The Baltimore Sun from Baltimore, Maryland • Page A10

10A FRIDAY 04.07.2006 THESUN Forum targets abuse in military Victims, advocates say Congress must act to curb assault PSC member used state account for sexual messages Boutin, former Harford delegate, apologizes for exchanging e-mails with prostitute Yesterday's briefing came at a time of increased scrutiny of sexual assault in the military, especially at the nation's service academies. In late February, Lamar S. Owens a 22-year-old senior at the U.S. Naval Academy, was charged with raping a classmate. This week, the attorney for the former Navy quarterback decided not to continue with a pretrial hearing, which means the case will go to an investigating officer who will recommend how it should go forward.

A Pentagon task force sharply criticized the academy in a report last summer, saying hostile attitudes toward women "continue to hinder the establishment of a safe and professional environment in which to prepare future military officers." An internal academy report showed that the number of sexual assault allegations lodged by midshipmen has jumped over the past four years. According to the school's figures, of the 45 sexual assaults reported, including 17 in 2004-2005, two ended with a court-martial and conviction. Academy officials and victims' advocates said the increase could be a result of reforms that encouraged women to come forward and report assaults. According to a report released last month, there were 2,374 sexual assaults reported last year involving members of the military 674 more than 2004. Republican Rep.

Christopher Shays of Connecticut attended part of yesterday's briefing and vowed to get more involved. Rep. Louise M. Slaughter, a New York Democrat, plans to introduce legislation this month that would tighten military rules dealing with sexual assault and domestic violence, to bring them more in line with civilian laws. Stopper and others at the forum had plenty of ideas for lawmakers.

Laura L. Miller, a military sociologist at the Rand Corp. and a member of the Pentagon task force that produced last summer's report about the service academies, suggested closing the preliminary hearing, known as Article 32 in military terms, to the public. While Miller acknowledged that keeping the proceedings secret would also prevent the news media from spotlighting problems, she said open hearings often feature damaging disclosures that enable the accuser and the accused to be publicly exposed. gwyneth.shawbaltsun.com BY GWYNETH K.

SHAW SUN REPORTER Washington Congress must act to curb sexual harassment and assault, and domestic violence within the ranks of the U.S. military, victims and women's advocates said yesterday during a forum in Capitol Hill. Too often, they said, women and men who report harassment or violence are ignored, and their abusers allowed to walk away with little or no impact on their military careers. "You are the only ones who can make these changes," said Caitlin Stopper, who broke down in tears as she described her experience at the U.S. Coast Guard Academy, where she said she was sexually assaulted by a fellow cadet early in her freshman year.

When she finally confided in a civilian professor, she said she was subjected to "absolute hell" by her superiors, who implied that the assault was her fault. Stopper, 20, said that despite the Coast Guard Academy's reputation as the most "female-friendly" of the service academies, women there are subjected to taunting, inappropriate touching and "a thick, pervasive attitude of male supremacy on campus." Charles R. Boutin says he was trying to cure impotency, which he said he developed after being treated (or bladder cancer. PUBLIC SERVICE COMMISSION Edgewood. After her guilty plea in Harford County District Court, she was sentenced to 18 months' probation.

Asked about Boutin's statement last night, she said, "I have no comment." Robert B. Thomas, a spokesman for the Harford County Sheriffs Office, said Boutin was never charged in connection with Fletcher's arrest. His e-mails were among thousands recovered from her computer during the investigation. Brown said there was also a page from her calendar that lists his name on a particular date along with a "notation" indicating a sex act. "Basically, there's no information that we have linking him to a crime," Thomas said.

"He was not a suspect in any investigation. The case is closed." Brown, who is Boutin's personal attorney and a close friend, said that Boutin made a mistake and that he "holds him in the highest regard. "It's such a personal thing and a very private thing that has absolutely no bearing on his competency as a commissioner," Brown said. "But he was afraid the story would lead to more rumor and innuendo, and would be so offensive to his wife that he wanted to present his side." justin.fentonbaltsun.com ford County. We had several brief telephone conversations.

