A Staff Sergeant at Fort Cavazos avoided jail time after being convicted at court-martial for multiple sexual assault-related offenses against two sleeping subordinates during a unit trip to Austin last summer.
Staff Sergeant Quadarrius J. McCray, assigned to the 571st Movement Control Team, 49th Transportation Battalion, was found guilty of violating Articles 120 and 128 of the Uniform Code of Military Justice (UCMJ) for unlawful sexual contact and assault stemming from the July 27, 2024 incident.
According to court documents, McCray sexually assaulted a sleeping corporal by digitally penetrating and performing oral sex on them, and separately groped a sleeping sergeant without consent. Both victims were junior to McCray in rank, and the assaults occurred while they were asleep or otherwise incapacitated.
Despite the serious nature of the charges, McCray struck a plea deal that dropped several of the more egregious specifications, including penetration, in exchange for pleading guilty to lesser offenses related to touching the corporal’s thigh and stomach.
On March 7, 2025, a military judge sentenced McCray to a Bad Conduct Discharge. He received no jail time, no reduction in rank, and no fines. His only lasting penalty? Mandatory sex offender registration.
This latest case comes from Fort Cavazos, the installation formerly known as Fort Hood—a post long plagued by a culture of misconduct and a disturbing track record on sexual assault. The Army’s own investigations, including the 2020 Fort Hood Independent Review, revealed widespread leadership failures that allowed sexual harassment and assault to fester unchecked.
Most infamously, the murder of Specialist Vanessa Guillén in 2020 sparked national outrage. Guillén had reported being sexually harassed by a superior on two occasions before she was bludgeoned to death by another soldier. Her death exposed deep-rooted issues in the Army’s handling of sexual assault claims and led to sweeping, though heavily scrutinized, policy changes.
While the Army promised reforms, cases like McCray’s raise questions about whether anything has truly changed. Despite being convicted of sexually assaulting one of the two sleeping subordinates, McCray leaves the Army with his rank intact and his freedom preserved.
Critics argue this is yet another example of the military justice system protecting perpetrators more than it protects victims—especially when those perpetrators wear stripes.
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