West Point cadet faces 13 charges of sexual assault and harassment

A cadet at the U.S. Military Academy at West Point is facing 13 charges related to sexual harassment and assault against four women, according to court documents reviewed by Military.com.

The court documents detail a long series of events between December 2020 and October 2022 in which Cadet Jorge Hurtado allegedly groped the breasts, genitals and other body parts of cadets on or near campus – all without their consent. He is also accused of exposing his genitals.

The case and its allegations are being prosecuted by the Army’s special investigator in its first year of work. The specialized legal team, formed in December, is tasked with handling the Army’s most serious criminal cases, including murder, sexual assault and domestic violence.

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“We are confident that we will prevail at trial,” John Buckheit, Hurtado’s attorney, told Military.com.

Hurtado is accused of touching another cadet’s breasts and genitals without their consent in December 2020. Over the next two years, he was accused of 10 more counts of touching another cadet’s genitals or the inner thigh or buttocks without consent.

Hurtado is on unpaid administrative leave and is not in custody.

It was unclear why the charges were filed so long after the alleged events. However, it is common for victims of sexual violence not to come forward immediately, sometimes for fear of retaliation.

Last year, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin ordered military academies to address rising reports of sexual assault after a Pentagon survey found that nearly 9% of cadets at academies such as West Point reported harassment or assault.

The latest Department of Defense data shows that 21.4% of female cadets and 4.4% of male cadets reported unwanted sexual contact between 2021 and 2022. This may be an incomplete picture because it mixes data from all military academies. The data also contained incomplete figures on the number of respondents and gaps in the explanation of how some of the figures were collected.

Meanwhile, West Point, one of the country’s most prestigious universities, has recently experienced a series of legal disputes between its students and faculty.

Col. William Wright, the head of the academy’s geospatial science program, faces a number of charges related to sexual misconduct, providing alcohol and drinking to cadets with cadets, and violating no-contact orders with an entire academy women’s sports team. He is also accused of encouraging cadets and another officer to lie to investigators on his behalf. His trial is scheduled for October.

In April, Cadet Tyjaha Batiste pleaded guilty to eight charges of sexual misconduct and was sentenced to 21 months in prison and discharged from the service.

The news also comes after the school’s fired garrison commander, Col. Anthony Bianchi, was found not guilty of excessive drinking and driving under the influence. He was found guilty of failing to stop at a stop sign at the entrance to the academy grounds.

Related: Fired West Point garrison commander found not guilty of drunk driving charge

The story continues