CASTRO STATEMENT ON SEXUAL ASSAULT IN THE MILITARY
Washington, D.C– Congressman Joaquin Castro (TX-20) issued the following statement after the House Armed Services Committee voted against amending the Uniform Code of Military Justice to move prosecution of sexual assault cases in the military out of the chain of command:
“Yesterday, during our work on the annual defense bill, the House Armed Services Committee debated for the first time to determine whether to take sexual assault cases out of the chain of command. I worked with Representatives Speier (CA-14), Duckworth (IL-8), and Gabbard (HI-2) to make the sexual assault review process independent from the chain of command structure by appointing a chief prosecutor who would be responsible for handling sexual assault charges. Progress within the military on this issue has come too slow and at too high of a cost to our men and women in uniform. Unfortunately, that effort fell 5 votes short last night. While this effort may not have been successful yesterday, I’m optimistic that the committee will continue to work to rid sexual assault in our armed forces. Last night’s debate was a positive step forward, particularly as the amendment received support from both sides of the aisle and military veterans. I am not deterred from combating sexual assault in the military and look forward to working with my colleagues to ensure justice for the victims.”
Background:
This amendment to the annual reauthorization of the National Defense Act (NDAA) was proposed by Representative Jackie Speier (CA-14) and would have given the Chief Prosecutor of each service the discretion of whether to prosecute sexual assaults and received 28 yes votes to 34 no votes.
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