An officer at the U.S. Military Academy at West Point was arraigned in military court Tuesday over alleged misconduct.
Col. William Wright, an armor officer who has served as the director of the school’s geospatial information science program, faces nine allegations of inappropriate sexual remarks, providing and drinking alcohol with a cadet, wrongfully contacting a cadet on the women’s tennis team and endeavoring to influence testimonies, a court document shared with Military Times shows.
He was reassigned to a role at the academy where he does not have contact with cadets, according to Military.com, which first reported the accusations.
“West Point holds our staff and faculty to high standards,” Col. Terence Kelley, the director of communications at West Point, told Military Times in a statement Wednesday. “Upon allegations that our cadre have not upheld our standards, we promptly investigate to determine the facts, protect, and assist potential victims, and hold alleged violators accountable.”
“While federal privacy laws and Army policy restrict the release of additional details at this stage of the process, we are fully committed to a swift and just resolution,” he added.
In January, Wright allegedly “on one or more occasions” made inappropriate sexual remarks in the presence of three unnamed cadets, the charge sheet notes.
Back in June 2023, he also allegedly violated regulation while in Hawaii by providing alcohol to, and consuming it with, an unnamed cadet, according to the charge sheet. He allegedly did so again a few days later in Alaska, though the available documents did not specify whether it was with the same cadet.
Wright also faces allegations of speaking to personnel he should not interact with.
He allegedly contacted a cadet on the academy’s women’s tennis team in January after he was instructed not to, the court document notes, outlining that he is also accused of soliciting a cadet to “wrongfully interfere with an adverse administrative proceeding, by instructing her to ‘Kill this,’” and chat with a redacted individual.
The charge sheet adds Wright also allegedly lied and attempted to influence those testifying about his part in at least one cadet’s alcohol consumption.
Wright is not the only West Point official to face accusations of misconduct in the past year. Last summer, the Army fired the commander of its West Point garrison after his suspension amid an investigation for “alleged conduct.” The academy also fired a civilian employee last year following a criminal sexual conduct charge “unrelated to his role at West Point.”
The lead counsel in the case representing Wright declined to comment. Military Times reached out to Wright directly, though he did not respond to a request for comment by publication.
Jonathan is a staff writer and editor of the Early Bird Brief newsletter for Military Times. Follow him on Twitter @lehrfeld_media
