Academy sex assaults see sizable increase - Army News | News from Afghanistan & Iraq - Army Times

Academy sex assaults see sizable increase

ANNAPOLIS, Md. — Reports of sexual assault at three of the nation’s military academies have increased by more than 58 percent, according to the Defense Department.

The annual report on sexual harassment for the Naval Academy, the U.S. Military Academy and the Air Force Academy for the 2010-2011 academic year, released Tuesday, said there were 65 sexual assaults at the service academies, up from 41 in the prior year.

The Pentagon said it couldn’t conclusively identify the reasons for the increases, however, officials have worked to encourage more victims to report. Those efforts could explain the higher number of reports, the Pentagon said.

The Defense Department also announced two policies to support victims: One enables victims who have filed an unrestricted report to request an expedited transfer, another standardizes retention periods for sexual assault records across the military services.

“We know that the military academies are similar to college campuses around the country in that sexual harassment and assault are challenges that all faculty, staff and students need to work to prevent,” Maj. Gen. Mary Kay Hertog, director of the Sexual Assault Prevention and Response Office, said in a statement. “However, when it does occur, we owe it to those who have been victimized, and to every cadet and midshipman, to do everything possible to provide needed support and to hold those who commit sexual assault appropriately accountable.”