Senator Patty Murray is the Chair of the Senate Budget Committee and serves on the Senate Veterans Affairs Committee. Her office issued the following last week:
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE CONTACT: Murray Press Office (202) 224-2834
Thursday, December 19, 2013 Ayotte Press Office (202) 224-3324
MILITARY SEXUAL ASSAULT: Final Defense Bill Includes Murray-Ayotte Reform to Better Protect Victims
Murray-Ayotte provision would provide trained military lawyers to victims of sexual assault in all service branches
WASHINGTON,
D.C. – Today, U.S. Senators Patty Murray (D-WA) and Kelly Ayotte (R-NH)
released the following statements after the United States Senate
approved the Fiscal Year 2014 National Defense Authorization Act, which
includes their bipartisan legislation to provide victims of sexual
assault in all military branches with a Special Victims’ Counsel (SVC) –
a trained and certified military lawyer to assist victims throughout
the legal process. The defense bill, which passed the Senate by a vote
of 84-15, also includes dozens of major reforms to protect and support
victims of sexual assault, boost prosecutions, and hold military
commanders accountable.
“Today
we have taken a major, unprecedented step toward finally eliminating
the plague of sexual assault in our nation’s military,” said Senator Murray.
“Thanks to the voices of countless victims, the work of thousands of
advocates, and the bipartisan cooperation of my colleagues, we have
shone a light on an issue that for too long has left so many of our
nation’s heroes in the shadows. I’d especially like to thank Senator
Ayotte for her partnership as we worked to enact this reform, which
truly gets at the heart of effectively addressing the tragic epidemic
facing our men and women in uniform. I look forward to President Obama’s
signature on this legislation and in the coming months will work
closely with Secretary Hagel and the incoming Director of the Department
of Defense’s Sexual Assault and Prevention Office, Major General
Jeffrey Snow, to ensure swift implementation of our legislation.”
“Providing
sexual assault victims with their own military lawyer takes a major
step toward empowering victims and making sure they get the guidance
they need,” said Senator Ayotte.
“The special victims’ counsel provision will help encourage victims to
come forward to seek justice, and it will help ensure that perpetrators
are held accountable for their crimes. I appreciated the opportunity to
work with Senator Murray on this bipartisan measure, which is part of a
broad package of reforms to address sexual assault in our military.”
In August, Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel directed immediate implementation
of several measures to “gain greater consistency of effort and enhance
oversight, investigative quality, pretrial investigations and victim
support” in cases of military sexual assault. Among other measures, the
directive includes implementation of a special victims’ advocacy program
to assist sexual assault victims in all branches through the legal
process, similar to the legislation introduced by Senators Murray and
Ayotte.
Senators Murray and Ayotte have worked for much of the year to advance legislation to prevent sexual assaults in the military. Last month, Senators Murray and Ayotte joined
a bipartisan group of female Senators on the floor to speak out against
sexual assault in the military and call on their colleagues to support
some of the historic changes being made to prevent this scourge.
A LOOK BACK:
“Senators introduce bill to address military sexual assaults” [The Hill, 5/7/2013]
“A strategy to combat military sexual assaults” [POLITICO, 5/22/2013]
“Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Endorses Murray-Ayotte Special Victims' Counsel Legislation” [6/11/2013]
“Lawmakers see own ideas in Pentagon’s new sex assault measures” [The Hill, 8/15/2013]
“Murray Speaks Out Against Military Sexual Assault” [11/19/2013]
“Ayotte Joins Women Senators on Senate Floor to Speak Against Sexual Assault in Military” [11/19/2013]
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