WASHINGTON — The Army's sexual-misconduct scandal, which days ago seemed destined for a clear-cut resolution in the courts, has exploded suddenly with allegations that could further damage the Army's image and leave the public unconvinced that justice has been done.
In echoes of the Navy's Tailhook scandal and similar military controversies, the Army has been accused of using improper investigative methods and allowing racism to taint its search for culprits at its northeastern Maryland ordnance center in Aberdeen.
Some experts say that the accusations, although they may prove unfounded, could undermine some of the harassment cases, leaving a public impression that the inquiry was mismanaged and that some people were falsely accused--while other crimes went unpunished.
"The Army may end up with the worst of all worlds: They may look like they first ignored the problem, then overreacted, then compounded it with racism," said Lawrence J. Korb, the Pentagon personnel chief in the Reagan administration.
In the swirl of accusations, "there's going to be a question about the validity of all the claims in the perception of the public," predicted Tony Palm, a retired Navy investigator.
Through most of the 6-month-old Aberdeen investigation, the Army had been getting good marks for its efforts from members of Congress and from some--if not all--women's rights activists. It appeared that court-martial proceedings would be fairly straightforward, focusing directly on sexual-misconduct charges.
But the cases became far more complicated and the Army's efforts to manage the crisis were cast in doubt when the NAACP recently questioned why all the men who have been formally accused are black.
The question assumed greater importance Tuesday when five young women from the base came forward to say Army investigators used bully tactics to get them to accuse their drill instructors of rape. Instead, according to sworn statements by the women, only consensual sex took place.
On Capitol Hill, Secretary of the Army Togo West Jr. said Wednesday that he did not intend to halt the judicial proceedings while the allegations of investigative misconduct are examined. "We want to make sure we don't disrupt the ongoing proceedings," he said.
West met at the Pentagon with NAACP President Kweisi Mfume but rejected a call by the group for an outside investigation into the Army's handling of its sexual-harassment inquiry. "I think we have oversight enough," West said.
