Last April, Commander Etta Jones was relieved of duty as captain of the amphibious transport dock ship USS Ponce. The Ponce‘s executive officer, Lt. Cmdr. Kurt Boenisch, was also relieved. A Navy report examining allegations made against Commander Jones substantiated the charges. She was found to be verbally abusive, to have given preferential treatment to female officers, and to have allowed hazing aboard ship, among other charges.  The full report can be found here.

Commander Jone’s case is reminiscent to that of Captain Holly Graf, ex-captain of the cruiser USS Cowpens, who was relieved of duty and subsequently found guilt of charges of cruelty and maltreatment of her crew. A year ago, a panel of three admirals recommended that Captain Graf be removed from the service. That recommendation apparently has been sitting on Navy Secretary Ray Mabus’ desk for 12 months, with no action taken. Captain Graf’s sister, Rear Admiral Robin L. Graf, is currently the Commander of the Navy Recruiting Command.

Commander Jones was one of twenty one Navy commanders relived of duty during 2011  as of August. Captain Graf was one of seventeen relieved of duty in 2010.

Mark Thompson writing in Time Magazine’s Battlefield blog identifies an ongoing problem:

Jones and Graf didn’t parachute onto the decks of the Ponce and Cowpens unwise in the sea service’s ways and lore. They had spent years in the Navy, supposedly learning to be good skippers, before assuming command. Then they watched their careers self-destruct. Hard to believe they were the only ones responsible.