Navy Discharges Man for Sex Harassment
A Navy petty officer convicted of groping two female sailors, including one aboard a commercial airliner, has been discharged and will lose $12,000 a year in pension benefits, officials say.
Chief Petty Officer George Powell, 49, was released from the brig at Miramar Naval Air Station on Monday after serving 75 days of an 89-day sentence, said Lt. Cmdr. Bruce Cole, a Navy spokesman.
Powell, a 19-year veteran, was convicted in February. The judge, Cmdr. Nels Kelstrom, said Powell had “discredited the naval service” and violated the “physical and emotional sanctity” of the women he assaulted.
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