A military judge acquitted Cpl. Pedro Angel Ruiz of all charges at a court-martial involving a sexual assault of a then-ROTC student in barracks at Joint Base Lewis-McChord. (Abner Guzman/U.S. Air Force)
TACOMA, Wash. — A military judge on Tuesday acquitted a soldier of all charges in a court-martial involving an alleged group sexual assault of a then-ROTC student in barracks at Joint Base Lewis-McChord.
Cpl. Pedro Angel Ruiz, 32, had been charged with two specifications of attempted sexual assault, one specification of indecent recording, one specification of distribution of an indecent recording, one specification of conspiracy to commit sexual assault and one specification of obstruction of justice.
Ruiz pleaded not guilty and opted to be tried by the judge alone, said Michelle McCaskill, spokeswoman for the Army Office of Special Trial Counsel at Fort Belvoir, Va., which prosecutes all cases of murder, manslaughter, kidnapping and most sex crimes.
The judge in the trial was Army Col. Daniel L. Mazzone.
According to an Army investigation, the ROTC student was partying with four soldiers on Oct. 27, 2024, at a barracks unit at Joint Base Lewis-McChord, a joint Army-Air Force installation about 10 miles south of Tacoma. The group was drinking heavily, and the woman became inebriated and later unconscious. The soldiers were charged with having sex with the woman without her consent and at times when she was not conscious. They also recorded some of the sex acts and posted the video on social media.
Four soldiers were charged in the case. Spc. Jadon G. Bosarge and Pvt. Deron J. Gordon have pleaded guilty and are currently incarcerated.
Pfc. Kallon Curiel’s trial is scheduled to begin on Oct. 5.
