The U.S. military has announced sweeping changes to the way it handles accusations of sexual assault and related crimes.
Deputy Secretary of Defense Kathleen Hicks announced the changes during a Pentagon briefing on Wednesday afternoon. The Department of Defense is supporting and working to implement changes recommended by an independent review commission on sexual assault and sexual harassment in the military.
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“We are implementing in four tiers of action. Our goal is to implement as rapidly as possible while ensuring we can deliver durable and meaningful outcomes,” Hicks explained. “The first tier, which we have already begun implementing, is our foundation.”
The recommendations that make up that first tier include the creation of the Office of the Special Victim Prosecutor and the implementation of a full-time sexual assault response coordinator as well as sexual assault prevention and response victim advocate positions.
As a result of these changes, some of which will take years to implement fully, with others requiring legislation from Congress, the military will no longer prosecute claims of sexual assault, domestic violence, and child abuse under the Uniform Code of Military Justice.
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Shortly after his confirmation, Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin issued a directive for the independent review commission, asking it to provide recommendations within 90 days. In the spring, it urged the military to take the decision of whether or not to prosecute out from the chain of command.
These recommendations were then published publicly in July, with President Joe Biden throwing his support behind them, saying they were “among the most significant reforms to our military” in recent years.
