Sexual Assaults in the Military
Sexual Assaults in the American Military
Sexual assaults is a serious problem which wrecks lives and weakens the war fighting aptitude of military units. The mission of the military is to defend the nation but it cannot accomplish its mission if there is no legal responsibility from justice system to protect the military from serious crimes such as sexual assaults. For several decades, the U.S military has experienced the challenges of sexual violence. As a result of several reports on sexual assaults, the issue has become a concern as there is a need to implement changes and strategic approaches in order to combat the sexual assaults. Various researches have been done to understand the root causes of sexual assaults since the causes will help in implementing strategic measures to stop the sexual assaults. The paper will describe the causes of sexual assaults and the preventive measures which the Department of Defense should implement to combat the sexual assaults in the military.
Cases of Sexual Assaults in the American Military
There have been a constant scrutiny on the issue of sexual assaults and this has caused a significant ramification to the national security. The results have disrupted the national unity and researches have confirmed that various incident happens when military commanders fails to meet their responsibilities. Sexual assaults in U.S military can be defined as the intentional sexual behavior. For many years the DOD has not implemented the best policy of sexual assaults and this has contributed to a higher number of incidents. Sexual assaults has become a pandemic in U.S military and in 2014; a research was made and found that 20,000 service members in the military experienced unwanted sexual behavior (Stander & Thomsen, 2016). In addition, a Pentagon research reported that in 2012, 26,000 people were sexually assaulted and in comparison with previous years, there was an increase of incidence by 40%. It was reported that assaults were 3,374, and only 302 were taken to court and prosecuted. This clearly shows that this is an issue which has been neglected and there must be corrective measures to stop the emerging of incidents (Stander & Thomsen, 2016). Writers who offer constitutional law assignment help at Edudorm essay writing service notes that in the current system of the military department, it is the responsibility of commanding officers to ensure that preventive measures are implemented and the needs of services members are met. There are various issues which contribute to sexual assaults in the military and there are also important measures which should be implemented to combat and protect the services members in the military.
Causes of Sexual Assaults in the Military
The Military Legal System Leads to Assaults in the American Military
The increasing number of sexual assaults in the legal system is as a result of lack of response from the legal system. No matter the various preventive measures and programs which the system has implemented, various studies show that the situation is getting worse (Kuersten, 2014). The military fails to consider the incidents as well as the results of the victims who have faced the sexual assaults. There is evidence that shows the legal system is increasing the risk of sexual assaults in the military in that it has developed programs to prevent the military from sexual harassment but some of the programs are not legal. For example, a program known as “restricted reporting” has been implemented and this indicates that there are restrictive measures in reporting the cases and according to the 2012 Pentagon report, only 11% cases were reported when the policy was implemented (Kuersten, 2014). Experts who offer employment law assignment help at Edudorm essay writing service indicates that the purpose of the program is to allow the victims to access medical care and to avoid the retaliation but it is important to note that the restricted reporting overlooks the criminal investigation and the victims do not pass through legal situations and criminal procedures. This means that the perpetrator will not change the behavior since there are no charges under the illegal act. This makes the military vulnerable to sexual assaults as they cannot report the case nor can the legal system be able to deal with the perpetrators (Kuersten, 2014).
Under the legal system, the criminal justice system fails to obtain conviction of the sexual assaults. For example in year 2009 and 2010, there were 70% prosecuted cases of sexual assaults but the legal system obtained conviction for only 27% cases (Stander & Thomsen, 2016). Due to lack of conviction, the legal system prosecuted cases to the civilian court where the cases were “unwinnable”. The military wants the cases to be prosecuted in the appropriate court so that actions can be taken. The problem arises when the perpetrators of sexual assaults are not accused due to lack of clear understanding of the conviction. Note that the solution to eliminate the sexual assaults issues is not through prosecuting criminals but rather is by achieving the convictions (Stander & Thomsen, 2016). Authors who offer law assignment help services at Edudorm points that other way which shows that the legal system is the cause of sexual assaults is through providing fewer charges when there is no conviction. The victim feels unsatisfied with the case since the accuser is not punished and he or she is not guilty of sexual act since there is no conviction. The higher rate of sexual assaults increases in that due to the lack of conviction and the victims opts not to report the cases (Stander & Thomsen, 2016). Since the legal system is unsupportive, there is no justice and offenders are not punished.
