Coast Guard Gunner's Mate Jesse Phillips claims drunk colleague sexually ... trends now
A member of the US Coast Guard has begged the service to hold sexual abusers accountable after accusing them of brushing off allegations he was attacked by a colleague, DailyMail.com can reveal.
Jesse Phillips, 42, claims he was assaulted by a fellow member of the Coast Guard while on a drill weekend in 2022.
The 23-year veteran was told that the USCG had 'no jurisdiction' over the assault, because his alleged attacker was a 'inactive reservist' and there was nothing they could do.
His lawyer, Peter Gleason, claims that the Coast Guard created a 'predatory environment' with 'inadequate sleeping arrangements' – forcing two male members to share a bed.
Jesse Phillips, 42, is a 23-year veteran of the US Coast Guard and claims he was sexually assaulted by a fellow member while on a drill weekend in 2022
Phillips (bottom left) tells DailyMail.com that he was forced to share a hotel bed with another member who pinned him down and began humping him
The accusations come after the service was accused of covering up sexual assaults of cadets, with the Coast Guard's top admiral vowing to make reforms
Phillips, who joined the Coast Guard in 2001 and is currently a Gunner's Mate, told DailyMail.com that he was groped and dry humped by a colleague in April 2022 in New Jersey, when four members were sharing a hotel room.
'We went to lunch, and then went back to our hotel,' he said. 'We were eating, and this individual was drinking a lot. I don't know exactly what he was drinking at that point.
'But after we finished, I said let's go get something else, he got a 12 pack of Yuengling lager, and I got some Budweiser seltzer.
'He was drinking quite a bit. He just kept going and going. He started doing a striptease in front of us, he didn't get naked but took everything off to his shorts – it was a little strange.
'I just wanted to go to sleep, I lay down to go to bed and our buddy was on the other bed. I had my face first into the pillow with my keister up.
'He then runs over and jumps on me, he grabbed me and started to dry hump me. I told him to get off.
'He was drunk, but it felt like he was pinning me down and he finally got off me. That was the end of the night and I just wanted to be done with it.'
Phillips did not report the incident until January 2023, saying he 'compartmentalized' the alleged assault until he was asked to recall the night as part of a separate investigation.
A commander spoke to Phillips and two of his colleagues after a report of 'inappropriate touching' was made by the man who Phillips claims assaulted him.
Phillips aid that they were interrogated by agents, had their lockers and armory scoured in a search for drugs – with the 'ordeal lasting for at least 15 hours'.
'I don't do drugs. It just made all of us feel like crap. After it happened, initially I was stressed, and my psyche was shot,' he said.
'After they asked me to go through it all, that was when I really thought about what happened. I was replaying everything that I could recall.
'And I'm like, wait a minute, this happened to me. I don't trust people anymore. I don't even want to be around people that I don't know.'
Phillips's lawyer Peter Gleason claims that the Coast Guard created a 'predatory environment' with 'inadequate sleeping arrangements' – forcing two male members to share a bed
Gleason is a Coast Guard veteran himself and confirmed that he had reached out to Congress to discuss his client's case, saying they would both be willing to testify
Phillips (far right) claims his colleague 'runs over and jumps on me, he grabbed me and started to dry hump me. I told him to get off. He was drunk, but it felt like he was pinning me down and he finally got off me'
The accusations come after the service was accused of covering up sexual assaults of cadets, with the US Coast Guard's top admiral vowing to make reforms after a report, dubbed Fouled Anchor, came to light.
Adm. Linda Fagan, commandant of the Coast Guard, ordered the 'buried' report from 2020 to be released in December 2023, which accused the service of fostering a 'permissive environment' for sexual harassment and assault.
The Fouled Anchor report found that 'too many' Coast Guard members don't feel safe and called for a crackdown on 'inappropriate or unhealthy behavior' at the earliest stages, including
