Naval Academy superintendent challenged in sex assault case

A Naval Academy midshipman is joining a legal plea with the woman who says he sexually assaulted her to get a superintendent tossed from the case. Midshipman Joshua Tate is seeking "intervenor" status in a federal suit that seeks to remove Naval Academy Superintendent Vice Adm. Michael Miller as the sole decider of whether or not to advance the case against Tate to a court-martial, The Baltimore Sun reported. Miller has already ordered courts-martial to begin against Tate and another Naval Academy student, Eric Graham. The two men, along with a third midshipman who will not face a military trial, allegedly sexually assaulted a fellow female classmate at an off-campus party. The woman said she was blackout drunk and did not consent to having sex with the men, all three of whom were on the Navy football team. The woman's attorney has sought to have Miller removed from the case because she thinks he's biased against her. Tate's lawyer said in filings Tuesday Miller has been influenced by negative media reports about sexual assaults in the military and ordered the courts-martial despite the opinion of a military judge who recommended the case be scuttled after preliminary hearings.