Gender Stereotypes Leads to Assaults in the American Military
The military, like any other organization has a patriarchal structure which is made of camaraderie, leadership, formality and other values. The important structure is under the masculine control which presents self-sufficiency, dominance and risk-taking (Elvin, 2010). The masculine power contributes to sexual misconduct since men tend to have negative feelings toward women. In the military, the homophobia cultures triggers the risk of sexual assaults. For example, homosexuals fear to report the sexual behavior as they fear stigmatization of being homosexual (Bell, Turchik & Karpenko, 2014). Tutors who offer criminal law assignment help at Edudorm essay writing service acknowledges that gendered language and hostile environment in the military increases the objectification as men views women as inferior than them and so they become vulnerable to unwanted sexual behaviors. On gender stereotype, hyper-masculine men use sexual behaviors to free themselves from harassment of competent women and men (Elvin, 2010). The male stereotypical behavior of hyper-masculinity is linked with sexual assaults behaviors. Hyper-masculine men feel that they have the entitlement and believe that women have the obligation to sexual activities (Bell, Turchik & Karpenko, 2014). With respect to the traditional views, male and female armies are trained to make the killing easier by objectifying and limiting the humans’ empathy (Elvin, 2010). They apply this view to current system thereby increasing the sense of entitlement which then influences them in conducting unwanted sexual behaviors.
Cultural Acceptance Leads to Assaults in the American Military
In the military, there is a culture known as “code of silence” and this indicates that many victims of sexual assaults keeps silence as they fear negative repercussions and so they becomes vulnerable to unwanted sexual behaviors (Castro, 2015). Thus, services members in the military endure the sexual assaults because when they report, they are charged with adultery or else the case is overlooked. Mentors who offer law essay help at Edudorm essay writing service recognizes that this creates a cultures which the victims views the sexual behavior as a normal thing no matter it is an issue which disturbs them in their life time. Both military and civilian victims do not report the incidence because they the responsible department does not respond to the issues and as they report they face retaliation (Castro, 2015). On 2012, the Department of Defense reported that 62% of women faced retaliation after reporting the sexual assaults and sometimes they face incredulous questioning and invasion of privacy and this increases the risk of sexual assaults since the wrong doers are not dealt with properly (Castro, 2015). When the incident occurs, the victims are not given the opportunity to fill the legal report and the legal official’s fails to take matter seriously as they assume that there is no evidence for the sexual behavior.
Alcohol Leads to Assaults in the American Military
Alcohol causes sexual assaults behavior and according to research, alcohol reduces inhibitions and increases the ability to conduct antisocial behavior. The person acts violently since he lacks self-consciousness and feels like he is not accountable of any illicit act (Castro, 2015). Instructors who offer law dissertation writing help at Edudorm essay writing service argues that with respect to the research on various factors which may contribute to sexual assaults, alcohol is among the factors and it is found that it increases the unwanted sexual behaviors. In 2005, the Department of Defense reported that in sexual assaults cases, alcohol contributes 57% and in year 2013, a large number of sexual assault cases were as a result of alcohol (Castro, 2015). There is a relation between alcohol and sex in that alcohol increases the sexual desire and aggression and a study on college students shows that about 40%-75% sexual assaults happens when either the perpetrator is drunk or both are drunk (Castro, 2015).
Effective Prevention of Sexual Assaults in the Military
Indoctrination
Initial entry training (IET) is a new program which is implemented for transformative process of creating conditions and culture which will prevent the sexual assault. Hernandez (2016) asserts that in IET environment, the recruits should adhere to the professionalism standards and IET leaders should follow the professional standards so that the soldiers can emulate their positive behaviors. Teachers who offer legal case study help at Edudorm essay writing service says that new recruits follow ethical beliefs of their culture and their value system differs with that of the military norms. As they enter in the military, they are trained on unwanted physical behaviors, fraternization, inappropriate sexual language and other unlawful acts (Hernandez, 2016). The problems arise as there is cultural variance between their tolerable behavior and norm of the Army. According to Hernandez (2016), it is imperative to allow them to understand the Armies norms immediately after the arrival so that the gap between their norms and Armies norms can be closed. The important of immediate training is that they will learn the moral and immoral behaviors as well as professional conducts.
Reporting
In developing response and prevention programs, reporting producers should be encouraged in all military units. Reporting standards such as timelines should be set and the members within the military units should adhere to the standards to avoid violation (Hernandez, 2016). There should be equality and respect to the service members who are reporting the sexual assaults cases. Every service members should be satisfied with the actions taken toward the offender and there should be equality regardless of gender or culture. While reporting the cases, there should be a standardized format and unit members should be supportive to new recruits in their training (Hernandez, 2016). The research also asserts that there should be a battle drill format and all unit staffs should be given the format with instructions. This format and instructions will help the services members in reporting their cases and the legal system will be effective and responsive without perplexity and missteps.
Develop accountability and a transparency culture
A culture where all members are accountable and responsible and follows a professional conduct should be developed. It is the role of commanders to ensure that there is an environment where unit members are answerable to any unlawful action. In order to create such an environment, commanders should be transparent so that incase of sexual assaults, they should adhere to the legal protocols (Hernandez, 2016). During the accusation, they should not discriminate and also they ensure there is an appropriate conviction. Leadership should follow the right procedure and provide the correct charges to the offenders so that the service members can emulate their roles and feel satisfied. They must also adhere to the professionalism standards so that there should be no prejudice when the allegations are made but rather the appropriate measures should be taken (Hernandez, 2016).
