Former Major General James Roddis has received a six-month suspended sentence for drunkenly touching and attempting to kiss a woman in a karaoke bar. Roddis, who was part of an overseas delegation and had been drinking for several hours, touched the woman’s hair before kissing her on the lips. He resigned from the Army following the subsequent misconduct investigation and admitted “disgraceful conduct of an indecent kind” at a hearing in July. Roddis was sentenced at Bulford Military Court Centre in Wiltshire, UK and the sentence includes 30 days of rehabilitation, 150 hours of unpaid work, and paying £2,500 in compensation to the victim.
The delegation was on the last night of their overseas trip in April of this year when the incident occurred. Prosecutors described the build-up to the incident, although the kiss itself was not seen on video. Roddis was seen inappropriately touching and playing with the woman’s hair, before putting his arm around her. She asked him to stop and indicated her displeasure before he kissed her a couple of minutes later.
Coming from a decorated military career, Roddis was a former commanding officer of The Highlanders, 4th Battalion Royal Regiment of Scotland and later played a role overseeing special forces. During his career, he received a number of military accolades, including a Distinguished Service Order, an MBE, and two Queen’s Commendations for Valuable Service. Until recently, he was the director of strategy for Strategic Command, an organisation comprising of special forces and intelligence units, among other responsibilities. In 2014, he was commanding officer of The Highlanders, the last Scottish battalion to serve in a combat role in Afghanistan.
Judge Advocate General Alan Large suspended the prison sentence for two years, reprimanding Roddis by condemning his “unwanted touching of her hair” and “unwanted” kiss, saying that “she was clearly not interested in your attention.
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