Sexual Assault: Breaking the Trust Sexual Assault is a problem that has and continues to affect all branches of the military today. The military’s way of addressing sexual assault differs from the civilian authorities’ way of handling sexual assault. But while civilians are tried by a judge in civilian courts, active duty military personnel normally face charges by the court-martial process. In some cases, the service member has faced charges in both court systems. Numerous articles and television reports expose sexual assaults and rape that occurs within the ranks of the U.S. military. The military is constantly under scrutiny for its policies, the handling of sexual assault cases, and the treatment of sexual assault victims. Yet despite …show more content…
According to the Center of Disease Control (CDC), 1 in 5 women and 1 in 71 men will be a victim of sexual assault in their lifetime. The cases of sexual assault in the Army continues to escalate at an alarming rate, forcing leadership to educate Soldiers of the devastating effects it has on the military as a whole. While the Army is working diligently with military leaders and civilian agencies to implement in-house training to educate service members, the number of sexual assaults continue to rise, affecting the level of morale, and breaking the trust level of the victims and all individuals involved. (Reviewing the facilitator’s notes and advice on my initial thesis statement and outline, I had to re-write the thesis statement as the initial one did not address the W’s very well. As a …show more content…
The military justice system enforces discipline and good order within the armed forces, while civilian law enforces punishment. Commanding offers and Senior NCOs have a wide variety of tool s to enforce discipline regarding sexual misconduct. Commanders must also take into consideration the effects that sexual assault has on unit cohesion and morale. Events traumatic in nature effect all Soldiers, whether they were involved with the sexual misconduct or not. It breaks the bond of trust, the sense of safety and security; creates animosity, doubt, and mistrust for leadership. The trick down effect can last for months, if not years. It is up to the leadership to act swiftly when addressing issue pertaining to sexual assault. Stand strong of the laws created to discipline those who blatantly disregard the personal boundaries of another human being. (This paragraph is still being