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Tell Sens. Levin, McCaskill, Ayotte, Fischer, Graham and McCain:
Stop trying to kill Sen. Gillibrand’s bill to bring military rapists to
justice
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To Sens. Levin, McCaskill, Ayotte, Fischer, McCain, and Graham:
"The Senate finally has a chance to vote on sensible reforms to
fight the epidemic of sexual assault in the military. Stop blocking Sen.
Gillibrand’s Military Justice Improvement Act."
Automatically add your name:
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Dear Virginia,
There were 26,000 cases of sexual assault, rape, and unwanted sexual
contact in the military in 2012. It’s an epidemic of sexual assault that
is made even worse because the assaults are under-reported and
under-prosecuted, with victims often facing devastating retaliation.
It’s clear that the military is failing to protect victims of sexual assault and punish perpetrators. Now the Senate finally has a chance step in.
Senator Kirsten Gillibrand’s Military Justice Improvement Act would
remove sexual assault cases from the military chain of command.1 It’s a smart, sensible reform endorsed by 47 senators and three former generals,2 but vehemently opposed by the Pentagon.
Outrageously, six senators are willing to protect rapists in order to appease the Pentagon.
Tell
Senators Levin, McCaskill, Ayotte, Fischer, McCain and Graham to stop
trying to kill Senator Gillibrand’s bill. Click here to automatically
sign.
Of the 26,000 instances of self-reported sexual assault in 2012, only 302 went to trial.3
This is partly due to a rule that gives commanding officers the final
say over prosecution of service members under their command. The rule
suppresses reporting of assault because victims fear retaliation and
don’t trust that their cases will be handled fairly.
It also encourages ill-trained commanders to avoid prosecuting people
under their command -- protecting careers instead of victims. In 2012, a
commander in the Air Force used her power to overturn the conviction of
an officer under her command who was found guilty of abusive sexual
contact and aggravated sexual assault.4 And when military hearings do occur, victims are often subjected to a degrading and antagonistic process.5
The Military Justice Improvement Act will remove sexual assault cases
from the military chain of command and put military prosecutors in
charge of deciding which sexual assault crimes to try. It will be voted
on as an amendment to the National Defense Authorization Act. Democratic
Senator Carl Levin, the head of the Senate Armed Services Committee, is
organizing fellow pro-Pentagon Senators McCaskill, Ayotte, Fischer and
McCain to kill the bill and pass a watered-down version instead.
Republican Senator Lindsey Graham has vowed to do “whatever it takes” to
defeat it.6
Senator Gillibrand has worked tirelessly to advance this bill in the
face of pressure from the Pentagon and high-ranking members of her own
party. She has organized 47 senators, including eight Republicans, who
are ready to vote to protect victims of sexual assault in the military.
It’s outrageous that Senator Levin and his colleagues are trying to
pander to the Pentagon at the expense of victims of sexual assault in
the military.
Tell Sens. Levin, McCaskill, Ayotte, Fischer, McCain and
Graham: Stand up for victims of sexual assault, and stop trying to kill
Sen. Gillibrand’s Military Justice Improvement Act. Click the link below to sign automatically:
http://act.credoaction.com/go/2737?t=5&akid=9469.4080287.MkFg0K
Thank you for standing up for victims of sexual assault in the military.
Heidi Hess, Campaign Manager
CREDO Action from Working Assets
Automatically add your name:
- Text of the Military Justice Improvement Act
- “Some brass back Kirsten Gillibrand's sexual-assault bill,” Darren Samuelsohn, Politico, September, 23, 2013.
- “Gillibrand’s Drive Challenges Senate Power Brokers on Military Sexual Assault Remedy,” Adele M. Stan, RH Reality Check, September 19, 2013.
- "Senator continues to block promotion of Air Force general," Craig Whitlock, Washington Post, June 06, 2013.
- “Rape in the Ranks,” Dorothy Samuels, The New York Times, November 7, 2013.
- “Kirsten Gillibrand faces 60-vote bar on sex-assault reform”, Darren Samuelsohn and Anna Palmer, Politico, November 4, 2013.
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