LONG BEACH : 2 Navy Men Face Charges in Incident With Girl, 14

An officer and an enlisted man from a Long Beach-based Navy frigate could face a court martial for alleged sexual misconduct with a 14-year-old girl during a port visit in Alaska.

The military equivalent of a preliminary hearing on sexual misconduct charges was held Tuesday at the Long Beach Naval Station for Petty Officer 3rd Class Jonathan Rushin, 23.

Ensign Reginald Meekins, 22, was the subject of a similar hearing Monday. He is also charged with three counts of conduct unbecoming an officer and two counts of fraternization with enlisted sailors, said Lt. Commander Richard Vinet, a Navy prosecutor. Both men were charged in November, said Lt. Cmdr. Steve Chesser.

Meekins was with the ship Duncan when, during a port visit to Sitka, Alaska, on Oct. 15, he and Rushin allegedly persuaded the 14-year-old girl to undress and get into bed with them in a room that Rushin had rented, Vinet said.

“There’s no evidence actual intercourse took place. If that were the case, we’d probably be talking rape,” Vinet said. “There was an attempt at consensual sex, and the girl refused.”