As a former member of the United States Air Force, I was shocked to read that the head of the Air Force’s sexual assault prevention unit was arrested for sexual assault. It was also somewhat shocking (to me) that the head of the Air Force’s sexual assault prevention unit was only a Lt. Colonel (his name is Jeffrey Krusinski). It seems that the leadership of the Air Force did not believe sexual assault was an important enough issue to put someone in charge of it with at least a star or two (Brigadier or Major General) on his/her shoulder.

U.S. Representative Jackie Speier probably said it best (Pg. H2443) on the floor of the U.S. House yesterday when she asked (while standing next to a mug shot of Krusinski), “The best and the brightest the Air Force has to offer to run this office, and he’s a sexual predator?”

That’s just the tip of the iceberg.The Department of Defense (DOD) conducted a confidential survey and recently released the results. They estimate that 26,000 sexual assaults occurred DOD-wide in 2012, which was a 37% increase from the last survey done in 2010. CBS News reported, “of those estimated 26,000 sexual assault only 1100 offenders were punished by the military.”

With an increase like that, and lack of enforcement when there are reports, the chain of command is failing miserably at addressing the problem. It starts with immediate supervisors letting their people know that sexual harassment and assaults won’t be tolerated. That message needs to go up and down the chain of command.

But when the head of the sexual assault prevention unit is arrested for sexual assault, it makes one wonder if any message from the chain of command can is being taken seriously.

It’s time for the DOD to hit the reset button on sexual assault reporting.

They can start the reset process by having the leaders of the different branches of the military and their superiors at the Pentagon take a long-hard look at the current way sexual assaults are reported. Victims need to feel secure that their chain of command won’t turn on them. Victims need to feel secure that there will be action on their complaint. As President Obama said, “For those who are in uniform who’ve experienced sexual assault, I want them to hear directly from their commander in chief that I’ve got their backs. I will support them, and we’re not gonna tolerate this stuff.”

U.S. Senator Kirsten Gillibrand is introducing legislation that will take the “decision making over these cases outside of the chain of command” which may be the best idea to tackle the problem.

I hope the President and Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel keep the pressure on the folks within the DOD to solve this problem. If they don’t, it could harm retention and become a recruiting problem down the road.

But most importantly, our military personnel don’t need the added stress in their lives.

Follow me on Twitter @TheWesternWord

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