Air Force Maj. Gen. William Cooley

An Air Force major general in Ohio has been convicted by a military judge of one of three specifications of abusive sexual contact in the.

Officials said the woman is a civilian who is not a Department of Defense employee. The charge faced by Maj. Gen. William Cooley during the weeklong court-martial at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base in Ohio had three specifications, one alleging a forcible kiss and two alleging forcible touching in 2018. “... Hopefully, this will not be as difficult for the next survivor.”

"Today marks the first time an Air Force general officer has been held responsible for his heinous actions," the woman's attorney said.

Over the course of the investigation, CBS News spoke with nearly two dozen survivors of sexual assault, whistleblowers who worked for the military's Sexual Assault Prevention and Response program and families of suicide victims who say the military grossly mishandled reports of sexual assault. Officials said the woman is a civilian who is not a Department of Defense employee. A message seeking comment was left for his attorney Saturday.

Editor's Note: This story includes details of an alleged sexual assault. WRIGHT-PATTERSON AIR FORCE BASE, Ohio -- Maj. Gen. William Cooley, the first Air ...

The sister-in-law "said on the stand that her biggest regret in this case was that voicemail. Cooley did not testify in his own defense, and his lawyers called no witnesses to the stand. That is her biggest regret in this case because she accidentally memorialized the truth." In the prosecution's telling, Cooley -- his inhibitions lowered after a night of drinking at a family barbecue and thinking of himself as "so important" he could do whatever he wanted -- acted on years of fantasies and tried to force himself on his sister-in-law. The priest's testimony was particularly important, Neil argued, because it was a one-on-one meeting without her husband present and she "had no reason to go to a member of the clergy and tell him something that's not true." "It was [her] effort to show grace." But she can't delete that voicemail. The general also declined to testify in his own defense during days of court martial hearings this week that included testimony from the victim and the general's brother. Cooley's case marked the first time criminal charges against an Air Force general officer reached a court-martial. "Some may ask, why didn't [she] scream out to her husband when she got out of the car? The case was decided by the judge, rather than a jury, at Cooley's request. Why didn't she yell for help?"

The major general faces up to seven years in prison after assaulting his sister-in-law at a family barbecue in 2018.

Cooley pleaded not guilty and chose for his case to be heard by a judge, rather than a jury. Military prosecutors ultimately charged him with abusive sexual contact, alleging that there were three elements to the offense: forcibly kissing the woman, groping her breasts and fondling her genitals. He also opted against testifying in his own defense.

A US Air Force general officer was found guilty of abusive sexual contact in military court in Ohio on Saturday, marking the first-ever court-martial trial ...

"That is one of the many reasons you see so few of these cases go to court-martial." A senior military judge found he was guilty of "the first specification, 'kissing (the victim) on the lips and tongue, with an intent to gratify his sexual desire,'" the statement said. It continued: "During the short ride she said he told her that he fantasized about having sex with her.

Maj. Gen. Bill Cooley faced the first full court-martial of an Air Force general in the service's history.

“The trial was impartial, fair and transparent,” the four-star said. The service is committed to holding all airmen accountable for conduct that falls short of Air Force standards, he said. “That doesn’t mean the case couldn’t have been prosecuted on the civilian side, but the … investigation started within the military.” “Staying silent was simply never an option.” He also pushed back on suggestions that the woman’s struggle to remember certain details, or her delay in telling her husband, mean she’s lying. A voicemail she left for Cooley, telling him his brother knows “we kissed,” conveyed nothing about consent, Neil said. Defense lawyer Maj. Shea Hoxie argued the woman refuted her own claims as laid out in Cooley’s apology, which his accusers forced him to say under threat of reporting the incident. Air Force Times does not publish the names of sexual assault victims without their permission to protect their privacy. “Sometimes family members are the abusers,” Cooley’s sister-in-law said in a statement read by Ryan Guilds, her pro bono victim’s advocate, after the verdict. It’s also the first time sexual assault charges have led to criminal prosecution for someone so high up in the chain of command. And that price was too high.” He is not guilty of two other specifications of groping her and moving her hand to touch his genitals over his clothes, she said.

WRIGHT-PATTERSON AIR FORCE BASE, Ohio—An Air Force major general in Ohio has been convicted by a military judge of one of three specifications of abusive ...

Officials said the woman is a civilian who is not a Department of Defense employee. “... Hopefully, this will not be as difficult for the next survivor.” The charge faced by Maj. Gen. William Cooley during the weeklong court-martial at Wright- Patterson Air Force Base in Ohio had three specifications, one alleging a forcible kiss and two alleging forcible touching in 2018.

A military judge found Air Force Maj. Gen. William Cooley guilty of one charge of abusive sexual contact on the sixth day of an historic court-martial at ...

Officials said the verdict marks the first court-martial trial and conviction of a general officer in the Air Force's 75-year history.

Officials said the woman is a civilian who is not a Department of Defense employee. The charge faced by Maj. Gen. William Cooley during the weeklong court-martial at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base in Ohio had three specifications, one alleging a forcible kiss and two alleging forcible touching in 2018. “... Hopefully, this will not be as difficult for the next survivor.”