Army general loses star over messages
WASHINGTON – The Army announced Friday that it stripped a star from a general who flirted on social media with the wife of an enlisted man, finding his actions “dissolute and immoral,” and forced him to retire.
Maj. Gen. Joseph Harrington will lose one rank in retirement after the Army determined that he had inappropriate online communication with the woman in more than 1,000 messages. Harrington had been in charge of U.S. Army Africa from a base in Italy when the relationship, first reported by USA TODAY, became known in August.
Harrington and the woman had exchanged Facebook messages for four months. The messages ranged from the friendly to flirty. She is married to a soldier over whom Harrington had jurisdiction.
The Army issued Harrington a letter of reprimand, a career-killer. The letter also released Friday noted that Harrington, while not found guilty of a crime, was expected to behave honorably on and off duty.
“Over the course of four months, you participated in the exchange of flirtatious messages with the spouse of an enlisted soldier,” the letter states. “This behavior reflects poorly on you as a senior officer and commander.”
Harrington, in a written statement, apologized to his family and the Army.
“I made a mistake by responding to and entering into a private discussion with a soldier’s spouse,” Harrington wrote.
Stripping his rank and ending Harrington’s career are appropriate moves by the Army, according to a military law expert and advocate for victims of abuse in the military.
“The discipline seems in line with the offense,” said Don Christensen, a former chief prosecutor for the Air Force and president of Protect our Defenders, an advocacy group for victims of sexual assault in the military.