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Monday, July 07, 2008
Military Program Helps Sex Assault Victims
By Angela K. Brown
Associated Press
WICHITA FALLS, Texas — In a women's restroom at Sheppard Air Force Base, a pink poster features two wine glasses and a sobering message.
"You may not be the only one looking to have a good time. Watch your glass; you never know what someone might put in it."
The poster gives information about date-rape drugs and a phone number for the base's sexual assault hotline. The program includes training classes is similar to those at all military academies and Army, Air Force, Navy and Marine bases worldwide.
"We link them to resources so they can become a survivor," said Barbara R. King, chief of the Sexual Assault Prevention and Response Office at Sheppard Air Force Base.
The program was set up in 2004 after concerns over the treatment of U.S. soldiers raped in Iraq and Kuwait. It also followed the Air Force Academy scandal and female cadets' complaints about being ostracized or disciplined after reporting sexual assaults.
Last year, 2,688 sexual assaults were reported by women and men in the military — compared to 2,947 reported in 2006 and 2,374 in 2005, according to the Department of Defense. Officials said changes in reporting methods make it difficult to compare numbers year to year.
Since 2005, victims can choose to report assaults confidentially. The assault is recorded, but there is no investigation and the chain of command is not notified. The victims, however, can still receive medical treatment, counseling and other services.
Some pick that option because they fear losing their jobs, that no one will believe them or that they will be treated differently. But after recovering emotionally, some victims decide to make an official report later.
"It's important because they can get the medical help they need and treatment for STDs, and it gives us information as well," said Dr. Kay Whitley, director of the DOD's Sexual Assault Prevention and Response Office. "We really want that early intervention. Our job is to take care of the troops."
The program includes sexual assault and harassment prevention classes for all troops in basic training and before they deploy, Whitley said. A new program on how men can stop rape will be unveiled this fall, she said.
A 24-hour hotline and a program coordinator who reports directly to the commander provide confidential support and assistance to victims at every base worldwide, Whitley said.
At all military academies, where some cadets got in trouble for underage drinking after reporting being raped, victims now have the option of delaying disciplinary action until their assault case is resolved, Whitley said.
In a separate Pentagon survey, 34 percent of women and 6 percent of men in the military in 2006 said they were sexually harassed.
When asked whether sexual harassment was more of a problem in the military than four years ago, 23 percent of women and 15 percent of men in 2006 said it was worse, according to the same survey.
But not everyone thinks the military programs are enough.
Retired Col. Ann Wright, who served in the Army 29 years, said the military fosters a get-away-with-anything culture because the justice system holds so few attackers accountable. And, she said, classes on sexual harassment and assault have been around for decades.
"It's not like this is anything new. I feel like the DOD figures are very low ... and need to be addressed by recruiters who need to tell young women about the military culture that is violent toward them," said Wright, a peace activist since resigning as a U.S. diplomat in 2003 to protest the Iraq war.
There were 181 courts-martial last year for sexual assault, 201 nonjudicial punishments and 218 other administrative actions and discharges, according to the DOD. Commanders couldn't take action in 797 cases because of unfounded or unsubstantiated charges or insufficient evidence; in 132 cases the subject was unidentified; and 111 cases fell to a civilian court or foreign authority. More than 570 other cases were pending as of last fall.
In Wichita Falls in June, Air Force Col. Samuel Lofton was sentenced to nine years in prison, fined $14,000 and kicked out of the military — ending his nearly 27-year career — for forcibly kissing and groping a civilian worker, using his government travel card for personal expenses and other wrongdoing at Sheppard Air Force Base.
Lofton was acquitted of rape and two counts of indecent assault, charges stemming from a second woman's allegations.
King and her staff, who worked with both civilian workers, were in the courtroom during their testimony and embraced them as the verdict was read.
"It's so grueling to go through the emotions, so just to know that someone believes in you is strength-building," King said. "We're there to be an emotional anchor for them."
Copyright ©2008 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
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