FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Brian Purchia , brian@protectourdefenders.com
*** STATEMENT ***
PROTECT OUR DEFENDERS CALLS SEN. LEVIN AMENDMENT INEFFECTIVE, DOES NOT ADDRESS CORE PROBLEM OF MILITARY SEXUAL ASSAULT EPIDEMIC
Sen. Levin Kills Senate Bill Addressing Core Problem — Removing Chain of Command From Decision Making Over Whether Serious Crimes Are Prosecuted
Military sexual assault incidents skyrocketed 34.5% — from 19,300 assaults in 2011 to 26,300 in 2012; Reporting rate drops to 9.8%; Conviction rate dropped to 0.9 percent in 2012; 47 % indicated fear of retaliation or reprisal as a reason for not reporting
WASHINGTON, DC – Today, Sen. Carl Levin (D-MI), the Chair of the Senate Armed Services Committee removed legislation from the defense spending bill that addresses the core issue of the ongoing sexual assault crisis in our military – the often biased chain of command. Sen. Levin replaced the bipartisan Military Justice Improvement with his own measure that keeps prosecution within the chain of command. Sen. Gillibrand (D-NY), Sen. Collins (R-ME) and Sen. Boxer’s (D-CA) Military Justice Improvement Act would have removed the chain of command from decisions over whether series crimes are prosecuted – the bill had nearly a third of the Senate supporting it with 28 co-sponsors.
Protect Our Defenders President Nancy Parrish released the following statement after today’s hearing:
“Senator Levin’s proposal does not constitute meaningful reform. It’s a tweak to a dysfunctional and biased system. It displays a shocking allegiance to military leaders over the interests of of sexual assault victims.
It is small incremental change and all behind the scenes. The trouble is, victims won’t see any of it. It does nothing to bolstertheir trust in the system.
This is another in a long line of deferential acts by senior congressional leaders towards the military, which have proven time and again to fail in bringing any meaningful change to this issue. Until the authority to prosecute these cases is taken out if the chain of command, we will continue to see victims’ rights trampled and justice denied.
Levin’s measure, instead of transferring the decision to go to trial to objective and expert senior prosecutors, would only require an automatic review of any general’s decision not to prosecute sexual assault to the next level of command and then only if his decision was not concurred with by his personal staff attorney.
A commander’s personal staff attorney would not constitute an adequate check and balance against the conflicts and biases inherent in the current system. It would not create an objective, transparent counter to the commander’s current unchallenged authority.
Although it would still not be adequate, if there must be a compromise it should at a minimum, be a prosecutor whose recommendation, if not accepted by the commander, would cause the decision to be escalated to a higher level and eventually to the a secretary if necessary: certainly not the Commanders personal staff attorney, who probably has not been in a court room for many years if at all.
Furthermore, Senator Levin’s alternative does not address the significant problem facing victims. Low-level commanders hold the initial disposition authority that can prevent a sexual assault case from ever moving forward. These unit commanders hold the keys to the courthouse, in that they can unilaterally dispose of a case before it ever gets to the general or admiral level. As written, Senator Levin’s bill will have very little effect, if any, in military justice.
Keeping these cases in the chain of command does nothing to fix the reasons victims do not report their attacks. They fear retaliation and do not think justice is likely to be served. Victims need to know that there is an independent, objective, and transparent justice system.”
—
NYT: A Sexual-Assault Measure to Be Cut From Military Bill http://www.nytimes.com/2013/
USA Today: Why the military hasn’t stopped sexual abuse http://www.usatoday.com/story/
PBS: Why the Military Has a Sexual Assault Problem http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/
New York Times: Revisiting the Military’s Tailhook Scandal http://www.nytimes.com/2013/
LA Times: Military sex crime record should bring shame http://www.latimes.com/local/
Arizona Republic: Protest planned over base transfer of sex-scandal figure http://www.azcentral.com/news/
Wired: Air Force Chief of Sexual-Assault Prevention Arrested on Sexual Battery Charges http://www.wired.com/
National Journal: The Enemy Within http://www.nationaljournal.
Protect Our Defenders petition Calling on Sec. Hagel to Remove Lt. Gen. Franklin and Lt. Col. Wilkerson: http://www.causes.com/aviano
About Protect Our Defenders: Protect Our Defenders is a human rights organization. We seek to honor, support and give voice to the brave women and men in uniform who have been sexually assaulted while serving their country, and re-victimized by the military adjudication system – a system that often blames the victim and fails to prosecute the perpetrator. Learn more about Protect Our Defenders at www.protectourdefenders.com or on Facebook at http://facebook.com/