Army Col. William Wright participates in a podcast on Feb. 23, 2023, at West Point, N.Y. A military judge on Thursday, April 10, 2025, dismissed charges for a fourth time against Wright who was accused of drinking with a West Point cadet and then lying during an investigation into the incident. (Christopher Hennen/U.S. Army)
A military judge dismissed charges for a fourth time against a West Point colonel who was accused of drinking with a cadet and then lying during an investigation into the incident.
The back and forth of charges against Army Col. William Wright hinged on whether his retirement approval was properly revoked before charging him, according to the officer’s attorneys.
A court hearing on Thursday was meant to be the fourth scheduled arraignment for Wright, who was charged with violating Army policy on trainer-trainee interactions, interfering with an adverse administrative proceeding and making a false official statement. Since the first time that the colonel was charged, prosecutors have dropped the charge of conduct unbecoming of an officer.
The colonel was accused of providing alcohol to the cadet and drinking with the student on “a personal social basis” twice in June 2023, once in Hilo, Hawaii, and again in Fort Greely, Alaska, according to Wright’s charge sheet.
The U.S. Military Academy at West Point, N.Y., first referred charges against Wright on April 3, 2024, more than two months after his retirement orders were signed, according to his attorneys. His retirement date should have been July 31.
The jurisdiction on handling a case against a retiree vs. an active-duty soldier is different and has led to the back and forth against Wright. Whether the colonel’s retirement orders were revoked properly is what led the judge to her decision Thursday.
Military Judge Lt. Col. Carrie Ward dismissed the charges with prejudice, meaning they cannot be brought back against Wright unless the Army Court of Criminal Appeals intervenes, said Nathan Freeburg, an attorney for Wright. Prosecutors on Saturday filed an intent to appeal, he said.
Wright was the director of the academy’s Geospatial Information Science Program when his legal battle began. West Point did not respond Monday to his role now at the academy given that he intended to retire last year.
Wright, who graduated from West Point in 1999, would travel with cadets as a chaperone for the tennis team as well as for research as part of his work at the Geospatial Information Science Program, according to his LinkedIn account.
He then attempted to intervene in the investigation of the accusations by speaking with others about their testimony, according to his charge sheet. He also was accused of lying about his own behavior.
All names except Wright’s were redacted from the description of charges against him.
This is Wright’s second time serving as faculty for West Point. From 2008 to 2011, he served as an assistant professor in geospatial information science, according to his LinkedIn account. He then moved to Colorado to work for North American Aerospace Defense Command and later got his Ph.D. in geomatics from the University of Florida.
