Top Gun Undone: Active Duty US General Court Martialled for Sexually Assaulting Sister-in-Law

The officer was accused of aggressively kissing and inappropriately touching the woman in an incident that took place in Albuquerque, New Mexico in August 2018.

William T. Cooley, a decorated Air Force major general with a career spanning over 30 years, has made history for all the wrong reasons, becoming the first-ever active-duty general in the 74 years that the branch has existed to be court martialled.

A military judge in Ohio found Cooley guilty of abusive sexual contact on Saturday. During the incident, the officer was said to have forced his tongue into his victim’s mouth, and made her touch his genitals as he touched hers. The judge found him guilty on the aggressive kissing charge, but not the latter two.

The incident was said to have taken place when the victim, who is the wife of Cooley’s brother, gave the major general a ride home from a family backyard barbecue. Cooley’s brother is a civilian Air Force employee in New Mexico. The victim is also a civilian.

Cooley could now face up to seven years in a military prison, and be forced to register as a sex offender. However, he will not face a loss of rank, an Air Force spokesman has indicated. His sentencing will take place Monday.

The woman’s lawyer, Ryan Guilds, said in a statement that Saturday’s ruling was “the first time an Air Force general officer has been held responsible for his heinous actions”.

“Sometimes family members are the abusers, abusers who count on silence in order to wield their extensive power”, the lawyer added.

The two-star general has served in the Air Force since 1988, and received more than half-a-dozen medals and awards, including the Legion of Merit, the Bronze Star, and an Air Force Commendation Medal, for his service. He was fired from the post of special assistant to the commander of Air Force Materiel Command at the Wright-Patterson Air Force Base in Ohio after the sexual assault allegations against him were publicised. He previously served as commander of the base’s Air Force Research Laboratory, which controls the Air Force’s entire multi-billion-dollar science and technology research budget. He has held more than a dozen other administrative positions since 1990, including a stint as defence sector programme manager at the Office of Security Cooperation in Kabul, Afghanistan in 2005.

Former Air Force chief prosecutor Don Christensen believes the conviction will likely put an end to Cooley’s career. However, it will be up to Air Force Secretary Frank Kendall to determine whether Cooley retains access to his generous retirement benefits or not.