Some of the e-mails discussed fantasies." His lawyer, Augustus F. Brown, who provided the statement, said the e-mails were sent from Boutin's legislative account. Boutin said in his statement that he had arranged a meeting with the woman but changed his mind. "I committed no criminal act," he said A former mayor of Aberdeen, Boutin represented Harford and Cecil counties in the House of Delegates from 1999 until 2005, when he was appointed to the Public Service Commission. The governor declined to comment yesterday, and PSC Chairman Kenneth D.

Schisler did not respond to a phone call placed the previous day. Last year, Boutin was ranked by the Maryland Family Values Alliance as one of the most "family values-friendly legislators in Maryland," based on his voting record. "In today's world, family values are very important in our community, and I will continue to strive to support them in the future," he said in a statement on his legislative Web site. Harford County deputies learned in the fall that Fletcher, 47, was operating an Internet escort service under the name Traci Morgan and observed her meet a man at the Best Western motel in BY JUSTIN FENTON SUN REPORTER Charles R. Boutin, a member of the Public Service Commission, apologized yesterday for using his state computer account to exchange sexually oriented e-mails with a prostitute.

In a written statement, Boutin, 64, a former Republican delegate who was appointed to the commission last year by Gov. Robert L. Ehrlich acknowledged that his conduct was "morally wrong and I am ashamed and deeply sorry." Boutin's admission was made as the Harford County Sheriffs Office said it intended to release thousands of e-mails and documents it obtained as part of its criminal investigation into Valerie Fletcher, a Baltimore County woman who pleaded guilty last month to one count of prostitution. Boutin, who is married and has three children, said he sought out the woman in an effort to cure impotency which he said he developed shortly after being successfully treated for bladder cancer. "I discovered a web site on the Internet offering sexual conversations," he said in the statement.

"I exchanged 13 e-mails with a woman who was the subject of the police investigation in Har KMJHRESS; ENDS SATURDAY 2 APRIL15j Rj PkliH-tT NIGHT WeMCkli IIIIIBHVi PSC chair sues state over bill FfREE FREE IREE iT FREE 1 FRAME! DELIVERY SET-UP FINANCING I With Purchase Of Any Set Over S399 With Pudree Of Any Set 0r $499 Within 20 Mile Radte With Any Detvery With Any Purchase OverS400.00 1 FIRM Sale TWIN, set $119" FULL, set $229" QUEEN, set $279" KING, set $379" HARD, PLUSH OR PILLOWTOP Sale TWIN, set $699" FULL, set $849" QUEEN, set $899" KING, set $1199" 1 Sale twin, set $399" FULL, set $499" QUEEN, set $549" KING, set $799" From Page 1A made no visible progress toward a settlement. The talks are due for a jolt today, the deadline for Ehrlich to veto the PSC bill, and others rushed through the legislature last week and designed to pressure BGE and its parent company, Constellation Energy. One would give the legislature veto power over a proposed merger between Constellation and a Florida utility, and another would force the company to return $528 million to ratepayers. But Schisler, unwilling to risk an override, acted first. "By enacting legislation in this manner, the General Assembly has abused its power in an unprecedented manner to functionally deny the opportunity for judicial review of an unconstitutional enactment," the complaint, filed in Talbot County Circuit Court, says.

"The bill will remove the incumbent commissioners without notice and opportunity to be heard and will leave the legal status of the commission and commissioners in question." Attorney General J. Joseph Cur-ran Jr. said he would review the suit and any case law the commission may cite, but he said the case suffers from at least two potential flaws: It is a suit challenging the constitutionality of a bill that has not yet been and may never be enacted into law, and it involves a state agency suing the state government. "The general rule is an entity created by the state can't sue the very state that created it," Curran said. "That's pretty textbook clear.

"I'm not sure what their theory is, but if there is no law to challenge, I'm not sure on what basis they're challenging the law," he added. Curran said his office has reviewed the bill and found it constitutional. "The legislature created the PSC, and they can certainly change the law that affects it," he said. Andrew Radding a former law professor and federal prosecutor who's in private practice, said he can't recall a similar case in Maryland. "I'm very quizzical about how it can be successful," he said.

"It's almost equivalent to the Postal Service filing a suit against the U.S. government." Senate President Thomas V. Mike Miller, who pushed the PSC legislation, called the suit "frivolous litigation." "This lawsuit will not stand," Miller said. "It's a waste of taxpayers' money. It's a classic example of stupidity at work." One commissioner, Harold D.

