CNO was between a rock and hard place. He knew he had to come out hard against what happened in order to lead the Navy and prevent future incidents, but I'm sure his JAG's were telling him to keep his mouth shut on the topic. I am a lawyer, but I often tell clients that you have to listen to what your lawyers are saying , but sometimes you have to ignore legal advice if you want to run a successful business. If that is what happened here, I can't fault the CNO.