Article 32 ends for O-6 charged with rape

[unhappycamper]

Col. Samuel Lofton III
Attorney warns against rush to judgment on colonel


Article 32 ends for O-6 charged with rape
By Patrick Winn - Staff writer
Posted : Tuesday Feb 12, 2008 19:39:40 EST

SHEPPARD AIR FORCE BASE, Texas — Air Force attorneys defending Col. Samuel Lofton III, a senior officer accused of a series of thefts and sexual attacks, maintained the colonel’s innocence after a Tuesday judicial hearing.

Though Lofton’s defense team would not say how he’d plea to all the charges — which allegedly occurred between late 2004 to May 2007 — his senior defense attorney insisted that Lofton was not guilty of rape or sexual assault.

Lofton’s grand jury-style Article 32 hearing ended here Tuesday. Now an investigating officer will determine if enough evidence exists for a trial.

“We have seen from previous cases that made national news that rushes to judgment often end in unfairness,” said Maj. Mark Etheridge, senior defense counsel, told the Air Force Times after the hearing.

Etheridge said he knows of no DNA or physical evidence linking Lofton to the rape.


Rest of article at: http://www.airforcetimes.com/news/2008/02/airforce_rape_lofton_080212w/