seeing Sandusky, but he was sure that the incident was over at the point he left. source (via • follow)
I’m moving back to New York in a few days. Unlike past...
OMG. I got so...
In this week’s Newsweek, a little...
Tumblr this morning. [h/t anne]
#@#$%!.tumblr.com
Here’s a hidden feature that shipped in...
Watch: PCB gets a visual shout out on GMA’s Yahoo/Tumblr...
New York prosecutor says he can’t bring case against Syracuse ex-coach Bernie Fine: According to the AP article, “A New York prosecutor says he cannot bring charges against a former Syracuse University assistant basketball coach but finds that two men who accused him of sexual abuse are credible.” The prosecutor in Onondaga County, NY says he can’t prosecute the case; a third accuser (the one we mentioned yesterday, who admitted to sexual abuse himself) may still get his day in court, as those allegations are more recent and not under this prosecutor’s jurisdiction.
The only thing that transpired was the same stuff that happened to me. This kid has been through a lot because of the way I controlled him and abused him.Bernie Fine accuser Zach Tomaselli • Admitting to the Associated Press that, years after he says former Syracuse assistant coach Bernie Fine sexually abused him, he did the same thing to another young boy. Fortunately, Tomaselli says that he’s getting help and realizes the error of his way. The revelations came out as a result of the case that Tomaselli is involved in — which will likely lead to a plea bargain for as much as three years in jail and a spot on the sex offenders’ registry — and his lawyer’s attempt to suppress the confession from the press. However, Tomaselli came clean, because he said he was “sick of hiding behind my attorney.” source (via • follow)
Zach Tomaselli goes on record: The Pittsburgh police department’s Sgt. Joseph Gannon has interviewed the young man, now 23, who alleges former Syracuse basketball associate head coach Bernie Fine molested him in 2002. Tomaselli, one of four people now accusing Fine of child sexual abuse (the two of whom are former SU ballboys), claims Fine arranged for him to ride on a bus to Pittsburgh with the SU athletic department staff, and that upon reaching their destination Fine molested him in a hotel room. Fine was fired from his job at Syracuse on Sunday. source
Today’s awful story of sexual predation: Did you know that sex offenders on probation, under California state law, can’t light their houses up on Halloween? Well, they can’t, and when authorities in Los Angeles conducted a four-day sweep of 251 houses occupied by sex offenders, they found five probationers in violation of this law. According to LA County Supervisor Michael D. Antonovich, one of them ”had a trap door in his bedroom leading to a basement where officers found a chair and rope.” There was also a married couple with a fully decorated home, on probation for molesting their own children and found to be in possession of child pornography. If anyone has any stories involving, say, a bunch of puppies who courageously drag their owner to safety from a burning house, now would be a great time to let us know, ‘cause we sure need an upper.
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