Reuters: U.S.: Naval Academy footballer accused of rape lied to officials: investigator

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Naval Academy footballer accused of rape lied to officials: investigator Sep 2nd 2013, 02:06 By Lacey Johnson WASHINGTON | Sun Sep 1, 2013 10:06pm EDT WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A former U.S. Naval Academy football player accused of raping a female midshipmen last year initially told an investigator the encounter never happened but reversed himself after being pressed about a sexually-charged Internet message he posted, the Navy investigator testified on Sunday. The female midshipman said she was sexually assaulted in April 2012 while she was blacked out after drinking at an off-campus "football house" party in Annapolis, Maryland, the site of the elite academy. The disclosure of the alleged incident came just a week after President Barack Obama, in a speech at the same academy on May 24, urged graduates to stamp out sexual assault from their ranks. Obama said sexual assault was a crime that threatened to erode trust and discipline within the military. Tra'ves Bush, 22; Eric Graham, 21; and Joshua Tate, 21, have been charged with sexual assault and making false statements. They have since denied the rape allegations. Special Agent Jesus Torres with the Naval Criminal Investigative Service who had questioned the men in the weeks following the incident, said Bush reversed initial statements he made to him about intercourse with the woman after investigators saw a suggestive Internet message Bush had posted. "He disclosed that he lied to us in prior interviews about not having sex with," Torres said. "He let us know that he did have intercourse with her at the party after a brief conversation in the hallway." Tate and Graham also made false statements and downplayed their relations with the woman at the party, Torres said. The testimony, which came during a pre-trial hearing at Washington's Navy Yard to determine if the men should be court-martialed, marked a rare account of the party from the perspective of the accused men, all Academy students. The woman, who was a 20-year-old sophomore at the time of the alleged incident, was initially uncooperative with investigators. In explanation, she said she did not want to get anyone in trouble and that she feared her mother would force her to leave the school. Defense attorneys on Sunday wrapped up a long cross-examination of the woman. The presiding military officer ruled the alleged victim's testimony be limited to no more than nine hours each day, with regular breaks, after her lawyers complained she was exhausted from repetitive and at-times graphic questioning. In total, she testified for dozens of hours over five days. The hearing, which follows a spate of high-profile military sexual assault cases, including some involving personnel whose job it was to prevent sexual abuse, is expected to resume on Monday with witness testimony. 'COOL THING TO DO' The female midshipman also testified on Sunday that one of the alleged attackers bragged to her and others about having sex with her at the party because he said "it was the cool thing to do." A lawyer for Tate, who the woman said informed her about their sexual encounter after the party, argued he was only joking. She has said she had a hazy recollection of the party. "Josh was actually kidding with you when he said you had sex, is that right?" the lawyer, Jason Ehrenburg, said. "No, sir," said the woman. Tate later denied they had sex, saying he made the claims because it was socially cool to do so. Tate's lawyer also argued that the woman was not sufficiently afraid of Tate considering the allegations because the summer after the alleged rape, she got on a boat at a party where Tate was present. She went inside the boat with him and had a conversation with him. "Would it be fair to say you weren't intimidated by Josh Tate at his point in time?" Ehrenburg said. She responded: "I felt ... I had no reason to be intimidated at that specific instance." Graham's attorney also questioned her if she deleted her Twitter account to hide potential evidence from investigators - an allegation she denied. The woman said she filed an assault report at the urging of a fellow student and volunteered to accept punishment for underage drinking. She sought legal help in early 2013. (Editing by Eric M. Johnson, Cynthia Johnston and Philip Barbara) Link this Share this Digg this Email Reprints

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