While sexual assault is the focus of the reform push, supporters of Ms. [Kirsten E.] Gillibrand’s proposal say that reforming the military justice system more broadly will make it fairer and less prone to bias — and help address existing racial disparities in prosecutions and convictions. They warn that singling out sexual assault would establish a “pink court,” effectively creating a two-tiered justice system and further stigmatizing victims.
Advocates also point out that many U.S. allies, including Israel, Britain and Canada, have already made similar changes to their military justice systems.
The following was one of the many comments posted on The Times website:
ReplyDeleteStephen Chamberlin
Petaluma, CA.
2h ago
I am a retired Coast Guard Captain. I was a senior officer in the US Armed Services. It is beyond belief that there is ANY opposition to Ms. Gillibrand's bill. Personally, I would have been relieved, as a Commanding Officer, to allow independent professional prosecutors to handle cases of sexual assault at my command. My expertise in the service was not law. Nor was I a trained victims advocate. How anyone in the service can see this bill as having the potential to undermine the authority of military commanders is hard to fathom. Rather, military officers should look at the bill as a way to effectively deal with the problem, help victims and make the US Armed Services a more attractive career for the many talented civilians who avoid it for this very reason.