Sexual Misconduct

At Military Defender, we regularly represent service members facing sexual misconduct allegations that threaten not only their military careers but also their personal reputations and futures. Few accusations carry consequences as immediate and severe as allegations of sexual misconduct within the military. Even before any finding of wrongdoing, an accusation alone can trigger investigations, career restrictions, and social isolation. These…

Allegations of sexual misconduct in the military are among the most serious and life-altering accusations a service member can face. Unlike civilian cases, these allegations are handled under the Uniform Code of Military Justice (UCMJ), a system that combines criminal law with military discipline. Even before formal charges are filed, an accusation alone can result in investigations, restrictions, loss of…

A recent report CBS News online released a report earlier this week about the military’s alleged failure to handle sexual crimes aggressively. According to the report, in “cases filed between 2018 to 2020, the Department of Defense’s inspector general found that 64% did not have properly trained prosecutors assigned to them.” This report claims that less than half of all…

How significant are the penalties? The risks you may face will obviously match the criminal charges you face. Specifically, UCMJ article 120 covers sexual assaults and describes the definition of sexual assault and rape under military law. For sexual assault and aggravated sexual assault, you may face: Discharge Prison time Reductions in rank Loss of benefits and pay However, if…

Fort Hood report After a scathing report of chronic safety failures at Fort Hood, the resulting review made 70 recommendations on the handling of sexual assault and harassment crimes. The U.S. Army has committed to implementing 63 of those 70 recommendations as well as four out of six recommendations from the Independent Review Commission. Office of the Special Trial Counsel…

Examples of sexual behavior that could result in revocation “Sexual behavior” is the fourth of 13 things the Department of Defense will look at when considering granting or revoking clearance, and there are numerous sexual activities that could result in clearance revocation. Some of these are obviously illegal and dangerous, like rape and sexual harassment. But there are also examples…

What are the proposed changes? As with any proposed legislation, there are numerous factors, many of which are still under debate, the general gist is that sexual assault cases would no longer be handled under the normal internal chain of command. Rather, these cases would fall under the jurisdiction of an independent civilian authority. What impact could these changes have?…