Pentagon Panel Recommends Removing Sexual Assault Cases From Chain of Command – By Tara Copp (Defense One) / April 23 2021
Moving cases to an independent prosecutor is a change long-sought by victims and families failed by the current system.
On the anniversary of the murder of Army Spc. Vanessa Guillén, the Pentagon announced it was considering a move many consider essential in preventing deaths like hers from happening again: removing the chain of command from sexual assault and sexual harrassment investigations.
The potential shift is one of several recommendations delivered to Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin on Thursday as part of the Independent Review Commission on Sexual Assault.
“Among the recommendations delivered to the Secretary of Defense is the transfer of decision-making authority, for special victims crimes, from commanders to independent judge advocates whether to charge a suspect with a crime, and whether that charge should be tried at court-martial. These independent judge advocates would report to a civilian-led Office of the Chief Special Victim Prosecutor,” a defense official confirmed to Defense One.
President Joe Biden made targeting sexual assault in the military one of his administration’s early priorities. In February, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin established the commission to begin a deep dive into the culture and reporting challenges that have kept sexual assault and sexual harassment a pervasive problem within the ranks.
