Air Force instructor sentenced to 20 years in prison after raping female recruit and sexually assaulting several other women



Lackland Air Force Base instructor Luis Walker found guilty on all 28 counts



Convicted of raping female recruit and sexually assaulting several more

Sentenced to 20 years in prison and leaves behind wife and two young sons, aged 7 and 4



Staff Sgt. Luis Walker was sentenced to 20 years in prison Saturday for crimes that included rape and sexual assault. He is among 12 instructors investigated for sexual misconduct toward at least 31 female trainees at one of the nation's busiest military training centers.



Prosecutors say he used his position as a military trainer at Lackland Air Force base in San Antonio to gain female recruits' trust, and then he made illicit sexual advances. Walker's court-martial included testimony from 10 women, one of whom wept as she described him luring her into his base office and sexually assaulting her on a bed, ignoring her pleas to stop.

Walker showed little emotion as the sentence was read, but he appeared to have tears on his face later as he gazed at his wife, Yeimi. Both had cried earlier, while asking the military jury for leniency and a shorter sentence so that he would be able to spend time with his two sons, ages 7 and 4.

Guilty: Air Force Staff Sgt. Luis Walker, seen arriving at his trial Friday, was convicted of all 28 counts he faced and was sentenced today to 20 years in prison

Sentencing: Walker, seen in a July 16 photo, showed little emotion as the sentence was read, but he appeared to have tears on his face later as he gazed at his wife, Yeimi

'I ask for my family's sake, for my two boys right there,' Walker said, wheeling around to look at the youngsters, who sat squirming and chattering back and forth with no understanding of the proceedings. 'I ask that I am allowed to have a future with them.'

Walker's stepfather, sister and wife all testified on his behalf, describing an earnest teen who grew up in a tough corner of Brooklyn, dreamed of joining the Air Force from the age of 14 and arranged to graduate from high school early so he could enlist.

'All of his dreams are shattered and our dreams because I was so proud of him,' said Herbert O'Connor, Walker's stepfather.

Walker was taken after the hearing to a temporary lockup at Lackland to await transfer to a permanent prison.

The six men and woman who served on the military jury are barred from discussing their deliberations so it's impossible to know if the testimony swayed. But the victims' testimony was equally as emotional. Five spoke during sentencing, including four who are still in the service.

'In Afghanistan, I was a little bit more scared of everything,' said one, who said Walker sexually assaulted her last year, while she was a trainee at Lackland.

'I couldn't work with certain individuals,' she added, 'just since they remind me of Staff Sgt. Walker.'

Prosecutors say Walker sexually assaulted or had improper sexual or personal contact with at least 10 female recruits from October 2010 through January 2011. The Associated Press does not usually identify victims of sexually assault.

The same victim said her 15-year-old sister talked about joining the Air Force, and 'I've absolutely told her she's not allowed anywhere near' it. Other victims said they had the same advice for female relatives and friends.

'I don't enjoy the military anymore,' one said. 'I don't want to be in it.'

Another victim spoke of being unable to sleep at night 'because I somehow feel he terrifies me.' That victim also said the trauma she felt from the assault continued to plague her after she left the military.

It's gotten to where I had anger issues even at work,' she said. 'If anyone makes even the slightest sexual reference, I go off. I have zero self-control.'

Busy: Lackland is where every American airman receives basic training and has about 475 instructors for the approximately 35,000 airmen who graduate every year

Lackland is where all Air Force recruits go through basic training. It has about 475 instructors for about 35,000 airmen who graduate every year. While one in five recruits are female, most instructors are male.

While the alleged sexual misconduct among instructors at the base apparently began in 2009, the first woman didn't come forward until last year. The women who testified against Walker said they didn't tell anybody at first because they feared being booted from the Air Force.

But even those who remained in the service said their careers had been ruined by fear, along with every other part of their lives.

'Every time I'm smiling or I'm laughing, I feel like its fake because I'm empty,' one said. 'I'm not happy on the inside anymore. I'm not myself.'

Walker is among 12 Lackland instructors investigated for sexual misconduct toward at least 31 female trainees. Six instructors have been charged on counts ranging from rape to adultery. Walker faced the most serious charges and was the first to stand trial.



'It's gotten to where I had anger issues even at work. If anyone makes even the slightest sexual reference, I go off. I have zero self-control.' -Unnamed victim of Sgt. Luis Walker

Lackland is where every American airman receives basic training. It has about 475 instructors for the approximately 35,000 airmen who graduate every year. About one in five is female, pushed through eight weeks of basic training by a group of instructors, 90 percent of whom are men.

The sexual misconduct at the base apparently began in 2009, but the first woman didn't come forward until last year. The first allegations were levied against Walker, who is accused of crimes that allegedly took place between October 2010 and January 2011.

According to prosecutors, Walker had sexual intercourse with 4 of the 10 female recruits. He was also accused of making flirtatious or sexually suggestive comments, sending inappropriate text messages and sometimes groping his recruits.

Walker also is accused of forcing five recruits to engage in sexual acts by threatening their military careers and intimidating two of the women into lying about his alleged misconduct, prosecutors alleged.

Several of Walker's alleged victims testified during his court-martial, including one airman who described how Walker lured her into an office and sexually assaulted her on a bed, ignoring her pleas to stop.

The women told jurors that Walker gained their trust to get them alone in his office or an empty dormitory where he forced them into kissing, touching and intercourse. Those testifying said they didn't tell anybody at first because they feared being booted from the Air Force.

Last arrival: Air Force Staff Sgt. Luis Walker, right, arrives for the fourth day of his trial at Lackland Air Force Base in San Antonio, Texas

The Associated Press is not naming those who testified because they are alleged sexual assault victims.

Meanwhile, the case of another former Air Force training instructor has been referred to a general court-martial, according to an Air Force statement issued Friday evening.

Staff Sgt. Craig LeBlanc is charged with sexual misconduct, obstructing justice and making a false official statement.



He is accused of using his post as a military instructor to sexually assault and pursue a sexual relationship with one female trainee, and have a wrongful sexual relationship with another. No trial date has been set.

One of the other instructors charged in the case, Staff Sgt. Peter Vega-Maldonado, pleaded guilty in June, admitting he had sex with a female trainee in exchange for a sentence of 90 days' confinement.