Reservist Pleads Guilty in Sex Assault Case

FT. BLISS, Tex. —  An Army Reserve sergeant accused of sexually assaulting a female reservist during Operation Desert Storm pleaded guilty Monday to lesser charges and was ordered discharged.

Under the bad conduct discharge, Sgt. 1st Class David Martinez will lose all pay and allowances from the Army and the Veterans Administration.

Specialist Jacqueline Ortiz, a former reservist from Sapello, N.M., had accused Martinez of forcing her to perform oral sex in his tent in January, 1991.

At the hearing, Martinez pleaded guilty to one count of sodomy involving oral sex and two counts of making false official statements--lying about having sexual contact with Ortiz.

But Martinez maintained that the sex was consensual.

Ortiz was not present Monday; in a statement from her attorney, she said she was satisfied that justice was done.

Last year, Ortiz told a U.S. Senate panel investigating sexual harassment that officers ignored her complaint and later reprimanded her when they concluded the sexual encounter was consensual.