Congressman Ryan Meets at White House on Preventing Military Sexual Assault, Set to Introduce Legislation

Press Release

Congressman Tim Ryan announced today that he will introduce in the House of Representatives the Combating Military Sexual Assault Act of 2013. The bill will address gaps within current law and policy, and build upon the steps recently taken by the Department of Defense (DoD) and the individual services. The DoD, in a report released on Tuesday, estimates that 26,000 sexual assaults took place in 2012, with only 3,374 of those being reported. This means thousands of sexual assault victims are left to face the aftermath of their assault alone, while their attackers may never face justice. Ryan's legislation is similar to a bill introduced this week by Senator Patty Murray and Senator Kelly Ayotte.

"This is an epidemic that threatens the very foundations of our military," said Congressman Tim Ryan. "All service members must have absolute confidence and trust in their fellow soldier, sailor, airman, and marine. How can they put their lives in each other's hands if they fear that person as a potential sexual predator? Congress must address this issue and I intend to utilize my role on the Defense Subcommittee on Appropriations to help shape those proposals."

"The services have struggled for decades with pervasive sexual assault in the ranks," said Anu Bhagwati, Executive Director of the Service Women's Action Network (SWAN) and former Marine Corps Captain. "SWAN has been at the forefront of demanding institutional changes that would help improve this crisis and transform military culture. The Combating Military Sexual Assault Act to be introduced by Congressman Tim Ryan contains many provisions that will give the military the tools it needs to combat this widespread problem. Common-sense solutions like providing victims with their own designated lawyers, and making sure that our National Guard troops have access to the same resources that active duty service members have are critical in making sure that survivors are supported and that offenders will be better prosecuted."

The Military Sexual Assault Act of 2013 will provide victims of sexual assault with Special Victims' Counsel -- a new class of military lawyer who will assist and advocate for the victim throughout any legal procedure up to trial. The bill will also enhance the responsibilities and authority of DoD's Sexual Assault Prevention and Response Office so that it may better oversee efforts to combat MSA across the Armed Forces and regularly track and report on a range of MSA statistics, including assault rate, number of cases brought to trial, and compliance within each of the individual services.

Under the bill sexual assault cases must be referred to a level even higher than currently required by policy put into place by Secretary Panetta. It also would ensure that if a conflict of interest existed, another senior official would make the determination whether to go forward with the case. Congressman Ryan's bill will also ensure that no commander has the authority to throw out a sexual assault conviction, as happened earlier this year in the highly publicized case at Aviano Air Base, Italy.

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