President Joe Biden on July 28 signed an executive order that moves the investigation and prosecution of serious crimes in the U.S. military—sexual assault, child abuse, domestic violence, and murder, among them—from within the chain of command to newly created independent and specialized military prosecutors.
With his signature, the president activated reforms to the Uniform Code of Military Justice (UCMJ) that were included in the Fiscal Year 2022 National Defense Authorization Act (FY22 NDAA), which was approved by Congress in mid-December 2021.
Prior to the reforms contained in the executive order, the accuser, the accused, or both parties in a sexual assault case may have been serving under those overseeing and making decisions about the incident.
The White House said in a statement that the changes “represent the most significant transformation of the military justice system since the UCMJ was established in 1950.”
“Ending gender-based violence wherever it occurs has been a top priority for the President throughout his career—as a Senator, and as Vice President,” the statement reads. “As Commander in Chief, he’s made clear that our one truly sacred obligation as a nation is to prepare and equip those we send into harm’s way and to care for them and their families both while they are deployed and when they return home.”
More Sexual Assaults Are Being Reported
Members of Congress, frustrated about the growing number of sexual assaults in the military, have fought with defense leaders for several years over the issue. They argued that commanders, at times, were willing to ignore charges or incidents in their units in order to protect those accused of offenses and that using independent lawyers would beef up prosecutions. However, military leaders balked, saying that a change could erode commanders’ authority.The Department of Defense’s Sexual Assault Prevention and Response Office (SAPRO) produced data in April that showed there were 8,942 reports of sexual assault in the U.S. military in 2022.
A SAPRO document that covers 2010–2022 shows that a growing number of sexual assaults were reported in the military during that period. In 2010, the number of reports was 3,327. That number rose to 3,604 in 2012, jumped to 6,131 in 2014, dipped slightly to 6,083 in 2015, but by 2017 had increased to 6,769.
The numbers skyrocketed in 2020 and 2021, to 7,816 and 8,866, respectively.
Defense officials have long argued that an increase in reported assaults is a positive trend because many people—both in the military and in society as a whole—are often reluctant to report them. Greater reporting, they say, shows that there’s more confidence in the reporting system, greater comfort with the support for victims, and a growing number of offenders who are being held accountable.
Sen. Joni Ernst (R-Iowa), appears at a Washington news conference with Sen. John Thune (R-S.D.) in June 2023. Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images
Women Legislators Key to Bringing Reform
Among the leaders in working for legislative and executive reform of the UCMJ is Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.), chair of the Senate Armed Services Emerging Threats and Capabilities Subcommittee.“I am grateful that we have a commander in chief who recognizes the importance of reforming and professionalizing our military justice system,” Ms. Gillibrand said in a statement. “President Biden’s executive order will give final approval to removing judicial functions and prosecutorial decisions regarding the most serious crimes from the chain of command and putting them in the hands of independent, trained professionals.”
Other female congressional lawmakers who were instrumental in shepherding and pushing for reform in military justice were former Rep. Jackie Speier (D-Calif.) and Sen. Joni Ernst (R-Iowa), a retired lieutenant colonel in the National Guard who has publicly discussed being a victim of sexual assault while she was in college.
Following the Senate Armed Services Committee’s approval in July 2021 of the FY22 National Defense Authorization Act, which included reforms to the process by which the military handles sexual assault reports, Ms. Ernst issued a statement:
“This historic reform is long overdue. Not only will our bipartisan work help ensure our servicemembers are treated with the dignity and respect they deserve, but it will help prevent these horrific abuses from happening in the first place.
“As a former military commander and sexual assault survivor, I am proud of our work and look forward to helping get this legislation signed into law.”
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
