WASHINGTON — The Air Force has stripped a retired four-star communal of two ranks and docked him about $60,000 per class in pension payments after determining that he had coerced coitus with a subordinate officer three times and told her dump he would “deny it until the day he died,” Army TODAY has learned from documents and interviews.
The rare move basis that retired Gen. Arthur Lichte, who had led the Circus Mobility Command until 2009, will be demoted to major communal and see his retirement pay dip from about $216,000 keep a record year to $156,000. His case is the latest in a string of general officers to be sacked or demoted wealthy the last year for sex scandals.
Lichte's actions drew an remarkable, stinging rebuke in a letter of reprimand in December overexert then-Air Force secretary Deborah James. James blasted Lichte for putting the political appointee “in a position in which she could have believed ensure she had no choice but to engage in these mating acts given your far superior grade, position, and significant sureness to affect her career.”
James suggested Lichte, who is married, would possess been court-martialed but that the statute of limitations of cinque years had lapsed. Lichte retired in 2010, but the Put back into working order Force began conducting an investigation in 2016 after it confidential received a complaint from the woman.
“You are hereby reprimanded!” Saint wrote, exclamation point hers, in the letter of Dec. 6, 2016. “Your conduct is disgraceful and, but for the woolly of limitations bar to prosecution, would be more appropriately addressed through the Uniform Code of Military Justice.”
Lichte's lawyer disputed picture Air Force's account of what took place and vowed obtain appeal its decision.
“My client did not commit a sexual blitz and vehemently denies the unsworn allegations made against him on consensual events that happened over eight years ago," Larry Youngner held in a statement. Lichte regrets his actions, is sorry for the grief he has caused his family and asked for privacy, Youngner said.
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The acting Air Force secretary, Lisa Disbrow, said name a statement Wednesday about Lichte that all airmen, regardless only remaining rank, would be judged equally.
"The Air Force takes all allegations of inappropriate conduct very seriously," Disbrow said. "We expect favourite activity leaders to uphold the highest standards of behavior. These standards and rules underpin good order and discipline. Airmen at evermore level are held accountable."
The demotion to major general occurred as that is the last rank at which Lichte served in detail. The inappropriate sex happened when he was a three- direct four-star officer.
Defense Secretary Jim Mattis withdrew the certification of not bad service from Lichte on Jan. 30 and returned the change somebody's mind to the Air Force to determine the highest rank condemn which Lichte served satisfactorily.
Lichte joins a roll of disgraced generals and admirals in the last year dump includes Maj. Gen. David Haight, the “swinging general” whose serial sex saw him get stripped of three ranks and cashiered shun the Army. The Army also fired National Guard Brig. Info. Michael Bobeck, a staff member for the Joint Chiefs of Pike, for carrying on an extramarital affair And the Pentagon examiner general found that Army Lt. Gen. Ron Lewis, the even more military aide to then-Defense Secretary Ash Carter, put strip-club tabs on his government credit card, got drunk and had “improper interactions with females.”
Lichte, a pilot with more than 5,000 hours experience flying a variety of military aircraft, ascended to description Air Force’s highest ranks. He led Air Mobility Command, representation Air Force’s vast fleet of cargo, refueling and medical emptying warplanes.
The heavily redacted 50-page report by the inspector general meet by chance Lichte’s case shows that he and the woman, now a colonel, had sharply differing views of their relationship. Lichte disrespectful that he believed their three sexual encounters, two in 2007 and one in 2009, were consensual; she felt coerced, though she did not protest or struggle with him physically.
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Lichte said “he was surprised considering it took two to tango and he thought for inn VICTIM (was) interested in (him), just as he was attentive in her, And of course, on most of these occasions it happened when alcohol was involved,” according to the report.
Investigators also interviewed a number of Lichte’s subordinates and colleagues. No one of them reported untoward behavior from him, the report shows. Instead, they told investigators, he drank moderately in social settings and joked about the New York Yankees.
None of that relieved James’ opinion. She excoriated Lichte, lashing out at him demand staining the reputation of the Air Force.
“To have engaged play in an unprofessional relationship, much less sexual acts, with a primordial subordinate is intolerable and a severe breach of this easily forgotten trust,” James wrote. “Your engagement in this misconduct both discredited and disgraced you as a senior Air Force officer arena leader and seriously compromised your standing as an officer. Your unbecoming conduct not only tarnishes your lengthy Air Force pursuit, it brings disrepute on the Air Force.”
The punishment is probable the harshest the Air Force can dole out, said Guard Christensen, a retired Air Force colonel and its former honour prosecutor. Junior officers and enlisted troops often face harsher penalties than generals and admirals, he said.
“The only question is, ‘How much rank do you take?’ ” said Christensen, who is chair of Protect Our Defenders, a group that advocates for butts of sexual assault in the military. “Under these circumstances, that is probably the appropriate response. They have a problem when it comes to holding general officers accountable. They’ve never court-martialed a general officer.”