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WASHINGTON -- A U.S. Naval Academy midshipman who has accused the school's former star quarterback of rape was described Monday as an aggressive woman who often was seen drunk at an Annapolis bar frequented by academy students.
Witnesses called by civilian defense attorneys representing Midshipman Lamar S. Owens Jr. said that his accuser was obviously intoxicated in the hours before the Jan. 29 incident allegedly occurred.
"She didn't need to drink anymore from my point of view," said Second Lt. James Winston. Before his spring graduation, the Marine officer was a Navy lacrosse player who socialized with Owens' accuser.
Owens, 22, of Savannah, Ga., is charged with rape, conduct unbecoming an officer and violating a military protective order. If convicted he would be eligible for a maximum term of life in prison.
The woman bringing the charges has just completed her third year at the service academy. She alleges that Owens entered her room as she slept at the academy's Bancroft Hall in the early hours of Jan. 29 and forced himself on her. She has testified that she resisted and did not consent to his advances.
Defense attorneys contend the sexual content was consensual and that Owens cut it off when he realized the woman had passed out on the bed.
Winston was one of four current and former academy students who testified that while the young woman is quiet and reserved when sober, she becomes flirtatious and uninhibited after drinking alcohol.
They also testified she drank to excess frequently.
"She was usually incredibly drunk," testified Ensign Gavin M. Whittle, who graduated from the academy in May. "She would kind of aggressively pursue men."
The four witnesses each testified that they had seen the woman drinking heavily at the Acme Bar and Grill in the hours before the alleged rape or on other locations.
"She likes to drink with her friends and in groups," testified Midshipman Ryan C. Roeling, an academy senior. Roeling, who played on the football team with Owens as an offensive lineman described his former team mate as "someone you could definitely trust."
A military forensic psychiatrist called by the defense to help explain why Owens' recollection of events differed from that of his accuser, said that it is scientifically possible for someone to corrupt or alter their memories due to impairment, blackout due to alcohol, or other causes such as suggestions from others, denial or repression.
"Repeated questioning about the same event can change the way a person recalls the event," said Cmdr. Gerald F. Donovan, a Naval psychiatrist.
News4's Pat Collins reported Monday that a computer expert testified that she found evidence that Owens and the accusers communicated by computer, but she couldn't say exactly when the messages were sent or what they said.
As a senior, Owens led Navy to an 8-4 record that included wins over Army and Air Force and a Poinsetta Bowl victory over Colorado State.
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