Military

Another military training instructor from Joint Base San Antonio-Lackland is headed to prison after his sentencing on charges of sexual misconduct.

In a special court-martial this week, Tech Sgt. Brian Hickingbottom, Jr., pleaded guilty to charges of having unprofessional relationships with three trainees in tech school, and of obstructing justice

Military Judge, Col. Donald Eller, Jr. sentenced Hickingbottom to four months confinement, hard labor without confinement for 45 days, and reduction in rank to Senior Airman.

A military judge has sentenced another military training instructor in the ongoing investigation of sexual misconduct at Joint Base San Antonio-Lackland.

Senior Airman Andrew S. Lira was found guilty of having unprofessional intimate relationships -- from May 2010 through December 2011 -- with eight female trainees at Lackland, one of them a basic trainee.

He also was found guilty of adultery, and of obstructing justice by telling one of the trainees to delete all of their text messages and asking her to lie to investigators.

Senior Airman Christopher Oliver, a military training instructor, is facing a general court-martial today at Joint Base San Antonio-Lackland.

Oliver is charged with aggravated sexual assault and abusive sexual contact against a boot camp trainee. He also is charged with having unprofessional relationships with two other basic trainees and continuing those relationships when the trainees advanced into technical training.

Training instructors are prohibited by the Uniform Code of Military Justice from having personal relationships with trainees at any level.

Fort Sam Houston’s Caisson Division will be activated today to honor a decorated soldier killed in Afghanistan this month, and a contingent of Texas A&M cadets are coming in from College Station to honor the former Aggie and military leader.  40-year-old Lt. Col. Todd Clark was killed on June 8, 2013, in what the Army called a “Green on Blue” incident. An Afghan soldier being trained by Col. Clark and two others turned his gun on them, killing all three. Army North Commander, Lt. Gen. William Caldwell, and his staff from Fort Sam Houston were on hand to honor Col.

The eight officers on the all-male jury panel handed Tech. Sgt. Jaime Rodriguez, a recruiter from Lake Jackson, which is near Houston, 27 years in prison – the harshest sentence issued in the sex scandal so far – which was two years longer than what was recommended by prosecutors.

The former military recruiter was also given a dishonorable discharge after his conviction on 29 of 30 charges involving sex crimes against women who came through his office.

An amendment to the budget bill requires a report on the fixes recommended by Air Force commanders who investigated sexual assault in their branch of the military last year.

As a member of the House Armed Services Committee, San Antonio Congressman Joaquín Castro asked for a General Accountability Office (GAO) report on the 45 initiatives recommended by last year’s command-directed investigation.

Castro told the House before the vote that it is critical to ensure those measures would have a real effect on the problem.

A military jury has found former Air Force recruiter Tech. Sgt. Jaime Rodriguez guilty of all but the most serious charge against him.

Rodriguez was found not guilty of the rape of a woman at his recruiting office near Houston, but still faces the possibility of spending years in prison.

Rodriguez faced his accusers again on Thursday, some of whom were high school students at the time of the offenses. Lt. Col. Mark Hoover with the Judge Advocate General Office said ten of the women testified about their interactions with the recruiter.

An Air Force recruiter from the Houston area is being tried at a court-martial in San Antonio today. The recruiter faces charges of sexual misconduct with a dozen women, many of whom were high school students seeking careers in the Air Force.

Tech Sgt. Jaime Rodriguez is charged with sex crimes against 12 Air Force applicants and a recruiter assistant.

San Antonio Congressman Joaquín Castro has asked for a full report on Air Force commanders’ recommendations regarding sexual misconduct in the Air Force.

On Wednesday the congressman asked fellow Armed Services Committee members to support his amendment to the National Defense Authorization Act.

With 32 boot camp instructors under investigation for the abuse of almost 60 victims, the investigation is the largest in the history of the Air Force.