Lawsuit - Pentagon turned blind eye to military

[marjar]

Fourteen current and former members of the U.S. military charged in a lawsuit filed Tuesday that the Pentagon turned a blind eye when they reported being sexually harassed, assaulted and raped by fellow service members while on active duty.

Interviews by NBC News with some of the plaintiffs in the case reveal disturbing and previously unreported allegations of sexual abuse in the military, including some in the war zones of Afghanistan and Iraq. In addition, one of the plaintiffs, identified as a naval aviator, charges in the lawsuit that she was drugged and gang-raped by two of her colleagues while serving at Tinker Air Force Base in Oklahoma just two months ago.

Mary Gallagher, a former sergeant in the Air National Guard, says that within weeks of being deployed to an air base outside of Baghdad in 2009 she was brutally assaulted by a fellow sergeant who burst into the ladies' room, pushed her up against the wall, pulled her pants and underwear down and ground his genitals against her, talking the whole time how much he was enjoying it.

"I thought he was going to kill me that night," Gallagher told NBC in an interview. "I felt completely isolated and alone and really scared. Here I was, in the middle of a foreign country in the middle of a war."

www.msnbc.msn.com/id/41598622/ns/us_news-life

[Tennesseer]

Sexual assault and rape seem to know no national boundaries.

[ugonow]

And how do you know they weren't muslim?

[ed1066]

"This is a tough issue," said Kaye Whitley, director of the Pentagon’s Sexual Assault Prevention and Response Office, a small unit set up in 2004 to promote training programs and greater sensitivity within the services to the problems of sexual abuse and harassment.

Thank God our society punishes this type of behavior instead of encouraging it like the fundamentalist Muslim regimes similar to what is being proposed for the "new" Egypt by the Muslim Brotherhood, while Obama and the Democrats cheer on the "revolution" taking place there...

[ugonow]

Blind eye= punishing?

[ed1066]

Blind eye= punishing?

Rape is against the law in the United States. In many Islamic theocracies, it is considered an acceptable form of punishment for women and even men who defy sharia law. Get it? If you're as good at pretending to be a conservative as you seem to want to be, this should not be difficult, Mr. Colbert...

[ugonow]

Are you forgetting some in our government just tried to change the definition of rape? That Rep Franklin argues that there is no such thing as a rape victim unless there is a rape conviction? JMO,but that seems like a pretty caviler attitude towards it.

[deziloooooo]

CNN did a report tonight on this...I mentioned some where else..but some thing like 16,000 attacks and 3000 rapes..thing is I didn't hear the time period..had to be more then a year, lordy I hope, and the thing is, when reported , little done, usually the victim is ostracized.
If move to unit , information goes with her or him, happens to both, senior over junior, commanders, in so many cases transfer the offender, rather then press charges,
Gates testified that they are trying to get a handle on it , have 3000 from 300 now only job at all bases but as one victim said , they are there only to hold victims hands , no power.

I don't know what kind of lectures they give the to-ops but I would think , either separate or together, all new troops and possible every year all troops, lecture put together by some one qualified , MP's , legal to run, explain what to do, who to call, seriousness of it, will be prosecuted and penalties , not tolerated.

Some of these perps are serial types with some rank, and are there just to prey on others.

I can understand at home base , weapons locked away, but many attacks are in places weapons are issued, available, and surprised retribution not taken.

It is a major problem thus when I saw a stupid post on another thread dealing with the CBS reporter who was attacked and the mentioning of the thinking of Muslims toward woman , I couldn't help thinking how stupid the remark was, and blaming that group, when its a problem in our own military, a major one, fellow military attacking and abusing one of their own , Israeli's have the problem too...

[Mad Dawg Wiccan]

I'm not going to ferret out the numbers, but I would like to see a comparison between the rates of rapes in the military and the population as a whole.
I don't know (and neither does anybody here) know all the details of the cases of the fourteen people filing the lawsuits, but I do know that the military is just like civilian life in one way; rape or sexual harassment can sometimes be very difficult to prove in court. Sometimes prosecutors simply don't have enough evidence to take things to trial.

[ugonow]

Very true,mad dawg,but IMHO, they can do better than as she claims she was told, "this stuff happens."

[ed1066]

they can do better than as she claims she was told, "this stuff happens."

I think that's a bad way to look at it, but based on some of the exchanges we had here last night, it seems many feel that rape and assault are just an occupational hazard for women in any job, so this story should not be exceptional.

Personally, I thought our society was more opposed to this type of behavior (I know I am), so I was surprised by the assertions I saw on another thread that rape is an expected feature of our social landscape. I think it sucks, personally...

[privateinvestor]

Women are treated much differently in some of the middle east countries, stoning, hanging, and raping is a common occurence. But we here don't know about what goes on in Iran, Yemen, Palestine, and I thought Egypt was above that.....but was wrong

[ed1066]

Women are treated much differently in some of the middle east countries, stoning, hanging, and raping is a commone occurence.

Got to be careful there PI, I was called "dispicable", a "friggin' bigot" and told to "shut the fuck up" for suggesting that. The p.c. thought police around here don't like people stepping off the plantation like that...

[deziloooooo]

Feb 17, 2011 11:54:19 GMT -5 Mad Dawg Wiccan said:

I'm not going to ferret out the numbers, but I would like to see a comparison between the rates of rapes in the military and the population as a whole.
I don't know (and neither does anybody here) know all the details of the cases of the fourteen people filing the lawsuits, but I do know that the military is just like civilian life in one way; rape or sexual harassment can sometimes be very difficult to prove in court. Sometimes prosecutors simply don't have enough evidence to take things to trial.

