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19,000 U.S. Military Sex Assaults (RAPE) Each Year
January 18th 2012
By msnbc.com
staff and news services
WASHINGTON --
U.S. Defense Secretary Leon
Panetta said Wednesday that the
Pentagon is preparing new
initiatives to try to curb
sexual assaults in the military
-- a problem he believes could
be six times greater than
reported.
Panetta said 3,191 sex assault
cases were reported in the
military last year, but because
so few victims come forward, he
believes the real number is
closer to 19,000 assaults. In
2010, 3,158 cases were reported.
"It is an affront to the basic
American values we defend and it
is a stain on the good honor of
the great majority of our troops
and our families," said Panetta
during a press conference at the
Pentagon.
“These women and
these men who are willing to
fight and die to protect and
serve our country – they deserve
better protection. Their
families and dependents also
sacrifice and serve. And so for
this reason, we must spare no
effort to protect them against
this heinous crime. … One sexual
assault is one too many.”
Panetta said new initiatives
include extending victim
services to military spouses as
well as Pentagon civilians and
contractors working abroad.
Also, more money will go toward
training investigators and
lawyers to go after and
prosecute perpetrators.
Under the new measures, service
members who file sexual abuse
charges can immediately transfer
to a new unit or base to avoid
harassment or contact with the
accused attacker.
The proposals require
congressional approval.
'Deeply regret'
Panetta spoke two days before
the premiere of a new
documentary about sexual assault
in the U.S. military, titled
"The Invisible War." The film is
being shown at the Sundance Film
Festival in Park City, Utah.
Saying he wanted to speak
directly to the victims of
sexual assault in the Defense
Department, Panetta said
somberly: "I deeply regret that
such crimes occur in the U.S.
military ... I'm committed to
providing you the support and
resources you need and to taking
whatever steps are necessary to
keep what happened to you from
happening to others."
"The Invisible War" premieres
Friday at the Sundance Film
Festival. NBC's Jim Miklaszewski
reports.
Announcement of those two
changes accompanied the
Pentagon's annual report last
month showing assault cases rose
at the nation's three major
military academies in the latest
academic year from one year
earlier.
The Defense Department's "Annual
Report on Sexual Harassment and
Violence at the Military Service
Academies" for academic year
2010-2011 found there were 65
reports of sexual assaults
involving cadets and midshipmen
at the U.S. Naval Academy, the
U.S. Military Academy and the
U.S. Air Force Academy. That was
up from 41 reported assaults in
the prior academic year.
Officials said they could not
conclusively identify the
reasons for the increase but
that it could be because the
department has worked to
encourage more victims to report
assaults.
Beyond the academy report every
December, the Pentagon also
releases an annual report each
March on sexual assaults
throughout the services.
This post includes reporting
from The Associated Press.
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