Letter to Chuck Hagel, Secretary of Defense - Regarding Military Sexual Assault
Letter
Dear Secretary Hagel,
I write to express my concern that Department of Defense Form 2910, the "Victims Reporting Preference Statement," has not been updated to reflect changes in the law governing the Department's retention of sexual assault reports. As you know, Section 1723 of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2014 (P.L. 113-66), which was signed into law in December 2013, requires the automatic retention of both restricted and unrestricted reports of sexual assault in the military for 50 years. I understand that DD Form 2910 is currently undergoing a legal review at this time. I urge you to ensure that the revision of this important form is completed as expeditiously as possible.
Over the past several years, I have fought for common-sense changes to the way the military handles and retains sexual assault reports. Today, all reports of sexual assault in the military are legally required to be retained for 50 years. This is particularly important for restricted reports, which remain private and are not referred for criminal investigation. Restricted reports, which comprised 1,293 of the 5,061 reports filed in Fiscal Year 2013, are crucial evidence for service members seeking VA benefits and can be turned into unrestricted reports at the service member's request any time to initiate a criminal investigation.
As the Department continues its efforts to improve the reporting rate of incidents of sexual assault in the military, it is crucial that DD Form 2910 provide victims with a full and accurate description of the restricted reporting option, including its automatic retention and their ability to access it should they need it for VA treatment purposes or if they wish to make it an unrestricted report at a later date. I ask that you provide an update on the revision process and a deadline for the completion of the revision and reissuance of the form as soon as possible.
Thank you for your attention to this important matter.
Sincerely,
Source