Betrayal of Trust?
Allegations of Rape at
West Point, Annapolis
Kyra Phillips and Jessi Joseph
CNN.com
April 22, 2012
Karley Marquet and Annie Kendzior said they enrolled at two of the nation’s most prestigious military academies to serve their country and become military officers. Instead, they claim, they were raped — and their military careers are now over.
In a lawsuit filed in U.S. Federal Court on Friday, the women claim the U.S. Military Academy in West Point, New York, and the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland, ignored “rampant sexual harassment.”
The suit claims former Secretary of Defense Robert Gates, the former superintendents of the two academies and the current secretaries of the Army and Navy are “personally responsible” for failing to “prevent rapes and sexual assaults at the Naval Academy and West Point.”
Karley Marquet was a high school honor student, championship swimmer and all-star rugby player. She could have gone to college anywhere with her credentials, but Marquet chose West Point.
“When I was accepted, it was kind of overwhelming,” she says. “You can’t imagine having that structure and discipline but at the same time having people look at you like, ‘Wow, you’re doing something great for our country.’”
But Marquet said her dream of becoming an officer was shattered in January 2011, her second semester at West Point.
To read the full story at CNN.com, click here.
To read the lawsuit filed against West Point and the Naval Academy on behalf of Karley Marquet and Annie Kendzior, click here.
If you were raped or sexually assaulted while on active duty in 2002 or later, you may be able to join the ongoing litigation efforts supported by Protect Our Defenders, the Service Women’s Action Network, and others. Please contact the Burke PLLC paralegal Miranda Petersen at mpetersen@burkepllc.com for more information.
Additional Reporting:
Protect Our Defenders Supports Lawsuit Against US Military For Failure to Protect Cadets at Service Academies from Rape or Sexual Assault
Two MORE Female U.S Service Members Claim They Were Raped at Military Academies Then Punished for Reporting the Assaults, MailOnline, April 21, 2012
Women Sue West Point and Naval Academy for Being Awful to Rape Victims, Jezebel, April 21, 2012
Former Mid Sues Naval Academy Over Rapes, Baltimore Sun, April 20, 2012
Former Mid Files Federal Lawsuit Over Alleged Rape, hometownannapolis.com, April 20, 2012
2 Sue Service Academies Over Assault Response, ArmyTimes, April 20, 2012
Like this:
Be the first to like this post.
Second Arrest Made in Slain Marine Wife Case
