Cadets Vent at West Point After Drug Searches:
"The officer's report called the incident a riot, but Cassella disputed that characterization. 'The term 'riot' is going a little too far,' he said. 'They blew off steam.' He said he did not know the name or rank of the officer who wrote the report.
[Lt. Col. Kent P. Cassella, a spokesman for West Point] ..said he believes that the incident grew out of a 'misperception' among cadets that they had been tricked into complying with a surprise drug search. They had been awakened around dawn on April 19 for a fire drill, but while they were still outside, police squads entered the buildings with drug-sniffing dogs. Frustration built during the day, and the outburst began at about 10:30 that night and lasted an hour, he said.
No narcotics were found in the search, and no disciplinary charges have been brought since the incident."
I'll agree it was a "It was a shameful, pitiful day" as the Duty Officer wrote in the incident report. I'd always wondered what happened to Col. Flagg after M*A*S*H ended it's run.
There is an Honor Code in force at West Point. That means that just as it is dishonorable to ignore the code for a Cadet, it is equally dishonorable to presume there is ongoing dishonorable conduct.
It was a shameful, pitiful display of the misuse of authority. I suggest that that officer be reassigned to some station more suited to his or her abilities - say, "Asset Preservation Officer" at a mothballed army base somewhere in Nebraska.
tag: duty, Army, West Point, cadets, military, authority, ethics, authority abuse
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