Williams, said he was not informed of the lawsuit until yesterday afternoon, after it had been drafted. He said he did not give his consent to be included in the suit. Williams, the last remaining appointee of former Gov. Parris N. our concerns, and now it's up to them to fashion a reasonable rate plan for the benefit of BGE ratepayers," Gould said.

Legislators are demanding $750 million in rate relief, but Constellation has said its offer of $375 million in aid a plan that would reduce the initial rate increase to 15 percent and bring consumers up to market prices over 18 months is the best it can do. Ehrlich, who has acted as a go-between in the talks, has not said what he wants out of the negotiations, other than an initial increase of well below 72 percent. News this week that a New York bond rating agency has downgraded BGE's creditworthiness because of the uncertainty in the legislature didn't budge lawmakers from their determination to wait until the final moments of the General Assembly session in hopes of squeezing a better deal from the utility. Ehrlich has not formally announced his intention to veto the bills, but he has strongly hinted that he will reject them. He has a deadline of 11:59 p.m.

today to act. After that, legislators have three days to negotiate a settlement or vote to override the bills before they adjourn for the year at midnight Monday, setting the stage for an intense showdown between the General Assembly and the utility, with 1.2 million ratepayers and the company's long-term financial viability hanging in the balance. "As far as I'm concerned, the downgrade simply reflects their corporate unwillingness to come to the table," Miller, the Senate president, said. "They can do better, and we're going to make sure they do better." The state no longer has a direct role in setting electric rates because caps instituted as part of the deregulation of the industry are set to expire June 30. Instability caused by Hurricane Katrina, increasing global demand and other factors, meant prices in the world energy market were sharply higher this spring when BGE bid for energy supplies for the coming year.

Because the state can no longer force BGE to lower rates, legislators passed the three bills last week in hopes of pressuring the company to agree to concessions. Ehrlich has endorsed the merger and defended the current members of the commission from charges of being too close to the utility industry. His spokeswoman, Shareese N. DeLeaver, said Ehrlich must consider the long-term effects of the BGE bills, not just the sort-term political fallout. andy.greenbaltsun.com Sun reporters Paul Adams and Jill Rosen contributed to this article.

Glendening and the only African-American on the commission, was not invited to a meeting the other four commissioners held with Ehrlich's chief of staff last month, an omission that led to protests from the Legislative Black Caucus. Schisler said at the time that the meeting was not planned and that the omission was unintentional. The commission is subject to a lawsuit over that meeting by the Maryland Public Interest Research group, which alleges that it was a violation of the state's open meetings law. Commission spokeswoman Christine Nizer said she would not comment on the legal issues in the case. But she said Schisler and an attorney for the commission presented the suit to Williams before it was filed and that he initially gave his consent before retracting it.

She added that he is not specifically listed as a plaintiff, though the suit is filed on behalf of the Public Service Commission, Schisler and "those members of the Public Service Commission similarly situated." Nizer said the lawsuit was Schisler's idea. She said that he talked to the other commissioners individually and that the body did not take a vote to authorize the suit. The case was filed by an outside counsel, the Easton law firm of Cowdrey Thompson and Karsten. Nizer said she did not know how they are being paid. Many Republicans in the General Assembly argued against the PSC bill, saying it has nothing to do with gaining leverage over the company and everything to do with grabbing power from Ehrlich.

But Constellation officials have called the bill a deal-breaker in the negotiations over lowering rates, along with the two other measures Ehrlich must decide on today. One would appoint a special counsel to investigate the effect on consumers of a proposed merger between Constellation and FPL Group Inc. of Florida. The bill would also give the legislature veto power over the deal. Another would force Constellation to return $528 million that BGE customers paid to compensate the company for the expected decline in value of its power plants.

The plants appreciated in value instead. Constellation spokesman Robert L. Gould said yesterday that any negotiated solution must include not only the veto of those bills, but also treat other Maryland utility customers the same as BGE ratepayers. That means lawmakers would have to provide similar rate relief to customers of Potomac Electric Power Co. and Delmarva Power Light, which also face steep rate increases, he said.

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