USA Today: Military leaders say dismissals key to focus on assault
USA Today talks to Protect Our Defenders’ executive director, Taryn Meeks:
The removal of 60 troops from sensitive positions is wise, said Taryn Meeks, executive director for Protect Our Defenders, a group that advocates for survivors of sexual assault in the military. But Meeks questioned how the military allowed them to get the jobs in the first place.
“It’s clear that the military wasn’t properly screening the people it assigned to these specialized billets or responsibilities which demonstrates yet another example of failure by self-regulation,” Meeks said.
Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel ordered that the records of recruiters and sexual assault counselors be examined on May 17. That action came in light of the Pentagon’s report in May that estimated 26,000 troops had been sexually assaulted in 2012, a 35% increase since 2010, with offenses ranging from groping to rape. Dempsey has called sexual assault in the military a crisis.
