On the heels of Lamar S. Owens Jr.'s acquittal on rape charges, the Naval Academy faces a tough choice: Graduate the former Navy football star and give him a commission, or expel him for violating academy rules and saddle him with $140,000 in debt and no degree.
Either option could bring tremendous political fallout.
The former would anger women's groups and members of Congress who have long pressured the academy to crack down on sexual misconduct and reform a culture that has widely been described as hostile to women.
The latter would draw the ire of powerful alumni and possibly minority groups, some of whom object to what they say is a stark double standard in Owens' case.
Four witnesses - including current midshipmen and recent graduates - were granted immunity for agreeing to testify at last month's court-martial, according to court testimony. Two female midshipmen - Owens' accuser and her friend - admitted to underage drinking, renting an off-campus house and other possible rules violations. A recent graduate and former Navy football player testified to having a "social encounter" with the accuser at Bancroft Hall, potentially a rules violation for both. The fourth witness never took the stand.
If Owens is kicked out, it would be for violating academy rules. Owens is African-American; the four granted immunity are white.
"Will they be able to find a legitimate reason to differentiate his treatment from the witnesses who were immunized?" asked Charlotte Cluverius, a former academy law instructor who defends military clients in Washington. "They can do whatever they want and don't necessarily need to justify it. ... Hopefully, they will be as fair as possible with Midshipman Owens."
The prosecution of Owens in a highly publicized case followed sharp criticism in Pentagon studies of the academy's handling of sexual assault and harassment complaints.
Since 2001, two midshipmen of 39 accused of sexual misconduct have been convicted at trial. One was for a rape charge in civilian court; the other was for child pornography in a military trial. An academy spokesman said the school does not know of any case in which a midshipman has been convicted of rape at court-martial.
Vice Adm. Rodney P. Rempt, the academy superintendent, has taken a zero-tolerance stance toward such conduct. He is bringing charges this month against an oceanography professor who allegedly made explicit sexual comments to a female midshipman and next month in another sexual misconduct case involving a male midshipman.
