Tuesday, September 1, 2015

U.S. response to Danish recommendation to remove chain of command from charging decisions

Among the recommendations made in the course of the current Universal Periodic Review for the United States was the following:

176.289. Improve access to justice, including due process and redress, for victims of sexual violence in the military; this would include removing from the chain of command the decision about whether to prosecute cases of alleged assault (Denmark)

The United States has filed its response to the recommendations. Here is what it said about Denmark's recommendation:
289. DoD has established victim-representation programs for sexual assault victims eligible for legal assistance, consistent with the findings of an independent study concluding that removing proceedings from the chain of command was not needed to improve the situation of victims.
Might the change improve public confidence in the administration of justice?

Postscript: Here is Human Rights Watch's comment on the overall U.S. response to the UPR recommendations.


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