Top two-star Air Force general charged with raping female officer

Major General Phillip Stewart was put on trial on Monday for allegedly raping a subordinate last year.

The former commander of the San Antonio-based 19th Air Force, which oversees all pilot training, is accused of sexually harassing a female officer at Altus Air Force Base in southwest Oklahoma in April 2023 – he pleaded not guilty to those charges in March.

On the first day of his court-martial at Fort Sam Houston in San Antonio, Stewart instead pleaded guilty to two lesser charges: extramarital sexual intercourse and dereliction of duty, both of which are violations of the Uniform Code of Military Justice.

“I am guilty of seeking an inappropriate relationship,” Stewart told the judge. “I was aware that I should not have an unprofessional relationship.”

According to Stars and Stripes, Stewart was married at the time of the alleged rape. However, during the trial it was revealed that he is now divorced.

Stewart is the second Air Force general in history to be court-martialed. The only other is Major General William Cooley. Cooley was convicted by a military judge in 2022 of sexually abusing his sister-in-law.

If convicted of all charges against him, which include sexual assault and conduct unbecoming a police officer, Stewart faces up to 63 years in prison, the San Antonio Express-News reported.

There are some important differences between a military court trial and a conventional criminal trial against a civilian.

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For one thing, Stewart’s guilty plea to the lesser charges has no bearing on the allegations against him.

Unlike in civil cases, where the prosecution negotiates with the defense for a fair plea that the judge must accept, military judges can only accept an admission of guilt if “there is a factual basis for the defendant’s plea.”

Stewart claims he had a consensual affair with the woman and therefore pleaded guilty to extramarital sexual conduct.

He says his alleged victim never rejected his advances and did nothing to give him the impression that she did not consent to have sex with him.

Prosecutors argued that the woman had been put in a hopeless position because of her lower rank than him, and that saying “no” could have damaged her career or worse.

A month after the alleged rape, Stewart was relieved of his command “because he had lost confidence in his leadership abilities.”

He will face a jury of eight three-star generals, and if six of the eight admit guilt, he will be convicted.

For a civilian on trial, a jury of peers must vote unanimously to convict.

When Stewart pleaded guilty Monday morning, the jury was not in the courtroom, the San Antonio Express-News reported.

To be considered, jurors had to be of higher rank than Stewart under military law, which limited the pool to three- and four-star generals. Two-star generals with more experience than Stewart were also considered.

Jury selection took place on Saturday evening. A total of 18 Air Force generals were summoned to Fort Sam Houston, where they were examined by an attorney for bias (a process known as “voir dire”).

After lawyers asked enough questions to test the potential jurors’ ability to evaluate the evidence impartially, nine generals remained.

The defense invoked its right to disqualify, which allows it to exclude a juror without giving a reason. The prosecution chose not to do the same.

If the jury ultimately finds that Stewart did not commit sexual assault but is guilty of extramarital sex and dereliction of duty, he could be reprimanded, fined, ordered to forfeit his wages, or sentenced to 18 months in prison.

Lieutenant Generals Caroline Miller and Kevin B. Kennedy are among the eight jurors who will decide Stewart’s fate.