By Associated Press PUBLISHED: 19:09 EST, 12 March 2013 | UPDATED: 19:46 EST, 12 March 2013 A case involving an Air Force general who dismissed charges against a lieutenant colonel convicted of sexual assault will be reviewed at the top levels of the Pentagon, Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel said in a letter released on Monday. But it seems unlikely that the ruling would be changed. Hagel said that under military law, neither he nor the Air Force secretary has the authority to reverse Lt Gen Craig Franklin's decision to overturn the November conviction against Lt Col James Wilkerson, a former inspector general at Aviano Air Base in Italy.
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Hagel responded to letter from Sen Barbara Boxer, asking him to take another look at sexual assault case
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Lt Gen Craig Franklin overturned a November conviction against Lt Col James Wilkerson, a former Air Force inspector general
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Figures for 2012 show there were nearly 800 reports of cases ranging from inappropriate touching to rape - up 30 per cent from 2011
@placeholder was sentenced to a year in prison and dismissal from the service.