Army Suspends Sgt. Major Accused of Sex Harassment

The Army suspended its top noncommissioned officer from regular duties Monday, saying it had become “increasingly difficult” for him to carry out his job because of publicity about accusations that he had sexually harassed a subordinate.

The suspension of Gene C. McKinney, the sergeant major of the Army, comes one day after two senators and his accuser, former Sgt. Major Brenda L. Hoster, maintained on national television that McKinney should not be allowed to work when Army drill instructors accused of sexual harassment had been suspended from their jobs.

The difference in treatment suggested a “different system of justice” for the senior ranks, Hoster said.

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The allegations against McKinney, the first black man to be appointed to the prestigious position, have further complicated the Army’s efforts to deal with complaints that sexual harassment of women has been widespread.

Hoster, 39, went public last week with allegations that McKinney, for whom she worked as a public relations aide, had pressured her for sex during an April 1996 business trip to Hawaii.

McKinney, 46, has denied the allegations.

Appearing Sunday on ABC’s “This Week,” Army Secretary Togo West Jr. said that drill instructors were suspended from duties when they faced sexual harassment charges because they held unique positions of power over those beneath them.

Asked if higher level soldiers should be suspended as well, West said: “We’ve considered it and we will undoubtedly consider it again.”

But in a statement explaining the suspension Monday, Army Chief of Staff Gen. Dennis J. Reimer referred only to the effect “continued public attention” was having on McKinney’s ability to perform his duties.

McKinney’s job calls for him to advise Reimer on the full range of policies affecting the enlisted ranks. He will report to the Military District of Washington while the investigation is underway.

A military official told the Associated Press that the Army is investigating a second harassment case involving McKinney and a female sailor. “We don’t know if there’s anything to it. It’s being investigated,” the official said.

A second military source confirmed to the news service that an incident involving a Navy sailor is under investigation. “The Army Criminal Investigation Division has it,” the second source said.

Reimer said that the Army “is aggressively taking all necessary measures to eliminate sexual harassment and improve the Army’s ability to work effectively as a team, in a manner compatible with traditional values, equal opportunity and mutual respect.”

In a statement, Hoster said that she is pleased that the Army has made the decision to treat all of those accused of sexual misconduct in the same manner.

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But her attorney, Susan Barnes, said she was “disappointed that the Army feels that this issue is driven by public relations rather than doing what is right. . . . They shouldn’t be doing it for damage control.”

The Army seemed to be moving swiftly on the politically sensitive investigation.

Barnes said that a team of investigators from the Army’s criminal investigations division met with Hoster in Washington over the weekend to hear her allegations.

They reportedly were checking telephone logs to confirm Hoster’s account that she had called friends from the hotel to tell them that McKinney had harassed her.

The investigators, all women, told Hoster that they were a team assigned to the most sensitive investigations, including those brought against top officers, Barnes said.

According to Hoster’s account, McKinney often berated her for poor performance but on several occasions also made what she took to be sexual overtures.

Their final encounter came at a time when McKinney was under great personal strain because his only son had been killed weeks before in an auto accident. Hoster has alleged that McKinney later acknowledged that what he did was wrong.

And she has said that she went to her superior to report the harassment and ask for a transfer. But, she said, her complaint was covered up.

McKinney last week stepped down from a panel formed by West to look into the sexual harassment issue in the Army.

It remains unclear whether the Army would use administrative action or criminal charges against McKinney if it should find a basis for the allegations.