Wall St Journal: Sex-Assault Reports Surge For Military
The Wall St Journal reports on new data about sexual assaults in the military:
A sharp increase in the number of sexual assault reports filed by members of the armed services is providing new fuel to the debate about how to overhaul the military justice system.
Some in the military and Congress said the increase shows a growing recognition of the problem has overcome some victims’ reluctance to report these crimes. Others, however, contend the rising numbers could reflect increasing incidents and demonstrate that more should be done to improve how the military handles sexual assaults.
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Advocacy groups, citing the preliminary nature of the data, reacted cautiously.Nancy Parrish, president of Protect Our Defenders, said the numbers show the severity of the “military sexual-assault epidemic.”
She said military culture often favors the rights of the accused over those of the victims, and said she believed more changes to the military justice system are needed.
“Military leaders have been given deference on this issue for too long,” Ms. Parrish said. “They have promised time and again to tackle this problem and eradicate it from the force. But they have failed.”
