The Pentagon on Monday sent a list of proposed changes to the Uniform Code of Military Justice to Capitol Hill, including some that would affect how the military handles sexual assault cases.
The military wants to add several new provisions to the UCMJ, including changing the definition of a “sexual act” to align with the one used by federal criminal courts and prohibiting sexual misconduct of military recruits by their trainers.
The Pentagon would also add an article to cover retaliation, a major concern in sexual assault cases where alleged victims often report feeling slighted by peers and superiors after reporting a crime.
“This new offense would provide added protection for witnesses, victims, and persons who report or plan to report a criminal offense to law enforcement or military authority,” a DoD analysis of the changes says.
More than 60 percent of female service members who reported a sexual assault crime in fiscal 2014 said they perceived some sort of professional or social retaliation, according to the Pentagon’s annual study of sexual assault.
Lawmakers who have been active in the fight to revise the UCMJ to better protect sexual assault victims did not have an immediate reaction to the Pentagon’s planned changes, but many have stressed the need to end retaliation against those who report crimes.
Sen. Claire McCaskill, D-Mo., met with Major Gen. Camille Nichols, the director of the Pentagon’s Sexual Assault Prevention and Response Office, earlier this year to discuss how the military was implementing previously-passed legislation that made it a crime to retaliate against those who report crimes.
“I was glad to have an opportunity to discuss these goals with Gen. Nichols, as well as continued challenges with increasing survivors’ trust that when they do report sex crimes, they will be taken seriously and protected from retaliation,” McCaskill said in a statement from July.
The Pentagon’s changes come from a review of the UCMJ that was ordered in October 2013 and are the first revisions to the military’s law code in more than 30 years, according to a Pentagon release.
“The department looks forward to working with Congress as lawmakers consider the recommendations,” the Defense Department release said.
The proposed changes would also add additional new offenses, including fraudulent use of credit cards and issues involving government computers.
