New Pentagon Data Shows Military Sexual Assault Reforms Working, But Trump-Hegseth Agenda Undermines Gains
Protect Our Defenders cautions that ending Congressionally mandated programs and weakening protections will harm morale, deter reporting, and jeopardize mission readiness and unit cohesion
Washington, DC – Protect Our Defenders (POD), the nation’s leading organization dedicated to ending sexual violence and harassment in the military, responded to newly released Department of Defense data showing that while modest progress is being made in some areas, the prevalence of unwanted sexual contact remains at crisis levels — the second highest on record since 2010. The decline from last year suggests reforms implemented over the past decade are beginning to take hold, but the vast majority of assaults still go unreported. This fragile progress is now at serious risk, coming on the heels of the Department of Defense’s new memo threatening to silence survivors and chill reporting across the ranks. The Trump administration and Secretary Hegseth are advancing a dangerous agenda to illegally roll back congressionally mandated prevention programs and survivor protections, undoing the very reforms that made this progress possible.
While a series of bipartisan military reforms (which Protect Our Defenders has fought for more than a decade to achieve) are beginning to show impact, only one in four service members who experienced unwanted sexual contact chose to report it, a clear sign that deep cultural and legal barriers remain. According to the Pentagon, an estimated 29,000 troops — including 15,000 women and 14,000 men — experienced unwanted sexual contact last year, yet only 7,000 reports were filed.
The overall decrease in reporting was driven by a 13% reporting drop in the Army. However, all other services saw increases: the Navy reported the largest jump at 4.3%, followed by the Air Force at 2.2%, and the Marine Corps with a smaller increase of under 1%.
Just as the numbers begin to reflect the early effects of progress, the Trump administration and Secretary Hegseth are rolling back the very reforms that made it possible. POD is hearing from servicemembers on the ground that reporting numbers are going in the wrong direction. More survivors are opting for anonymous reporting out of fear. Women are increasingly afraid to come forward, unsure where to turn, and report fewer resources and less clarity about how to access help. The result is a growing sense among women that they are not welcome and not safe in today’s military.
Since taking office, the administration has:
- Fired top military legal officers and independent prosecutors, weakening the new, independent justice system Congress mandated.
- Paused or canceled Sexual Assault Prevention and Response training programs across all military branches, citing alignment with new administrative priorities.
- Released a memo ordering complaints without “credible evidence” (corroboration) to be dismissed and threatening punishment for those who report, despite false reports being exceedingly rare.
- Cut essential grant funding for victim services and eliminated rape kits for most DoD overseas civilian employees.
This comes amid the military’s severe recruitment and retention crisis – with the Army, Navy, Air Force, and National Guard all falling short of their recruiting goals in 2023 – emphasizing the importance of retaining women to achieve mission readiness. This also comes as the military grapples with an escalating sexual assault crisis. Recent high-profile cases include the more than 100 victims accusing Army doctor Maj. Michael Stockin of sexual assault and Army Major Jonathan J. Batt facing allegations of assaulting at least 20 victims in the Washington D.C. area.
Protect Our Defenders Founder and CEO, Nancy Parrish, released the following statement:
“This new report confirms that the reforms we fought for over the past decade—improving survivor support, professionalizing investigations, expanding prevention training, and strengthening accountability — were beginning to work. We’re seeing early signs of improvement, particularly in the Army, which led implementation.
“But this fragile progress is now under threat. The Trump administration is actively working to reverse course, dismantling survivor protections and reinstating the very culture of — disrespecting women, disbelieving survivors, retaliation for reporting and undue command influence -we spent over a decade trying to end.
“Instead of providing a safer place for women to serve, they are creating fear and confusion. Survivors don’t know where to go, and many who once might have reported are staying silent. That’s not restoring discipline — that’s reinforcing Secretary Hegseth’s personal belief that women should not serve and questioned the legal definition of rape.
“The real threat to mission readiness isn’t survivors, our soldiers, sailors and marines coming forward – it’s leadership silencing them.”
Protect Our Defenders Senior Vice President, Josh Connolly, former Chief of Staff for Rep. Jackie Speier (former Chairwoman of the Military Personnel Subcommittee on the House Armed Services Committee), released the following statement:
“Let’s be clear-eyed: this is the second highest sexual assault prevalence rate reported in 15 years. The overall numbers are still devastating — but we had started to see signs that reforms were making a difference.
“And now, in the middle of a recruitment and retention crisis, this administration is doing a u-turn from what is working. This is a marathon not a sprint.
“Firing independent prosecutors, gutting training, and intimidating survivors will only drive reports down — not because assaults are decreasing, but because people are scared. We are hearing it from the ground: survivors are confused, unsupported, and afraid to report. Anonymous reporting is up. Visibility is down.
“It doesn’t take an expert to know what happens next. Assaults will go up, reporting will go down, and trust in the system will continue to erode. Congress must act now to defend these hard-won reforms and keep the military justice system survivor-centered, effective, and independent.”
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About Protect Our Defenders: Protect Our Defenders is the pre-eminent national human rights organization dedicated to ending sexual violence, victim retaliation, misogyny, sexual prejudice, and racism in the military and combating a culture that has allowed it to persist. 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/
