AP: Sen. McCaskill new unlikely target of advocates for reforming military sex assault cases
The Associated Press mentions Protect Our Defenders’ campaign and open letter written by Terri Odom:
Protect Our Defenders, a Washington-based advocacy group for military victims of sexual assault, took aim at McCaskill over her opposition to an amendment proposed by Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, D-N.Y. Gillibrand’s proposal would authorize military lawyers — rather than commanding officers — to decide which cases go to trial.
Gillibrand believes she has support of 41 other senators, but she needs 51. McCaskill is not among them because she instead favors reforms suggested by the Republican-led House Armed Services military personnel subcommittee.
Protect Our Defenders purchased a half-page ad in Tuesday’s St. Louis Post-Dispatch that included an open letter to McCaskill from Terri Odom, a St. Louis-area Navy veteran who said she was “raped and left for dead” by a superior in 1987. The group said it also plans ads on Facebook that specifically target McCaskill.
