Two senior Army officers “let down” teenage soldier Gunner Jaysley Beck after she reported an incident involving a superior who was later convicted of sexually assaulting her, a court martial has heard. Gunner Beck, 19, was found dead at her barracks at Larkhill Camp in Wiltshire on 15 December 2021, five months after the assault. Major James Hook and Colonel Samantha Shepherd are now on trial at the Military Court Centre in Catterick, North Yorkshire, accused of conduct prejudicial to good order and service discipline over their handling of her report. Both allegations remain to be determined by the court. Commander Patterson, prosecuting, told the hearing that Gunner Beck had told each officer enough for them to understand that she may have been sexually assaulted. The court heard that former Battery Sergeant Michael Webber sexually assaulted Gunner Beck during a team training event at Thorney Island, Hampshire, in July 2021. Webber pinned her down, touched her leg and repeatedly tried to kiss her, the hearing was told. He subsequently admitted sexually assaulting Gunner Beck and was jailed for six months last year. Following the assault, Gunner Beck contacted a colleague before spending the night sleeping in her car because she feared Webber would assault her again. Lance Bombardier Drew Tudor found her the following day in a “distressed” and “visibly shaken” state and encouraged her to report what had happened through the chain of command. Tudor later brought Hook, then a captain, to the car so Gunner Beck could speak to him. The prosecution alleges Hook failed to treat her report “in a manner consistent with its seriousness”. He later informed a more senior officer that Webber had “made a pass” at Gunner Beck and gave her until noon to decide whether she wanted to make a complaint.
Colonel accused of withholding information
The prosecution alleges Shepherd subsequently discussed the incident with Gunner Beck but deliberately failed to pass all the information she had received to Captain Mae King, the adjutant responsible for discipline at 14 Regiment Royal Artillery. Patterson told the court that Shepherd failed to disclose an allegation of touching or attempted touching and instead reported there had been “no contact”. Shepherd said in a prepared statement to military police that she believed she had disclosed the touching allegation but could not be certain. The prosecution alleges Shepherd deliberately suppressed that detail because she knew the matter would otherwise be referred to the service police. 
Patterson told the court: “It is not Col Shepherd’s job to edit information – she should have told the truth.” King told the hearing she understood that Webber had made an “inappropriate pass” at Gunner Beck but that there had been no touching. She consulted the Royal Military Police and other officials before making a recommendation about how the matter should be handled. The court heard that the RMP considered the reported incident was “not a Crime” on the information it had been given because there had been “no touching”. An inquest into Gunner Beck’s death previously concluded that the handling of her complaint against Webber had played “more than a minimal contributory part into her death”. The Army subsequently apologised. The court martial of Hook and Shepherd continues.
Originally published by UKNIP.
