On the eve of the rape trial of a former Air Force Academy cadet, U.S. marshals Tuesday delivered another copy of an arrest warrant to a Colorado Springs therapist who treated one of his accusers.
The therapist, Jennifer Bier, again refused to turn over the records of her sessions with an alleged rape victim in the case, and the marshals made no attempt to arrest her, Bier’s attorney said.
Two U.S. courts have refused to block the warrant, but the therapist’s attorney, Wendy Murphy, said she thinks the fact that Bier wasn’t arrested Tuesday is an admission they lack the authority to arrest her on a warrant issued by a military judge.
“They (marshals) threatened her directly only a couple of days ago,” Murphy said. “They said they were not afraid to arrest a therapist, they’ve arrested nuns.”
Murphy said she doesn’t think the marshals have the legal power to make such an arrest.
They said they were treating the warrant as a subpoena, and when Bier “said for the 10th time she wasn’t going to comply, they said, ‘OK, thank you. We’re going to tell the judge,’ and they left.”
Air Force Judge David Brash issued the arrest warrant after Bier refused to let him review notes from therapy sessions she held with a former Air Force cadet who said she was raped by then-cadet Joseph Harding, who is now a first lieutenant.
Murphy, who also represents the alleged victim and is in San Antonio for the beginning of the court-martial today, said she thinks the judge will use Bier’s refusal to cooperate as a reason to dismiss the charges against Harding.
“I hope I’m wrong,” Murphy said. “They wanted a reason to make this case go away. They’ve never arrested a civilian. They’ve never arrested a therapist.”
Staff writer Jim Kirksey can be reached at 303-820-1448 or jkirksey@denverpost.com.
