Former Air Force instructor Luis Walker has been charged for 28 counts of rape and sexual assault, with 10 other Air Force instructors being investigated for the same crimes. They are being accused of sexually abusing their recruits at the Lackland Air Force Base in San Antonio, Texas. This is known as the main training base for the Air Force. It is said while he was to be training these new recruits to become airmen, he instead spent his time abusing them, and many women have been through a lot because of them if their accusations are true. The Air Force claims that this is not a wide spread problem but rather more isolated within a certain number of offenders. They plan to take this very seriously, and are currently conducting a rigorous investigation in order to find out why this has been happening.
Air Force Attorney Col. Polly Kenny states that both staff and trainees understand there is no touching ever accepted in the Air Force. Unfortunately, the victims of these crimes are terrified to come forward, out of 31 known victims only one of those came forward on their own, the rest were identified through inappropriate behavior on behalf of the accused. It is obviously not acceptable to come forward if you are a victim of rape in the military, and that needs to change. This sexual abuse case is testing the military’s “zero tolerance” policy for sexual abuse, in hopes that in the future, it will be held at a higher standard, and fewer victims will fear stepping forward.
It is likely that there are more victims from these 10 accused Air Force instructors, if there are hopefully they will find strength and courage to come forward after witnessing the bravery of the other women who came forward.
If you or someone you know is being sexually abused, in the service or anywhere else, come forward and contact legal representation that will fight for you. Sexual Assault is a terrifying crime to be a victim of, and while that scar can never be taken back, justice can still be fought for. Contact our offices today.