Panetta Reveals Another Prostitute Scandal

What's more shocking than a prostitute scandal? Two prostitute scandals! Defense Secretary Leon Panetta yesterday revealed an alleged 2011 incident in which three Marines on a US Embassy security team reportedly pushed a prostitute out of a car in Brasilia after arguing about—you guessed it—payment. The Marines, along with one embassy staff member, were punished: The troops were pulled from Brazil, two had their ranks reduced, and the staffer lost his post.

A defense official provides some background: "There were at least two women with the Marines outside a nightclub." One of the women apparently started a fight in a vehicle and was removed from the car, reports the AP; when she tried to get back in she fell to the ground. A second official says she broke her collarbone in the fall. No charges were filed by Brazilian authorities and the embassy was able to locate the woman and foot her medical bill. It might have been a closed book, but thanks to the Cartagena scandal, she has hired an attorney and is suing the embassy. (More Leon Panetta stories.)