PRESS RELEASE: Protect Our Defenders President Nancy Parrish Releases Statement Responding to Senator McCaskill’s Proposed Changes Regarding Military Sexual Assault
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
November 14, 2013
Contact: Brian Purchia, (202) 253-(202) 253-4330, brian@protectourdefenders.com
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PROTECT OUR DEFENDERS PRESIDENT, NANCY PARRISH RELEASED THE FOLLOWING STATEMENT IN RESPONSE TO SENATOR MCCASKILL’S RECENLTY ANNOUNCED ADDITIONAL PROPOSED CHANGES TO THE NDAA REGARDING MILITARY SEXUAL ASSAULT
Washington DC – “Senator McCaskill and others who oppose fundamental reform keep tinkering around the edges. While some of the changes they are proposing will do some good, none will provide for fundamental reform of the currently conflicted and frequently biased system. And they will not substantially address the lack of trust in the current system, which has led victims to opt out of reporting or seeking justice. Real reform is needed to end this crisis and embolden victims to come forward to hold their perpetrators accountable.”
The current debate is, at its heart, about the way in which our military justice system currently works, and the fundamental changes that are needed in order to bring it into the 21st century. We currently have a military justice system that is a holdover from the 17th century. Since World War II, there have been many important improvements to our military justice system, and leaving the accused commanders (with the convening authority) in charge of the judicial system is an anachronism. The military now has professional investigators, prosecutors, and judges, in addition to an appellate court process. Placing a conflicted and often-biased commander in control of the judicial process is nothing more than a fossilized holdover from King George the III.
In a system designed to deliver justice, legal education cannot be undervalued. Commanders have no such expertise. Military prosecutors need to be allowed to do their job without the interference of the accused’s commander. It is crucial that independent professionals are in control of the process at each step along the way; from beginning to end, the legal process must be outside the accused’s chain of command.
Our service men and women deserve a professional and unbiased justice system, equal that afforded to the civilians they protect.”
Protect Our Defenders believes that the Military Justice Improvement Act (MJIA), is the only proposed legislation in the Senate that offers fundamental reform to a broken military justice system.
Earlier this year, Senator Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY) introduced the MJIA to move the decision to prosecute and adjudicate sexual assault cases from an often-biased chain of command — a step toward creating an independent and impartial military justice system. Former generals, and an official Pentagon advisory panel have all come out in support of this common sense reform, It also has widespread bipartisan backing, with 47 senators publicly supporting the bill, including Senator Barbara Boxer (D-CA), Senator Susan Collins (R-ME), Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), and Senator Rand Paul (R-KY).
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Huffington Post: Kirsten Gillibrand Predicts Military Sexual Assault Bill Will Pass Senate
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/11/12/kirsten-gillibrand-sexual_n_4261271.html
San Antonio Express-News: Obama fails to lead on military sexual assault
Wall Street Journal: Senators Face Off on Military Assaults
http://online.wsj.com/news/articles/SB10001424052702304868404579190161676032746
New York Daily News: Gillibrand: Justice for sexual assault victims near on Capitol Hill
Stars and Stripes: Group of senators begin push to remove sex assault cases from chain of command
Washington Post: At emotional rally, senators renew push to revamp military sexual assault cases
ABC News: Momentum Builds to Strike Sexual Assault from Military Chain of Command
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/ProtectOurDefenders or follow us on Twitter at https://twitter.com/ProtectRDfnders.
Protect Our Defenders partners with Attorney Susan Burke, Burke PLLC to advance lawsuits filed against the DoD and service academies for repeatedly ignoring rape, sexual assault and harassment, failing to prosecute perpetrators and retaliating against the victim.
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