Editor's Note: Staff Sgt. Thomas Dobbs III was acquitted of all charges during the November, 2015 court martial. A military judge acquitted him on the charges of assault consummated by a battery and being drunk and disorderly. The Air Force currently does not report when airmen are acquitted of crimes, making it difficult for reporters to ascertain the results of some trials. Air Force Times was only able to verify that Dobbs was acquitted by speaking with his attorney. If you have information on an acquitted airmen, and would like us to update our reporting, please contact Phillip Swarts at pswarts@airforcetimes.com or Oriana Pawlyk at opawlyk@airforcetimes.com. Air Force Times is currently collecting information on the results of the court martials for the other three airmen, and will update this article shortly.
Four airmen face are facing unrelated charges on allegations ranging from damaging property to soliciting a prostitute.
Lt. Col. Shay Capehart is charged with allegedly using methamphetamine, according to court records.
The incident allegedly occurred between March 2 and March 16, 2015, documents filed with the Judge Advocate General’s office show. The records are not specific about where the incident allegedly occurred, stating only that it happened "within the continental United States."
Air Force Times was unable to reach Capehart or his legal representative for comment.
Capehart is assigned to Air Combat Command headquarters at Joint Base Langley-Eustis, Virginia. He joined the service in May 1996 and has been awarded the Meritorious Service Medal and Air Force Commendation Medal, personnel records show.
A court-martial is scheduled for Nov. 10.
Tech. Sgt. Torri Morris faces court-martial after he allegedly tried to hire a prostitute who turned out to be an undercover police officer. The incident allegedly occurred April 15 The Colorado airman is accused of attempting to solicit a prostitute at or near Colorado Springs, Colorado, on April 15, 2015, according to documents filed with the Judge Advocate General’s office. But the woman is reported to have actually been an under-cover local law enforcement officer.
Morris also faces a dereliction of duty charge for allegedly attempting to hire the prostitute while he was still in uniform. And he faces a third charge of trying to impede an investigation by the Colorado Springs Police Department by claiming he was working with the Air Force Office of Special Investigations.
Morris' lawyer, David Sheldon, said his client is being unfairly targeted and has filed a motion to dismiss the case.
"The over-reaching in this case is mind boggling," Sheldon said. "This is an airmen who has served with distinction. To court-martial him with the very real trauma he suffers from and in light of the circumstances of the charged misconduct is grossly unfair. We are confident at the end of the day, justice will prevail."
Morris is assigned to the 721st Security Forces Squadron, Cheyenne Mountain Air Force Station, according to Air Force records. The court-martial trial was set to begin Oct. 21.
Morris entered active duty in June 2004, personnel records show, and he has received the Air Force Commendation Medal and Army Achievement Medal.
Senior Airman Tyler Wheeler faces court-martial on charges that he assaulted another individual and caused about $1,500 in property damage, according to documents filed with the Judge Advocate General's office.
According to court records, Wheeler struck an individual with "his hands, with his mouth, and with a phone that he threw" sometime between March 2013 and February 2015.
He is accused in another incident of striking someone on the face in November 2013 in Texas. He also is accused of hitting someone on the arms with objects he threw between October 2012 and May 2013.
The charge sheets do not specify whether the same individual is the alleged victim in all three incidents.
Air Force Times could not reach Wheeler nor his legal representative for comment.
Wheeler is also accused of hitting "the walls and windows" of a building in San Angelo, Texas, causing more than $1,000 in a thousand dollars’ worth of damage sometime between March 2013 and September 2014.
He also is charged with throwing and striking a "standing mixer" in November 2013 in Texas, causing about $350 in damage. And between October 2012 and May 2013, Wheeler is accused of throwing or striking a drawer, nightstand, the walls and the windows of a building in San Angelo, causing $100 in damage.
Finally, Wheeler is charged with making threats, including allegedly telling a person: "I will bury your animals in the backyard up to their heads and run them over with a lawnmower."
Wheeler is assigned to the 633rd Security Forces Squadron at Joint Base Langley-Eustis, Va., according to personnel records. He joined the service in June 2008.
Staff Sgt. Thomas Dobbs III, with the 96th Security Forces Squadron, faces charges related to an alleged assault consummated by battery, according to a spokesperson at Eglin Air Force Base, Florida.
Dobbs faces one charge of assault and battery, and one charge of being drunk and disorderly, the spokesperson said. A court-martial is scheduled for Nov. 16 at Eglin.
Air Force Times could not reach Dobbs nor his legal representative for comment on the case.
According to personnel records, Dobbs joined the Air Force in August 2005. He has received the Air Force Achievement Medal, Air Force Commendation Medal and Army Achievement Medal.
