Army's Top Sexual Assault Prosecutor Relieved of Duties Over Controversial 2013 Email

Brig. Gen. Warren Wells was removed due to a loss of trust and confidence in his ability to lead, following the resurfacing of an email in which he appeared to downplay sexual assault allegations.

• Brig. Gen. Warren Wells, the Army’s head sexual assault prosecutor, has been relieved of his duties due to a 2013 email in which he appeared to express doubt over sexual assault claims and downplayed the seriousness of assault allegations.
• Wells was relieved on Friday due to 'a loss of trust and confidence in his ability to lead,' according to a statement from Secretary of the Army Christine Wormuth’s spokesperson, Col. Randee Farrell.
• Wells was nominated by Wormuth and confirmed by Congress in December 2022 to be the service’s first lead special trial counsel. The office was expected to be fully operational by this month.
• The Office of the Special Trial Counsel was established to have 'exclusive authority to prosecute the following offenses: murder, manslaughter, rape and sexual assault, rape of a child, sexual assault of a child, other sexual misconduct, kidnapping, domestic violence, stalking, retaliation, child pornography and wrongful broadcast,' an Army release said last year.
• Wormuth has designated a replacement for Wells, Army Col. Robert Rodrigues, as the acting lead special trial counsel. Wells has been reassigned within the Army staff, Farrell said.

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