The jury in the court-martial of Brig. Gen. Jeffrey Sinclair was dismissed for the day Monday while the judge looked at new evidence that a Pentagon lawyer may have interfered with a possible plea bargain.
It's illegal for senior commanders to interfere with military prosecutors, the Associated Press reported. The judge will be examining emails to determine if that happened in Sinclair's case.
Sinclair faces life in prison is convicted of sexual assaulting his former lover, who alleges that he twice forced her to perform a sex act after an argument and threatened to kill her and her family if she told anyone.
Sinclair's lawyer had been scheduled to cross-examine the woman on Monday and planned to confront her with explicit emails and text messages she sent Sinclair.
The Army general, who is believed to be the highest-ranking U.S. military officer to be tried on sex assault charges, pleaded guilty to adultery and several other lesser charges before the trial began.
