Judge Advocate General Edward Legard said there was insufficient evidence to safely convict Colonel Samantha Shepherd and Major James Hook.
Two senior Army officers have been cleared of allegations that they failed to properly deal with abuse allegations made by Gunner Jaysley Beck five months before the teenage soldier took her own life.
A court martial has heard how Colonel Samantha Shepherd and Major James Hook were both told by Gunner Beck about an incident on a training exercise when she disclosed inappropriate behaviour by one of her non-commissioned officers.
Prosecutors said that Maj Hook did not treat the matter with the seriousness it deserved and Col Shepherd deliberately failed to pass on crucial details when she reported the matter.
Gunner Beck was found dead at Larkhill Camp in Wiltshire in December 2021.
But, on Wednesday, both were found not guilty on the orders of Judge Advocate General Edward Legard, who said there was insufficient evidence for the board of three senior military officers to safely convict either defendant of the charge of “conduct prejudicial to good order and service discipline”.
In the case of Maj Hook, the judge said: “The evidence in this case is of an inconsistent, vague and tenuous nature.
“Both the legal and evidential basis on which the the Crown alleges prejudice is flawed and uncertain.”
The judge ruled that Maj Hook had no case to answer after prosecutors had earlier withdrawn the case against Col Shepherd.
Both actions resulted in the board formally recording not guilty verdicts.
Watched from the public gallery by Gunner Beck’s mother, Leighann McCready, Col Shepherd’s barrister Derek Johashen told the judge: “Colonel Shepherd remains devastated by Gunner Beck’s passing.
“Colonel Shepherd is relieved by the decision.
“But it’s not about her.”
Mr Johashen said his client fully understood the impact on Gunner Beck’s family of the events of the last four or five years.
He said: “Her thoughts remain with them, and always will.
“She always believed Gunner Beck, took her complaint seriously, listened to her and cared.”
Ms McCready was not in court to hear Maj Hook being acquitted.
