Ethics Corner

This series on ethics presents cautionary examples drawn from the DoD Standards of Conduct Office Encyclopedia of Ethical Failures.

If you have questions about ethics or are unsure about a certain course of conduct, contact the NASCC Staff Judge Advocate’s office by calling

(361) 961-3535.

Today’s story is about emails.

A three-star officer left the Air Force after an investigation found he exchanged “sexually suggestive” emails with a female officer when both were married to other people. Examples of the emails included the following statements: “thinking of you often here in Waikiki;” “we would love it, and you would be in perpetual trouble;” and “My dear and so beautiful, please know I am thinking of you, and I miss you.” The female officer ultimately divorced her husband. The investigator concluded that, as a result of the three-star officer’s activities, he adversely affected the Air Force, helped dissolve a marriage, and eroded good order, discipline and respect for authority.