2 midshipmen will face court-martial in alleged sex assault at party

U.S. Navy Football via AP

From left, midshipmen Tra'ves Bush, Eric Graham and Joshua Tate.

By Ali Weinberg, Jim Miklaszewski and Erin McClam, NBC News

Two Navy midshipmen were ordered Thursday to face court-martial in an alleged rape at an off-campus party last year. A Navy investigation found insufficient evidence to court-martial a third midshipman.

The two, Eric Graham and Joshua Tate, are accused of sexually abusing a 20-year-old woman, also a midshipman, after she passed out drunk at a “toga and yoga”-themed party in April 2012.

Graham, of Eight Mile, Ala., is charged with abusive sexual conduct, and Tate, of Nashville, Tenn., is charged with aggravated sexual assault. They are also charged with making false statements to investigators.

The third midshipman, Tra’ves Bush of Johnston, S.C., had a previous consensual relationship with the woman. He is also accused of false statements, and an administrative body will hold a separate hearing, an academy spokeswoman said.

All three men played football for Navy, and the alleged assault took place at a residence in Annapolis, Md., known as Football House.

The Naval Academy had no date for the courts-martial of Graham and Tate.

Bush is a senior at the academy, and his graduation is on hold because of the investigation. He could face a range of punishments, including being dismissed from the academy or ordered to pay the government back for his tuition.

The academy also had no estimate for when any penalties for Bush would be determined.

All three initially said that they did not see the accuser at the party, according to investigators. They were brought for further questioning after investigators gathered details from other partygoers, and from a Facebook post by Bush.

Ultimately, all three men disclosed that they had seen the woman at the party. Bush revealed he had been in a sexual relationship with the woman and eventually admitted they had sex the night of the party, though he contended it was consensual.

Susan Burke, the lawyer for the alleged victim, said in a telephone interview that she and her client were pleased that two of the three would be court-martialed but surprised that the third would not.

Burke said her client will be ordered to appear at the court-martial as a witness.

“The hope for the outcome is justice,” Burke said.

Related:

Woman in Naval Academy sex accusations challenged on inconsistencies

Alleged victim's ability to consent key as Naval Academy sex-assault hearing ends

This story was originally published on Thu Oct 10, 2013 12:23 PM EDT