Rape and the ethics of adultery, or how the military hides its rape problem

He probably wishes he was
back in Afghanistan. Last month, Major General Gary Patton became the new
director of the Pentagon's Sexual Assault Prevention and Response Office, as
details of the latest scandal involving sexual assault in the ranks broke. The Air
Force has identified 38 women as victims of rape and sexual misconduct at their
training facility at Lackland Air Force Base. Two instructors have been
convicted, one sentenced to twenty years, and the unit's commander has been
relieved.  The investigation continues as
the courts consider the latest lawsuit filed by a group of sexual assault
victims who allege that the military mishandled their complaints.

The scope of the problem is startling. A 2008 survey by
the Government Accountability Office put the rate of sexual assault at 7 percent of
women and 2 percent of men. As women make up about 15 percent of the military, most victims
are male. Because of underreporting and the stigma attached to the crime,
estimates vary widely. Some VA hospitals report as many as 30 percent of their female
patients are victims of sexual assault.

Many victims do not come forward for fear of reprisal.
Attackers often outrank their victims, making reporting difficult. Some
commanders bully victims into keeping quiet about their attacks. In documentaries
like Invisible War and In There Boots: Outside the Wire, victims have described
how they were threatened with spurious court martial charges and had their
careers derailed by their chains of command. Lawsuits filed by victims
described how they lost their security clearances for seeking mental health
treatment, damaging the only advantage many of them have in the toughest
veteran job market in decades.

The problem has even tainted the military's mental health
system. A recent CNN investigation revealed that while women are make up 16 percent of
the Army, they account for 24 percent of the mental health discharges, with similar
disparities for the other services. The report went on to profile sexual
assault victims from all four services who claimed to have been discharged after
seeking assistance after their attacks.

The military's legal system has twisted itself in knots
trying to deal with problem. In 2008, the GAO reported that only 17 percent of sexual
assault cases were prosecuted. 
Commanders and prosecutors responded by increasing the rate of
prosecution by 70 percent in 2009.

One troubling tact
commanders have taken is to pursue adultery charges in rape cases.  For the victims, this means that their
attackers will get off on a misdemeanor conviction and do not have to register
as sex offenders. More disturbingly, perhaps, is the tremendous pressure for
the accused to plead guilty to adultery to avoid rape charges.  There is a body of academic work in both Game
Theory and the Reid Technique, a commonly used interrogation method, which
suggests that innocent people will confess to crimes they did not commit to
avoid more serious charges. In either case, commanders can plausibly claim that
their units do not have a rape problem. In a twist reminiscent of the Iranian
justice system, commanders have even threatened victims with adultery charges.

An adversarial justice system involves winners and
losers. Prosecuting alleged rapes as adultery produces neither. Rape victims
are denied the satisfaction of the military acknowledging the crime and
properly punishing the attacker. Those falsely accused are forced to plead
guilty and deal with the shame of being drummed out of the military with a
dishonorable discharge. The only winners in these cases are the careers of the commanders
involved. There is little resembling justice for anyone.

To his credit, the Secretary of Defense has instituted
much needed reforms on how the military handles rape cases. In a tacit
acknowledgement of mid-level commanders' inclination to bury rape investigations
for career purposes, all such cases are now handled by more senior commanders
already eligible for retirement.

Still,
there is more that could be done to reform the military's handling of sexual
assault. Perhaps General Patton should look into commanders' use of adultery
charges in rape cases. If he does not, perhaps Congress could do it for him.

Matthew Collins spent ten years as a Marine
Intelligence Officer, including a tour as a company executive officer on Marine
Corps Base Quantico. He is now an MBA student at St Louis University. If you
are a service member who has been the victim of sexual assault, confidential
help is available through the DOD Safe Helpline at 877 995 5247.