Air Force Sex Scandal: Col. Glenn Palmer Dismissed From Lackland

Col. Glenn Palmer is the latest casualty of a widening sex scandal at the Lackland Air Force Base in Austin, Texas.

The Eagle reports that Palmer was in charge of the 737th training group during a time when several sexual attacks were made on female soldiers. Palmer has not been accused of sexually assaulting any female soldiers and there are no indications that he will face criminal charges. The base felt, however, that the unit needed new leadership.

Every American Airman trains at Lackland Air Force Base for at least 8 weeks before being deployed. The base graduates approximately 35,000 soldiers every year. One in five of those recruits are female.

According to Houston News, the air force sex scandal involves more than three dozen women who say that they were assaulted, raped, or harassed by male instructors at the base. So far, six instructors have been charged.

One officer, Sgt. Luis Walker, was sentenced to 20 years in prison last month after he was convicted of raping a female recruit, as well as sexually assaulting several other trainees. One of his victims, who was deployed to Afghanistan shortly after being assaulted, said that she was “a little bit more scared of everything” after the attack.

Palmer’s dismissal comes just a few months after he was made the friendly face of the Air Force Sex Scandal. Palmer invited reporters on tours of the base, made his top officials available for questioning, and showed the media how training was conducted at Lackland. The move, according to the Eagle, was to show that Lackland wasn’t trying to hide anything.