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POC: CPT Meghan McEnerney, BB: 0162-254-1775 Special Victim Prosecutor

Ready and Resilient Campaign: Sexual Harassment/Assault Response and Prevention (SHARP) Senior Leader Summit 2013 Sexual Assault Response Team: Conference Objectives & Congressional Outlook. POC: CPT Meghan McEnerney, BB: 0162-254-1775 Special Victim Prosecutor

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POC: CPT Meghan McEnerney, BB: 0162-254-1775 Special Victim Prosecutor

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  1. Ready and Resilient Campaign: Sexual Harassment/Assault Response and Prevention (SHARP)Senior Leader Summit 2013Sexual Assault Response Team: Conference Objectives & Congressional Outlook POC: CPT Meghan McEnerney, BB: 0162-254-1775 Special Victim Prosecutor U.S. Army Europe / U.S. Army Central Command meghan.a.mcenerney.mil@mail.mil

  2. Congressional Possibilities • The Invisible War – portrayal of public perception held by some in our country and government that military commanders are incapable or worse, unwilling to address problem of sexual assault • A valuable training tool but does not accurately portray the full set of facts for featured victims or statistical reports

  3. Congressional Possibilities • February, 2013 – LTG Franklin sets aside findings and sentence in U.S. v. Wilkerson • May, 2013 – LTG Helms nomination under scrutiny for her decision as convening authority in U.S. v. Herrera to overturn the panel’s findings • September, 2013 – Naval Academy Article 32 Investigation Under Scrutiny

  4. Congressional Possibilities • 113th Congress had eight proposed bills to change the role the commander plays with respect to military justice • Most notable is Senator Kristen Gillibrand’s legislation: Military Justice Improvement Act of 2013

  5. Congressional Possibilities • Remove commanders from the process of deciding whether sex cases go to trial; • Judgment would rest instead with seasoned trial lawyers who have prosecutorial experience and hold the rank of colonel or above • Take away a commander's authority to convene a court-martial

  6. Congressional Possibilities Sen. Barbara Boxer, D-Calif., said, "Instead of embracing a broken system, the full committee should pass the reforms backed by the subcommittee that emulate our allies in Israel, Great Britain, Australia and Canada.”

  7. Congressional Possibilities In June 2013 the chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee said that Congress is considering stripping the military of its authority to prosecute sexual assault cases and shift the responsibility to state prosecutors. (Sen. Patrick Leahy, D-Vt.)

  8. Changes Need to Be Made: • How we think • How we treat those who report sexual assault • How we believe people should act who have been sexually assaulted • How we view those accused of sexual assault • How we judge a case before we know all the facts

  9. Congressional Possibilities • Sen. Leahy said that while the proposal is controversial, it would send a message to commanders that doing "things as they've always been done is not acceptable.” • "There are going to have to be changes made. There will be changes made." Defense Secretary Hagel told the Senate Appropriations defense subcommittee.

  10. Changes Need to Be Made: • Only strangers commit sexual assault. • Rapist always use weapons. • Sexual assault involves injury. • Rape victims behave in a certain way. • Women lie about being sexually assaulted. • Rapes must be corroborated. • Victims assume the risk of being raped.

  11. Changes Need to Be Made: • “What does a rapist look like?” • “Is it possible for a person who is well-liked and respected at work to have a different private persona?” • “Is rape or sexual assault confined to a certain race or class of people?”

  12. Changes Need to Be Made: During the hypothetical case presentation: • Introduce your Sexual Assault Response Team (SART) in USAREUR • Initiate change – what biases/preconceived notions do you hold as leaders with respect to sexual assault cases?

  13. Changes Need to Be Made: • Sexual assault cases do not involve metrics; they involve real people who have been exposed to real trauma • As leaders, you want to know “who, what, where, when and why” – but sometimes victims do not think this way • Our speakers will walk you through the process of the life of a sexual assault

  14. Changes Need to Be Made: • The initiation of a criminal investigation • The forensic examination • The special victim prosecutor • Command considerations for case disposition • UCI considerations • Options • Biases we hold – against victims/offenders

  15. Changes Need to Be Made: Fact Pattern • Junior Enlisted Soldier New to Unit • 3 year delayed-report after seeing “The Invisible War” • Subject is a well-respected, non-commissioned officer • No injuries sustained during rape • Came forward because she did not want this to happen to other females

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