Whenever a staff non-commissioned officer engages in sexual activity with a subordinate, consequences are coming if the relationship is discovered. When a sexual encounter of that kind is recorded on a cell phone and distributed to the entire crew of a U.S. Navy ship, those consequences are difficult to avoid.
A Petty Officer First Class out of Pearl Harbor found herself in such a scenario when she was caught engaging in sexual activity aboard the ship with a junior enlisted sailor. Now, her decision to have sex with the young Sailor on this ship is her fault. The reason the video made its way throughout the vessel is not.
Other Sailors were able to witness the encounter through a hole in the wall and they subsequently recorded the engagement with an iPhone. The video spread like wildfire throughout the ship and eventually made its way to the Captain, which prompted an official investigation.
At the time of the encounter, she was a frocked Chief and was generally respected among the crew. When confronted about the sexual relationship, she initially lied. The case went to a summary court-martial, and her frocking or advancement was withdrawn. She was then facing an administrative separation board.
Separation from the military might have been something that she could live with, but when she was told that her command was advocating for an Other Than Honorable (OTH) discharge she decided to fight back. She contacted Bilecki Law Group and attorney Tim Bilecki was on his way to Hawaii to advocate on her behalf.
Bilecki put together a strategy that highlighted the Petty Officer’s stellar career to that date. We also prepared the Petty Officer to testify on her own behalf. The strategy was never about getting her out of trouble as the video was fairly conclusive. She messed up, but the question was whether this misconduct should result in an Other Than Honorable discharge when the board considered her full Navy career. Based on our advocacy at the board, she received a General discharge. She left the Navy, but avoided the Other Than Honorable characterization the command had sought.
Prior results do not predict future outcomes.