Politico: Pentagon cribs Hill ideas on sex assault

Politico talks to Nancy Parrish, president of Protect Our Defenders:

Nancy Parrish, president of the victim advocacy group Protect Our Defenders, said that the details she’s heard so far about the latest DOD policy aren’t very impressive either.

“Based on Adm. Winnefeld’s remarks there does not seem to be anything really new or important,” she said, noting that lower level officers already have orders to tell their superiors about sexual assault cases or other significant problems.

“Undoubtedly, the decision-making authority will remain in the chain of command – in the hands of commanders, who are not legal experts, and have inherent biases and conflicts of interest. This is not a solution,” said Parrish, whose group is among the leading advocates for Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand’s proposal expected to come up on the Senate floor for a vote later this year to strip commanders of their role in the prosecution system.

Hagel also took a preemptive page from Congress in May when he announced plans to tighten the deadline by six months for an outside panel of experts assigned to come up with recommendations on how the Pentagon can best address sexual assault.