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Academy: Cadets Involved In Underage Drinking, Fight

Latest Incident Comes On Heels Of New Alcohol Policy

POSTED: 10:32 a.m. MDT October 1, 2003

Officials at the Air Force Academy said Tuesday they are investigating another incident involving allegations of underage drinking by two cadets.

A third cadet is under investigation for contributing to their underage drinking by providing alcohol to the two younger cadets, officials said.

All three cadets were allegedly involved in what the academy termed an "altercation" at a Colorado Springs residence. The cadets were spending the weekend at a local hotel at the time of the alleged incidents.

Police officers detained the cadets at the hotel and contacted academy officials, who picked them up and took them to the academy hospital for treatment of moderate injuries. They were not identified.

An investigation is under way to determine what will happen to the cadets.

A new policy regarding alcohol was revealed last Friday. Air Force Academy cadets who break alcohol rules will be treated as military personnel, not unruly college kids, under the new policy that reflects a tougher tack added in the wake of the school's sexual assault scandal.

Commanders also want senior cadets held responsible for the actions of their colleagues, even if they are not directly involved in wrongdoing.

Both changes will be part of a new alcohol policy being written at the school, academy officials said. Some details were released earlier this month, but the full extent of potential punishments were disclosed Friday to The Associated Press.

In the past, cadets got demerits and had to march around the academy for lengthy periods if they were caught violating alcohol rules. Now they will be treated as regular members of the military, facing punishments that include reprimands, restrictions, brig time, forfeiture of pay and even reduction in rank.

The changes come on the heels of a recent survey that showed about 38 percent of the cadets under the age of 21admitting they've had alcohol since coming to the academy. And more than half of the seniors, 52 percent, admitted they drank in their dorms -- in violation of school rules.


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