Senate Blocks Bill To Overhaul Military Sex Assault Prosecutions

Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY) pauses while speaking at a news conference on Capitol Hill in Washington, on Thursday following the Senate vote on the military sexual assaults bill she sponsored.

Women voted 17-3 for Gillibrand military sexual assault bill. Men voted 42-38 against 

http://blogs.rollcall.com/wgdb/senate-votes-on-dueling-sexual-assault-proposals/ ...

How Gillibrand won by losing. "She bolsters her liberal credentials....She's boosted her standing in the Senate....She bolsters her standing with women and the gay community....She can say 'I told you so' if the Pentagon doesn't fix the problem." Ed O'Keefe in The Washington Post.

What's the controversy about? "At issue is one key question: When a member of the military reports a sexual assault, who should have ultimate say over whether to prosecute it? Historically, the military has left that decision to unit commanders. Critics charge that this can discourage victims from coming forward, and leads to fewer prosecutions. Representing that way of thinking is Kirsten Gillibrand, the Democratic Senator from New York and author of the Military Justice Improvement Act. Her measure would give prosecutors, outside the chain of command, the power to decide which cases go to court. McCaskill wants to leave the authority with unit commanders, but mandate some additional review. Nora Caplan-Bricker in The New Republic.

The same day: The Army's top sex-crimes prosecutor faces groping allegation. "The Army is investigating its top sex-crimes prosecutor on allegations that he groped a female lawyer at a sexual-assault conference in 2011, Army officials disclosed Thursday. Lt. Col. Joseph Morse, who supervises 23 other special-victims prosecutors for the Army, was recently placed under criminal investigation after the female lawyer reported the alleged 2011 incident, officials said. News of the case was first reported Thursday by Stars and Stripes, a newspaper that covers military affairs. Morse has not been charged in the case, but the revelation is the latest blow to the Pentagon as it struggles to cope with what some leaders have acknowledged is a epidemic of sexual assaults in the ranks. News of the investigation surfaced just hours before the Senate was scheduled to vote." Craig Whitlock in The Washington Post.

by SCOTT NEUMAN

March 06, 2014

The Senate has voted to block a bill that would have removed the authority of senior military commanders to prosecute sexual assault cases within their ranks.

On Thursday's 55-45 vote, short of the 60 necessary to move the legislation forward, the Senate set aside the Military Justice Improvement Act sponsored by New York Democratic Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand.

USA Today says the bill "would take away military commanders' authority to decide whether to prosecute sexual assault cases — and other offenses punishable by at least one year in jail — and give it to prosecutors in the Judge Advocate General's office."

The Associated Press writes:

"The Pentagon's leadership vigorously opposed the measure, arguing that officers should have more responsibility, not less, for the conduct of the men and women they lead." Alan: "Power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely. Great men are almost always bad men." Lord Acton

"Proponents of the bill insisted that far-reaching changes in the Uniform Code of Military Justice are necessary to curb a scourge of rapes and sexual assaults."

"Gillibrand's effort bitterly divided the Senate in a battle that smashed conventional lines on gender and political party."

Conservative Sens. Ted Cruz of Texas and Rand Paul of Kentucky backed her effort, but asNPR's Liz Halloran reported last month, it faced opposition from powerful fellow Democrats, including Sen. Claire McCaskill and Armed Services Committee Chairman Sen. Carl Levin, as well as the president himself.

The AP says: "Although the vote sent the bill back to the Senate calendar, it was unlikely to be the final word. Gillibrand was expected to pursue the issue this spring when the Armed Services Committee begins work on a sweeping defensepolicy bill for the 2015 fiscal year."

Gillibrand's legislation comes amid a rashof high-profile sexual assault and sexual misconduct cases in the ranks, prompting President Obama in December to order a one-year review of the military's response to the problem. On Thursday, Army Brig.-Gen. Jeffrey Sinclair pleaded guilty to adultery before a court-martial in North Carolina, but still faces a charge of sexually assaulting a female captain.