Three women, all Air Force officers, came to Heath Sommer, a former staff psychologist at Travis Air Force Base in California, and asked him for help on their recovery from past sexual assaults and other traumas.
Instead, he manipulated them, abused their trust and sexually assaulted them, telling them it was part of their therapy.
Sommer was convicted of six sexual assault charges, including one rape charge, Nov. 30 after a six-week trial in the Solano County Superior Court in California, according to a release that day from the Solano County District Attorney’s office.
One victim sought treatment from Sommer in September 2014 at the David Grant Medical Center for a violent sexual assault she suffered while deployed to Afghanistan, the release said. The other two victims sought treatment in late 2015 and 2016 for PTSD and sexual trauma.
Sommer first gained their trust during treatment and subsequently learned their deepest secrets, the DA’s office said.
“The defendant then violated this trust by fraudulently inducing them to engage in sexual acts with him under the guise of ‘exposure therapy’ for a professional purpose,” the release said.
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The Daily Republic in Solano County reported that the victim who had been sexually assaulted in Afghanistan, an Air Force colonel, testified that Sommer moved their therapy sessions to his home off-base. The colonel testified that Sommer had her repeatedly describe the details of her sexual assault, and had her put dirt in her mouth and eat his leftover Chinese food to re-enact the goat meal Afghans served her before her assault, the Republic said.
The Republic said he then recommended “she have a ‘positive and loving’ sexual experience,” and had sex with her. He went on to have sex with her nine more times at his home over the next two months, the Republic reported.
The Republic also reported that Sommer exposed himself to another victim in his office during therapy, had her give him oral sex, and kissed and groped her,
Sommer is being held without bail, and he is scheduled to be sentenced Jan. 25. The Republic said he could be sentenced to 11 years and eight months.
Stephen Losey is the air warfare reporter for Defense News. He previously covered leadership and personnel issues at Air Force Times, and the Pentagon, special operations and air warfare at Military.com. He has traveled to the Middle East to cover U.S. Air Force operations.
