The War Within: Sexual Abuse in the Military

THE WAR WITHIN More than 80,000 accusations of sexual assault have been made by active-duty members of the U.S. military since 2006. Only a small fraction of perpetrators are convicted, and most victims find the process fails them in many ways. With reports on the rise, more and more social workers are having to confront issues unique to the military. HOW COMMON IS SEXUAL ASSAULT IN THE MILITARY? Nearly 80,000 34% 1,000 Sexual assaults reported by active-duty military members between 2006 and 2012 Increase in sexual assaults (both officially reported and not) between 2010 and 2012 Active-duty members experiencing unwanted sexual contact by year 2006 34,200 1.8% of men 6.8% of women 2010 19,300 0.9% of men 4.4% of women 6.1% 2012 26,000 1.2% of men of women ASSAULT USUALLY GOES UNREPORTED 26,000 3,374 238 -100 Sexual assaults officially reported to the Department of Defense in 2012 Service members who Individuals convicted of sexual assault in 2012 experienced unwanted sexual contact in 2012 RESTRICTED VS. UNRESTRICTED REPORTING' Within the military, there are two ways victims can report sexual assault: Restricted: Unrestricted: Victims seek medical treatment and/or counseling and will explore legal options. Confidential reporting where legal action is not sought and the victim seeks medical treatment and/or counseling. Types of official reports made by year 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 Unrestricted 2,047 2,277 2,085 2,265 2,516 2,410 2,439 2,558 reports 816 Restricted 327 670 603 643 714 748 753 reports A LOOK AT THE VICTIMS Though most assaults will go unreported, thousands of service members still are telling their stories. Gender of victims (2012) in unrestricted reports Age group of victim Male 18% 12% Age 16-19 51% Age 20-24 Fema 4% 25% Age 35-49 Age 25-34 <1% <1% Age 50 and older Age not available Top reasons for sexual assault going unreported: Type of offenses reported Aggravated Indecent 70% sexual contact assault 4% <1% Did not want Attempts Nonconsensual sodomy <1% anyone to know 6% Aggravated sexual assault 66% and sexual assault Abusive and wrongful sexual 28% Felt uncomfortable making a report contact 35% Rape 27% 51% Did not think the report would be kept confidential FAILING THE VICTIMS? How satisfied were sexual assault victims with the services they received after reporting the crimes? Rate of victims reporting they were satisfied 61% Sexual assault advocacy 52% Counseling 49% Medical care Overall reporting 35% process Length of investigation 33% Grant rates for military sexual trauma-related PTSD claims are 26% 17-30 percentage points lower than any other PTSD claims.2 Informative process SOURCES 1. http://www.sexualassault.army.mil 2. https://www.aclu.org ALL OTHER DATA: http://www.sapr.mil/public/docs/reports/FY12_DOD SAPRO_Annual_Report_on_Sexual Assault-VOLUME_ONE.pdf socialworkdegreecenter.com