Mad--- , I did a quick google on #'s , heres a interesting site...helps with the #'s plus other information on military, US..for 2009, pretty up to date, it's early 2011.
---------------------------------------------------
www.warresisters.org/node/1054
---------------------------------------------------

I grant you the site is suspect for what it represents , however, figures don't lie, don't believe they fudged the #'s, to easy to debunk and make their case seem bogus.
They, I am sure got the figures from "Freedom of Information " sources that we all could search for..so lets ASSUME they are correct.
I don't know how it compared with civilian life % of BUT remember..in civilian life , one can leave a job, employer, if working conditions, see sexual harassments, is presence. Military does not give you that option. Seek damages civil courts against employer if after not reported anything done about it, military you can't sue for damage's against the commanders if they don't follow up and treat seriously, can't be just packing up and move away to get away from it and the job itself, trust for ones safety on others..yet this happens.
--------------------------------------------------------------
"3,230 Number of reports of sexual assault involving military personnel in FY 2009; reported incidents rose 11 percent from 2008 and 20 percent from 2007. The actual number of assaults is much higher, according to military officials, since an estimated 80 percent of military personnel who have been sexually assaulted do not report the assault. (6)

31% Percentage of sexual assault crimes investigated in unrestricted reports in the military determined to be rape in FY 2009; another 31 percent of crimes investigated were determined to be aggravated sexual assault. (7)

53% Percentage of unrestricted reports of sexual assault in the military that were committed by one service member against another service member in FY 2009; 30 percent were committed by a service member against a non-service member. (7)

89% Percentage of victims in completed military investigations of unrestricted reports of sexual assaults who were female, FY 2009; nearly half of sexual assault victims in completed military investigations of unrestricted reports (47 percent) are between 20 and 24 years old. (7)
-----------------------------------------------------------
To me..and I was there but not much time spent on posts and barracks and a long time ago..but this to me ... major crap, a disgrace.

I have a grand daughter who let's say wants to consider such a career or even a period in her life and she comes to me as the one who has been there and asks my advice..profesionally, and if so, being of age , mature..I would have to bring all these things up as a possible reality as well as those you would think I would discuss.

Have to ask her are you sure, this is a major problem that is now and not really being handled and I am to old to look the one up who was the perp and handle as I would back in the day..short sweet and done, problem over, and afraid her Dad being a 100% civilian wouldn't be capable.

My beautuiful sharp granddughter, I would strongly ask her NOT to join, not because if the service, recommend other ways to serve, in country, even Peace Core..I know, some dangers possible , but I don't think at this level.

All those interviewed on the CNN program the other night that delt with this proble, very desturbing but very informative and done well, the woman who were attacked, enjoyed the service , the serving, both wanted a career, one served 9 and a 1/2 years, that is a dedication but had to leave, forced out, and when it was just normal serving ..fine, dedicated, had responsible, resoponsible jobs..yet would not go in in todays climate.

That to me sucks big time and not that the woman opted out, that they feel it was not a good climate and they were not protected, not so much the incident, the follow up and support, non exhistent.

[Deleted]

I wonder if those numbers include victims of military sexual trauma who are male. Anecdotal evidence, I know, but I know a Veteran who was repeatedly raped and traumatized by his fellow soldiers (male) while serving in Iraq. He told no one until a couple years ago when he went into a rage one night and came very close to harming his wife. He spent four months as an inpatient at the VA, diagnosed as PTSD, and is now doing very well.

[deziloooooo]

It is both sexes...what gets me , if true and why not..only the tip of the iceberg, they say 80% not reported..and if you have never been in the service..rank, has a lot of influence, especially if backed up by fellow ranks.

Very young people, beginning and even later, influenced , coercable , granted physically fit as are those of rank with many years of experience of by those with rank ...coercion..it's there..

Physical threats..I suggest many of these initiating these attacks, are predators who know the system, use it...and they continue.


What is needed , IMO, is long , hard time , federal , better yet the most stringent stockades with the meanest, bad est, biggest experienced Mp's{who are straight as a arrow who have a bad feeling toward these types} to watch over these folks.

Once that part gets around , it will, that might put a dent into the problem, won't eliminate but a big, big , big dent into the problem..oh yeah.

Stockades, most part , not a county jail in a long shoot..

PS: PS : True war story, fogive.

Before deploying, Company in AIT had a rash of AWOL's way over the accepted. Old Man cancelled training for the day, all troops, all NCO's top sarge too, never seemed to leave HQ..ALL marched in full gear to the Stockade for a tour. Preplanned I am sure..even had cooks do a and set up for lunch , field cooking, serving..and what a tour we had. Vommander of the Stockade Lt . Col , senior Non Coms..a welcome , a walk through, a observation of...never a problem again .

That was directed at just the AWOL's, problem of.

[privateinvestor]

Feb 17, 2011 13:37:08 GMT -5 @ed1066 said:

Women are treated much differently in some of the middle east countries, stoning, hanging, and raping is a commone occurence.

Got to be careful there PI, I was called "dispicable", a "friggin' bigot" and told to "shut the fuck up" for suggesting that. The p.c. thought police around here don't like people stepping off the plantation like that...

"thought police".. : Not really !! When our resident hecklers begin to get to you Ed, then maybe it is time to take a few days off from this message board and let them find somebody else to heckle or taunt or whatever it is they enjoy here..??