Offensive Action - 164

Commander Beth O'Neil was charged w/ sexual harassment by Lt. Cursey who she had given a poor fitness report. H & Manetti defend but differ in their assessment of O'Neil. Manetti believed she was innocent, H that she was hiding something. Cursey claimed that she had called him into her BOQ in the evening, commented on his girlfriend, and paused before she signed his report. He believed she was waiting for him to offer sexual favors and she wouldn't sign it although she never actually said anything of the kind. He told M "I don't know how to say this w/o being vain but I've been approached by women before, a lot." He never actually warned O'Neil before filing charges. During the case others testified that O'Neil had seemed inappropriate to them referring to male personnel. Lt. Murtaugh wanted to testify that she "danced with him." Lt Cdr Nancy Yorkin said O'Neil asked if she had ever fantasized about sleeping with Cursey. Manetti pursued the answer until Yorkin admitted "yes" but never acted on it- then understood that O'Neil probably never acted either. O'Neil said that she only talked about Cursey costing 14hrs of flying time and missing a Japanese sub by carelessly deploying sonar buoys. She paused to see if he had understood and he just glared back. She said this one was too important to let go.

M asked O'Neil if she had had any sexual encounters in 3 years since her divorce over Hs objections. O'Neil said no and M badgered her until the judge had to back her down. When both Manetti and H said they didn't believe her, O'Neil admitted that she was gay and had probably overcompensated in front of female personnel. M offered another deal to H which he couldn't take. In their discussions he told M that O'Neil was innocent (but of course he couldn't reveal how he knew). M said case was pure and simple; but, H replied that "the truth is rarely pure and never simple, Mac." Manetti gave H a ring from a cigar and explained that when young she would give the ring's from her daddy's cigars to her friends. H asked if she considered him a friend and she said she would "when you learn to trust me." He said that she should learn to trust him- they were both right: O'Neil was innocent and she was hiding something. H showed that Cursey was still making mistakes under his new commander and suggested that "perhaps you are so used to being defined by your looks" that he had overlooked the real story. He asked him if it was possible he had misunderstood and Cursey finally admitted that it was possible. The judge dismissed the charges. T & M argued: T- that Cursey was mistaken, M- that H had snowed Cursey into thinking he was mistaken. M asked "what was she hiding" and both H & Manetti answered at once: "don't ask."

Ht pulls away from intimacy with B. B walks out on Styles in a bar when Styles went to pick up a woman with his prosthetic showing. B apparently seemed to think that Styles wasn't sufficiently ashamed of not being whole. He then started malingering in his rehab. Finally Styles came to confront B with hurting his feelings and B surprised to see that Melissa had actually found Styles interesting.

C sent Meredith flowers and she responded with an embarrassing videotape. H complained to C that Meredith had been leaving messages on his answering machine but C wouldn't give him any suggestions on what to tell her. She cooked fish for C leaving a bone which he choked on. She gave him at least 2 heimlick's and had a fire in the kitchen. Then she forced a back massage on him, called herself a "professional" and broke his rib.