Owen Honors

On 3 January 2011, Honors was under investigation for videos he produced, one set entitled "XO Movie Night", filmed on USS Enterprise, and aired via closed circuit television on select Saturday evenings, while he was Executive Officer of Enterprise.[8] Three complete videos, produced for distribution over the ship's closed circuit video system, have been released by The Virginian-Pilot.[9][10][11] One video shows two male Navy sailors standing in a shower stall pretending to wash each other, and two female sailors pretending to shower together to conserve water; sailors parading in drag; homophobic slurs; and there are scenes of simulated masturbation and a simulated rectal exam.[12]

The videos were shown on board in 2006 and 2007.

The Navy's official statement is that when officers higher in the chain of command became aware of Honors' videos in 2007, he was instructed to cease their production but no further action was taken.[13] Honors disputes this, claiming that his superiors actively or tacitly approved of the videos and never instructed him to stop.[14]

On 4 January 2011, as related in the New York Times:

Adm. John C. Harvey Jr., the commander of U.S. Fleet Forces Command in Norfolk, said in a statement released Tuesday afternoon that Captain Honors was removed for demonstrating poor judgment. "The responsibility of the commanding officer for his or her command is absolute," Admiral Harvey said in the statement. " While Captain Honors' performance as commanding officer of U.S.S. Enterprise has been without incident, his profound lack of good judgment and professionalism while previously serving as executive officer on Enterprise calls into question his character and completely undermines his credibility to continue to serve effectively in command."[15]

Admiral Harvey also said in the statement that after viewing the videos, he had lost confidence in Captain Honors' ability to lead effectively.

Honors was reassigned to an administrative role. The admiral said the Navy continued to investigate the case of the videos from 2006 and 2007 and would look into what other officers aboard USS Enterprise knew about them.[16][17]

In a written statement obtained and published by Military Times on January 28, Honors stated that his superior officers were aware of the videos and did not instruct him to stop their production. Honors' superiors included Larry Rice, Ron Horton (both now rear admirals), Rear Admiral Raymond Spicer (since retired), Rear Admiral Richard O'Hanlon, and Vice Admiral Daniel Holloway.[18][19]

The Navy's investigation was completed on 4 February 2011.[20] Harvey recommended that letters of censure be issued to Honors, Captain John Dixon, who was XO of Enterprise from September 2007 to June 2009, Rice, and Horton. Non-punitive letters of caution were issued to Spicer and Holloway. Rear Admirals Gregory Nosal and Clifford Sharpe were counseled. Thirty-two other sailors and officers also received non-punitive letters of caution.[21] Horton was removed as commander of the Navy's logistics group in Singapore.[22]

On 18 March 2011, it was announced that Secretary of the Navy Ray Mabus followed Harvey's recommendations and issued the letters of censure to Honors, Dixon, Rice and Horton.[23] It is widely agreed that the letter effectively ends Honors' career, as further promotion will be effectively impossible.[24]

On 24 August 2011, a three-admiral board of inquiry formally reprimanded Honors over the videos, stating that Honors "committed misconduct, failed to demonstrate acceptable qualities of leadership required of an officer in his grade and failed to conform to prescribed standards of military deportment." The board, however, voted 3-0 to retain Honors in the Navy.[25]

On April 1, 2012 Captain Owen Honors retired from the U.S. Navy. He now works for Check Six Inc. out of Baltimore, MD providing "leadership and safety training for the oil industry focusing on high reliability operations in hazardous environments around the globe."[26]