[Congressional Bills 110th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. Con. Res. 97 Introduced in Senate (IS)]







110th CONGRESS
  2d Session
S. CON. RES. 97

Expressing the sense of Congress regarding sexual assaults and rape in 
                             the military.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                           September 10, 2008

 Mrs. Clinton submitted the following concurrent resolution; which was 
              referred to the Committee on Armed Services

_______________________________________________________________________

                         CONCURRENT RESOLUTION


 
Expressing the sense of Congress regarding sexual assaults and rape in 
                             the military.

Whereas, since 2002, 59,690 female veterans have reported being raped or 
        sexually assaulted or experiencing another form of sexual trauma while 
        in the military;
Whereas, according to the Department of Veterans Affairs, female veterans 
        reporting rape, sexual assault, or other sexual trauma constitute almost 
        20 percent of the women seen at facilities of the Department nationwide;
Whereas 41 percent of female veterans treated at the West Los Angeles Medical 
        Center of the Department of Veterans Affairs reported being sexually 
        assaulted while in the military and 29 percent of such veterans reported 
        being raped while in the military;
Whereas the number of reported sexual assaults and rapes in the military 
        increased by 73 percent from 2004 to 2006, according to the Department 
        of Defense;
Whereas 2,688 sexual assaults were reported in the military in fiscal year 2007, 
        including 1,259 reports of rape, according to the Department of Defense;
Whereas the military chain of command took no action in almost half of the cases 
        of sexual assault in the military investigated by military authorities, 
        claiming insufficient evidence, and the majority of the cases in which 
        some action was taken were resolved through nonjudicial punishment or 
        administrative action, which in most cases amounts to little more than a 
        slap on the wrist;
Whereas only 181 of the 2,212 subjects, or 8 percent, investigated by the 
        military for sexual assault during fiscal year 2007 were referred to 
        courts martial;
Whereas civilian law enforcement authorities prosecute approximately 40 percent 
        of individuals arrested for rape, according to statistics of the 
        Department of Justice and the Federal Bureau of Investigation;
Whereas the absence of aggressive prosecutions by the military perpetuates a 
        hostile environment and hinders a victim's willingness to report a 
        sexual assault or rape;
Whereas, in 2005, the Department of Defense created the Sexual Assault 
        Prevention and Response Office, which serves as the single point of 
        accountability and oversight for the policies of the Department relating 
        to sexual assault;
Whereas the Sexual Assault Prevention and Response Office has improved reporting 
        of sexual assault and rape, but still does not track investigations or 
        prosecutions of reported cases; and
Whereas sexual assault and rape in the military are a threat to the national 
        security of the United States: Now, therefore, be it
    Resolved by the Senate (the House of Representatives concurring), 
That it is the sense of Congress that the Secretary of Defense should 
develop a comprehensive strategy to increase and encourage 
investigation and prosecution of sexual assault and rape cases in the 
military that includes--
            (1) requiring commanders to be held accountable for sexual 
        assaults and rapes that occur in the units under their command 
        and to provide justification for disposing of cases through 
        nonjudicial punishment and other administrative actions;
            (2) developing and enhancing existing prevention and 
        response programs by using proven best-practice methods to 
        create a culture that prevents sexual assault and rape in the 
        military and encourages more reporting of sexual assaults and 
        rapes by victims;
            (3) conducting more aggressive oversight of existing 
        prevention and response programs, establishing performance 
        metrics to ensure that such programs are effective, and 
        analyzing trends in the prevention and reporting of sexual 
        assaults and rapes;
            (4) reviewing current training methods for all personnel 
        involved in military investigations of sexual assault and rape 
        cases, and for judge advocate staff, and implementing any 
        improvements that are necessary;
            (5) encouraging communication and data sharing between the 
        Sexual Assault Prevention and Response Office and other 
        components of the Armed Forces and the Department of Defense to 
        enhance coordination and oversight of sexual assault and rape 
        cases as those cases move through the legal process;
            (6) reviewing the capacity of the legal infrastructure of 
        the Armed Forces to investigate and prosecute effectively 
        sexual assault cases in the military;
            (7) examining any additional barriers, such as the 
        availability of staff and the adequacy of resources, on 
        military installations and facilities in the United States and 
        abroad, and in theaters of operations, to conduct effective 
        investigations of sexual assault and rape cases;
            (8) reviewing command disposition of cases and identifying 
        whether additional oversight is required to ensure that the 
        resolution of cases through nonjudicial means is justified;
            (9) classifying a military protection order as a standing 
        military order to ensure that an investigation has occurred and 
        appropriate command authorities have completely adjudicated 
        allegations before the order can be overturned;
            (10) establishing a policy that mandates the notification 
        of any military protective order issued at a military 
        installation to local civilian law enforcement agencies to 
        provide the continuity of protection to victims; and
            (11) ensuring that once a member of the Armed Forces has 
        notified the member's command that the member has been sexually 
        assaulted or raped, the command affords the member an 
        opportunity for transfer if a military protection order is 
        issued.
                                 <all>