Fort Carson – A Fort Carson soldier on medical hold for post-traumatic stress disorder has accused a soldier of raping her.
Spec. Christopher Garner is charged with rape, use of methamphetamine and unrelated AWOL. An Article 32 hearing to determine whether there is enough evidence to proceed to court-martial began Thursday and continues today.
The woman testified Thursday that she went out drinking with Garner and others at two bars on post Jan. 27. At the second bar, she fell and struck her head, and a designated driver took her and Garner to the barracks. She said they kissed and fondled each other, but when Garner wanted to have sex she told him no.
Amy Burgess, a nurse who completed a rape kit on the woman the next day at Memorial Hospital, testified that the woman had injuries to her genitals that were “consistent with rape.”
“She kept telling him to stop, and she said no,” Burgess testified that the woman told her.
Robert Guthrie, an agent for the Army’s criminal-investigation division, said the woman told him “there was a violent struggle, a lot of screaming and yelling, and then he raped her.”
Guthrie testified that mental- health records from a psychiatrist indicated the woman had post-traumatic stress disorder from serving in Iraq and from sexual harassment that occurred prior to her deployment to Iraq.
The doctor wrote in records that the woman has a “tendency to exaggerate” and “dramatize” events to call attention to herself.Capt. Melissa Fields will recommend whether the case should be forwarded to a court-martial.
Staff writer Erin Emery can be reached at 719-522-1360 or eemery@denverpost.com.
