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Coast Guard captain fined, demoted to lieutenant and ousted in sex scandal

Yow. Coast Guard Capt. Herbert M. Hamilton III was ordered to be fined, demoted and retired as a lieutenant after it was found that he had conducted a series of wildly inappropriate sexual relationships with female subordinates. The Coast Guard is legally keelhauling him. "Interoffice senior-junior sexual relationships result in unfair advantages and are contrary ...

ASIF HASSAN/AFP/Getty Images
ASIF HASSAN/AFP/Getty Images
ASIF HASSAN/AFP/Getty Images

Yow. Coast Guard Capt. Herbert M. Hamilton III was ordered to be fined, demoted and retired as a lieutenant after it was found that he had conducted a series of wildly inappropriate sexual relationships with female subordinates.

Yow. Coast Guard Capt. Herbert M. Hamilton III was ordered to be fined, demoted and retired as a lieutenant after it was found that he had conducted a series of wildly inappropriate sexual relationships with female subordinates.

The Coast Guard is legally keelhauling him. "Interoffice senior-junior sexual relationships result in unfair advantages and are contrary to good order and discipline," Rear Adm. Christopher C. Colvin stated, rather drily, in light of the redacted charge sheet, which alleges that ex-Capt. Hamilton lied to investigators and committed a variety of other  offenses related to car rentals, internet porn, cell phone abuse, destruction of evidence, and multiple forms of anal sex. Unfortunately for his case he also had a penchant for intimate photography.

Meanwhile, a retired French general who was heavy into child porn got off with an extremely light sentence — a suspended prison term, and a symbolic one euro fine. Ugh.

Thomas E. Ricks covered the U.S. military from 1991 to 2008 for the Wall Street Journal and then the Washington Post. He can be reached at ricksblogcomment@gmail.com. Twitter: @tomricks1

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