General Scott Rice of Mass. Air National Guard tapped to replace Joseph Carter
Governor Deval Patrick today tapped the chief of staff of the Massachusetts Air National Guard to temporarily replace Massachusetts National Guard Adjutant General Joseph C. Carter, placed on leave after revelations he faced rape allegations 28 years ago.
Major General L. Scott RiceMass. National Guard
Major General L. Scott Rice, who is based at the Guard’s headquarters in Milford, has also been serving as commander of the Massachusetts Air National Guard.
Rice will now serve as the overall Guard’s acting adjutant general. In that capacity, he will oversee the administration and operation of the Guard’s 8,500 soldiers and airmen, and ensure they will be “a well-trained, equipped and mission-ready force to respond to a state emergency declared by the governor and/or national security mission,’’ the governor said in a statement.
“General Rice is a highly decorated and experienced leader, who has shown bravery commanding critical air missions around the globe,’’ Patrick added. “He is the right fit to lead our troops in his new role as acting adjutant general.’’
Rice’s official biography also says he is “dual-hatted as assistant to the commander, United States Air Forces in Europe.’’
The general said in the statement: “I’m honored to accept this appointment and I look forward to serving the fine men and women of the Massachusetts National Guard. I am grateful for the opportunity Governor Patrick has entrusted in me and will continue to carry on the proud tradition of the Massachusetts National Guard.’’
Carter, 56, was accused of rape after allegedly attacking a subordinate while the two were on maneuvers in Florida in 1984.
The investigating officer recommended that the alleged victim, Susan Pelletier, take the matter to police, but Pelletier told the Globe she was afraid to press charges.
Pelletier’s allegations resurfaced late last year as Carter was under consideration for promotion from one-star to two-star general – the rank held by his replacement Rice. It put a freeze on the promotion while military investigators questioned Pelletier and others involved.
Carter, a Boston police superintendent at the time of the alleged assault, flatly denied the attack or even knowing Pelletier.
Nonetheless, Patrick placed Carter on administrative leave with pay until the investigation is complete. Carter is paid $173,214 a year by the state, as well as federal compensation, to oversee the Guard, the vast majority of whose members are part-time soldiers.
According to his biography, Rice was commissioned in 1980 through the Reserve Officer Training Corp program at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute. After graduate school, he attended pilot training at Reese Air Force Base, Texas, and received his flight wings in May 1982.
“In 1989, after nine years of active duty flying the F-111, Rice joined the Massachusetts Air National Guard and the 104th Fighter Wing to fly the A-10 Thunderbolt II,’’ the biography states.
Rice served as squadron commander, operations group commander, and wing commander.
He also is a combat veteran, having deployed since 1995 to operations in Bosnia, Kosovo, Kuwait, and Iraq.
He also served as commander of Air Force Forces for United States Central Command in the Middle East, where he commanded F-16 units deployed to Kuwait in 2004, to Jordan and Oman in 2005, and to Pakistan in 2006.
Carter had a distinguished career in law enforcement before Patrick picked him as the first African-American commander of the National Guard in its 370-year history. Carter was the youngest member of the command staff in Boston police history, and he served as chief of the MBTA Transit Police for four years. In between, he was police chief in Oak Bluffs on Martha’s Vineyard.
On weekends, meanwhile, Carter rose through the ranks of the National Guard, which he joined in 1974.
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