Apply the Principle of The First Right Refusal
According the research on causes of sexual assaults, the incident occurs regularly because the criminal investigation is not done, an appropriate procedure is not followed and appropriate regulations are not implemented (Hernandez, 2016). When the accusations are made, the leaders are incompetent and they always make poor decisions. In order to prevent the sexual assaults, the principle asserts that an investigation should be made outside the military units so that a transparency can be created. The role of outside agency is to eliminate the cursory investigations and promote justice between the victims and offenders (Hernandez, 2016). The investigations on outside the unit will the appropriate procedure to be followed and eliminate bias during accusations.
Identify the Motivation As Well As the Commitment of Sexual Assaults Predators
Chad, (2013) brings another preventive measure of sexual assaults and asserts that Counterinsurgency (COIN) can fight to eliminate sexual assaults. He asserts that understanding the insurgency is an important method of implementing preventive measures. The important thing is to understand the factors which trigger them in doing the unlawful act and through comprehending their motivation, it is easier to adjust the perpetrators behaviors and turn way from the terrible acts (Chad, 2013). There are other perpetrators who are fully committed to conduct the terrible acts and by examining them, it is possible to implement policies as well as regulations which will influence their lives.
Identify the Weapons and Tactics Which the Predator Use In Sexual Assaults
Sexual predators use strategies and weapons which help them in conducting the act. According to the research on cause of the sexual assaults, it is found that alcohol is a cause and predators uses alcohol as a substance which reduces inhibitions and influencing them in conducting the act (Chad, 2013). In addition, predators use date rape drug and when the victim is given this drug, he or she lacks the ability to resist the unwanted sex. The legal system should identify the weapons and tactics used so that it can be in a position of implementing preventative measures. Perpetrators have the ability to conduct the act once and again since they very well know that victims fear the shame and repercussions after reporting the case and they also fear that they will face retaliation (Chad, 2013). Thus, the commanders should show their responsibility and be supportive to soldiers so that sexual assaults can be eliminated.
Training and Appropriate Skills
Each soldier should be trained and provided with the skills so that they can understand the inappropriate behavior, gain moral fortitude, gain knowledge and more important modify the legal system atmosphere (Farrell, 2014). Trainers who offer civil law case study help at Edudorm essay writing service states that commanders must encourage an environment where professional conducts are followed and there is discipline and respect. Senior leaders must support the subordinate leaders and act as an example so that there can an open communication in the units and everybody will follow the right path (Farrell, 2014). Soldiers must be provided with skills of core values on daily basis and leaders at each level should have moral fortitude and encourage a high ethical standard. During prosecutions, commanders must ensure justice and a deliberate process and moral obligation so that they can evaluate fault and blameless.
Conclusion
Sexual assaults is an issue which has become a concern in the U.S military. Various studies and research have confirmed that the number of sexual assaults is increasing as the criminal legal system has overlooked the issues for many decades. There are various reasons which contribute to sexual assaults in the military and the well-known factor is the military legal system. The legal system has unlawful activities which trigger the incidents and it counts itself unaccountable for the actions. However, it should be supportive, responsive and accountable in order to reduce the unlawful actions. Researchers have implemented the effective preventive measures which the military legal system can take in order to ensure that there are no more sexual assaults. Among the measures, it is important to create transparent culture, training programs and identify the weapons which the predators use so that the sexual assaults can be eliminated.
References
Hernandez, B. (2016). Winning the Fight on Sexual Assault in our Army. Military Review, 96(1), 96-101.
Kuersten, A. (2014). Sexual Assault and the Military Petri Dish. JFQ: Joint Force Quarterly, (74), 91-97.
Chad. R. Christian (2013). Applying Principles of Counterinsurgency to the Fight Against Sexual Assault in the Military. Military Review, 93(6), 67-74.
Bell, M. E., Turchik, J. A., & Karpenko, J. A. (2014). Impact of Gender on Reactions to Military Sexual Assault and Harassment. Health & Social Work, 39(1), 25-33.
Stander, V. A., & Thomsen, C. J. (2016). Sexual Harassment and Assault in the U.S. Military: A Review of Policy and Research Trends. Military Medicine, 18120-27. Doi: 10.7205/MILMED-D-15-00336
Elvin, J. (2010). The Continuing Use of Problematic Sexual Stereotypes in Judicial Decision-Making. Feminist Legal Studies, 18(3), 275-297. Doi: 10.1007/s10691-010-9160-3
Farrell, B. S. (2014). DOD Needs to Take Further Actions to Prevent Sexual Assault during Initial Military Training. GAO Reports, 1-6
Castro, A., Carl Kintzle, S., Schuyler, C., Ashley, Lucas, L. Carrie, Warner, H., Christopher. (2015). Sexual Assault in the Military. DOI 10.1007/s11920-015-0596-7.
