THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1997, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Saturday, February 22, 1997 TAG: 9702220316
SECTION: FRONT PAGE: A9 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: ASSOCIATED PRESS
DATELINE: BONN, GERMANY LENGTH: 33 lines
Ten more GIs allege they were sexually assaulted or harassed by male instructors at a Darmstadt training center, the U.S. Army said Friday, raising the number of women who have come forward to 21.
The Darmstadt sex-abuse scandal is the most serious at a U.S. military installation in Germany in years, with some female soldiers saying they were raped and sodomized.
At least some of the acts allegedly happened after accusations of sexual misconduct surfaced at the Aberdeen Proving Ground in Maryland in November, which led to an investigation into sexual harassment in the Army.
Three instructors at the Darmstadt school were relieved of their duties this month: two are in custody and the third has been ordered to avoid contact with witnesses and alleged victims. The school's commander also has been reassigned; the Army has refused to say whether he, too, is a suspect.
The Army had been saying 11 women came forward with allegations against the three instructors, who are non-commissioned officers.
A statement Friday said that ``to date, 21 potential victims have been identified. Alleged offenses range from rape and forcible sodomy to maltreatment of a subordinate.''
The Darmstadt school's commander, 1st Sgt. George Watlington, has been replaced by Sgt. 1st Class Elizabeth Weaver, of Sandusky, Ohio. Watlington, of Greensboro, N.C., was reassigned to an office of the 233rd Base Support Battalion in Darmstadt.
KEYWORDS: SEXUAL MISCONDUCT SEX SCANDAL ARMY SEXUAL
HARASSMENT