A Naval Academy midshipman has been cleared of charges that he raped a female student in her dorm room in October, the military college announced yesterday, pointing to a Navy investigative report that found an "almost complete lack of physical evidence."
Midshipman Mark A. Calvanico, 21, of Secaucus, N.J., will not face a court-martial on charges of rape, indecent assault, indecent acts and conduct unbecoming an officer, the academy said in a news release.
Calvanico could still face disciplinary action through the academy's administrative conduct system, a college spokeswoman said. A Navy investigating officer had recommended an administrative hearing for Calvanico that could result in his dismissal from the academy for allegedly failing to meet curfew, being drunk and disorderly, and other offenses.
Calvanico's was the third high-profile case of sexual assault brought by the academy against midshipmen in the past three years.
One of the midshipmen, Kenny Ray Morrison, a substitute football player, was sentenced last year to two years in a military prison for having sex with a female student without her consent in a Washington hotel room in 2006.
The academy's superintendent, Vice Adm. Jeffrey Fowler, decided not to refer the charges against Calvanico to a court martial after he "carefully reviewed the Article 32 investigating officer's report and enclosures," the academy said in a statement.
An aunt of Calvanico's said yesterday that the family was "delighted" with the decision.
"It's been a nightmare, a living nightmare, and we're glad it's over," said the aunt, Regina Durazzo. "And justice has prevailed."
Calvanico, who recently completed his third year at the academy, was training at Marine Corps Base Quantico in Virginia and not available for comment, she said.
Attempts to reach Calvanico's accuser yesterday were unsuccessful.
The accuser, a sophomore, tearfully testified at a military hearing this spring that Calvanico entered her Bancroft Hall room in Annapolis three times in the pre-dawn hours of Sunday, Oct. 14. She testified that he had been drinking and that she asked him to leave.
On the third visit, she testified, she awoke to find him on top of her. She said he pinned her down and forced her to have sex, according to testimony at an Article 32 hearing, which is similar to a grand jury proceeding. The Sun generally does not identify alleged victims of sexual assaults.
