The fired commander of the USS Constitution had his assault and obstruction-of-justice charges resolved behind closed doors last week, and under Navy rules the outcome will not be made public, a spokesman said.The case was resolved Tuesday at the Surface Officers School in Newport, R.I., Navy spokesman Michael J. Giannetti said, and the outcome is not releasable under the Privacy Act of 1974.
Thomas C. Graves initially had declined the option of a private administrative proceeding and last month underwent the military equivalent of a grand jury hearing to determine whether he should be court-martialed. After two days of lurid testimony, the investigating officer, Capt. Frank G. Usseglio, was to recommend whether the charges should proceed to a full court-martial. But Graves was again given the option of a private proceeding, and he accepted it, Giannetti said Friday.
Neither Graves nor his lawyer could be reached Friday or yesterday for comment.
Giannetti said he was unable to say as of press time how common it is for a defendant to be given the option of a closed-door administrative proceeding after undergoing a public Article 32 hearing.
Graves, 43, of Marblehead, was fired in May, two months before his two-year term as commander of the historic, 210-year-old ship known as Old Ironsides was to expire. He was accused of assaulting a petty officer by shoving a report into his chest and then making a false statement and asking a subordinate to lie about the incident. He faced more than 11 years in prison if convicted of all charges.
During last month’s hearing, prosecutors painted a portrait of a bullying, megalomaniacal skipper who allegedly once threatened to shoot a subordinate in the face and referred to a female sailor as his “trash bitch.”
At the hearing, Graves’ civilian defense lawyer, Charles Gittins, did not dispute that his client was a disciplinarian but claimed that Graves was “railroaded.” Graves denied intentionally striking his subordinate and said he never intented to obstruct justice.
Graves, who on occasion presided in period costume over the beloved ship docked in Charlestown, makes $85,896 a year, Giannetti said Friday.
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