THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Monday, November 7, 1994 TAG: 9411070077
SECTION: FRONT PAGE: A2 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: ASSOCIATED PRESS
DATELINE: SAN DIEGO LENGTH: Short : 38 lines
Seven men instructors at a Navy school are being investigated for allegedly demanding sex from women in exchange for passing grades.
The case involves at least 16 enlisted women who were learning to operate the Navy's computer and telephone networks at the Naval Training Center San Diego, Lt. Patrick Dennison, a spokesman for the school, said Sunday. Most of the allegations involve verbal harassment, with some physical abuse such as grabbing, he said.
``There is still the misconception that this kind of thing is condoned by the Navy,'' Dennison said. ``But the message to people who think they can get away with this sort of thing is that they can't. They are going to pay the consequences.''
While it was not immediately clear how long each of the instructors under investigation has been in the Navy, Dennison said all have served at least six years, ``long enough to know better.'' The investigation was also reported in the Nov. 14 issue of Newsweek.
The allegations further tarnish the Navy's record on sexual harassment. Dozens of women said they were groped and molested by drunken Navy and Marine aviators at the 1991 Tailhook Association convention at the Las Vegas Hilton.
The latest alleged harassment occurred at the Internal Communications ``A'' School of the Service School Command between March 1993 and September of this year, when an investigation was ordered.
KEYWORDS: SEXUAL HARASSMENT U.S. NAVY
by CNB