A former Air Force basic training instructor could face more than 40 years in prison after pleading guilty to mistreating recruits at JBSA-Lackland, Texas, reported the San Antonio-Express-News. SSgt. Annamarie Ellis pled guilty to “three charges and 24 specifications of maltreating recruits” on March 25, according to the article. During a 22-month period beginning in 2009, Ellis allegedly threatened “to cut off an airman’s genitals and [obstructed] an investigation into how a recruit got a black eye,” it states. Col. Donald Eller Jr., the judge who will rule in her case, also ruled over a number of sexual abuse cases from military training instructors at JBSA-Lackland. However, the allegations against Ellis do not include sexual misconduct, states the article. Eller dismissed one specification against her but maintained that Ellis could still face “a steep sentence,” according to the article.
The Space Development Agency says it’s on track to issue its next batch of missile warning and tracking satellite contracts this month after those awards were delayed by the Pentagon’s decision to divert funds from the agency to pay troops during this fall’s prolonged government shutdown.
