Sexual Assault By Military Personnel Still Hidden ‘In The Shadows,’ US Senator Says
The International Business Times reports:
Just days after the Pentagon said its initiatives to tackle sexual assault in the military were paying off, a U.S. senator has accused the Defense Department of hiding the actual extent of such crimes. Kirsten Gillibrand, D-N.Y., said on Monday that a large number of cases continue to “remain in the shadows,” according to a report by the Associated Press.
“I don’t think the military is being honest about the problem,” Gillibrand reportedly said, after analyzing over 100 sexual assault cases. Spouses of service members and female civilians living near military facilities are most likely to be assaulted, she said, adding that these cases are not counted by the Pentagon while determining the prevalence of sexual assault in the military.
Moreover, of the 107 cases she reviewed, less than a quarter went to trial and just 11 resulted in conviction for sexual assault, Gillibrand told the AP. In several cases, the victims do not testify because they have been presumably intimidated, she reportedly said.
