Naval Academy Football Players to Face Sexual Assault Charges

Three Naval Academy football players suspected in the alleged rape of a female midshipman will soon be charged, The Washington Post reports.

The names of the accused midshipmen will not be released until a charging document is completed, an academy spokesman told the Post.

The midshipmen involved will first face an Article 32 hearing to determine whether the charges move forward, The Navy Times reports.

The investigation into the allegations first became public in May. Word of charges comes at the end of a year-long Naval Criminal Investigative Services probe, according to the Post report.

According to reports, the rape occurred during an off-campus party in April 2012. The victim's attorney, Susan Burke, told The Navy Times in a statement that the victim did not recall having had intercourse with the men until seeing social media posts the next morning. Burke alleged that one of the players told the victim not to assist investigators, who then closed the case, until the victim contacted Burke and the case was reopened earlier this year, according to the report.