![]() That case and others were frequently cited by Ms. The move to change the military justice system was also galvanized by the 2020 case of Specialist Vanessa Guillen, whose burned and mutilated body was discovered after she had tried to report instances of sexual harassment by another soldier, who the Army said killed her and later himself. The fading of the military resistance provided the opportunity for bipartisan negotiations, eventually leading to the law in 2021 and, on Friday, Mr. Milley, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, had long opposed them, but acknowledged that same year that younger enlisted troops no longer had confidence that sexual assault cases were being taken seriously by the military’s command. ![]() Austin III, a retired Army general, endorsed the changes in 2021. Members of the top military brass were for years among the chief opponents of changing the code of justice for the armed forces. Over time, complaints grew - especially among young people - about the Pentagon’s tepid response to sexual assault cases. The decisions by those special prosecutors will be final and binding, and cannot be overridden by military commanders.įor years, advocates of sexual assault victims in the military complained that their cases were not taken seriously and were in many cases blocked by the commanders of the service members making the accusations. Instead, that decision will fall to the new, specialized lawyers, White House officials said. Biden’s order, commanders in the military will no longer have the authority to decide whether to pursue charges in cases of sexual abuse and a handful of other serious crimes. Biden did so Friday, five months ahead of the deadline. ![]() The final step needed to change the Uniform Code of Military Justice under the law was a presidential executive order. The Offices of Special Trial Counsel, as they will be called, will be staffed by experienced military prosecutors who will report to the civilian leaders of the military’s branches. The law set up a two-year process for the Defense Department to create a cadre of special prosecutors to handle sexual assault and a handful of other high-profile crimes. Biden signed the landmark legislation into law two days after Christmas that year. But they were finally embraced by the Pentagon in 2021 and mandated by a law spearheaded by Senator Kirsten Gillibrand, Democrat of New York. The changes had for years been opposed by military commanders. “The reforms implemented through today’s executive order do just that.” “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,” the statement said. The White House called the changes to the military justice system “a turning point for survivors of gender-based violence in the military” and said they kept promises Mr. The order follows two decades of pressure from lawmakers and advocates of sexual assault victims, who argued that victims in the military were too often denied justice, culminating in a bipartisan law mandating changes. ![]() Biden ushered in the most significant changes to the modern military legal system since it was created in 1950. President Biden gave final approval on Friday to the biggest reshaping in generations of the country’s Uniform Code of Military Justice, stripping commanders of their authority over cases of sexual assault, rape and murder to ensure prosecutions that are independent of the chain of command.īy signing a far-reaching executive order, Mr. The largest overhaul of the Uniform Code of Military Justice since its creation in 1950 removes commanders’ authority over cases of sexual assault and a handful of other high-profile crimes. For nearly a decade, Gillibrand fought alongside survivors, veterans and legal experts to make these fundamental changes, which remove judicial functions and prosecutorial duties from commanders for certain serious offenses and give these powers to trained, professional military prosecutors independent of the chain of command.īiden Overhauls Military Justice Code, Seeking to Curb Sexual Assault | NY Times In case you missed it, the New York Times published an article regarding President Biden’s executive order implementing historic military justice reforms passed in the FY22 and FY23 National Defense Authorization Acts. Click this link to listen to a message from President Biden ![]()
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