{"id":3904,"date":"2026-06-25T16:37:50","date_gmt":"2026-06-25T16:37:50","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/relocationtimess.com\/?p=3904"},"modified":"2026-06-25T16:37:50","modified_gmt":"2026-06-25T16:37:50","slug":"service-members-would-be-able-to-sue-the-military-over-sexual-assault-and-harassment-under-bipartisan-bill","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/relocationtimess.com\/?p=3904","title":{"rendered":"Service members would be able to sue the military over sexual assault and harassment under bipartisan bill"},"content":{"rendered":"
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\n A pair of senators have introduced bipartisan legislation that would allow US service members to sue the military over sexual assault in what would be a significant development in the fight against sexual misconduct in the armed forces.\n <\/p>\n

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\n The Military Sexual Trauma Accountability Act, co-sponsored by Democratic Sen. Jeanne Shaheen and Republican Sen. John Kennedy, would allow service members to sue the military in cases of rape, sexual assault, aggravated sexual contact, sexual assault of a child, sexual harassment and the wrongful distribution of intimate images. The bill was introduced on Wednesday.\n <\/p>\n

\n The Congressional Budget Office estimated that within the first 10 years of the legislation being active, \u201cthere would be 120,000 people who would file successful claims under this bill,\u201d a Democratic Senate aide told CNN. \u201cThat speaks to just how prevalent of a problem this is.\u201d\n <\/p>\n

\n The US military has long grappled with how to confront sexual assault and harassment within its ranks. A report for fiscal year 2024 released last May said the Defense Department received 8,195 reports from service members of sexual assault, 320 fewer than in 2023.\n <\/p>\n

\n But the newly proposed legislation comes on the heels of a high-profile case at Fort Hood, Texas, where the military has brought charges against an Army gynecologist who has been accused by dozens of women of secretly recording patients, conducting unnecessary procedures during their exams and other sexual misconduct.\n <\/p>\n

\n That case is a prime example of when the legislation could be used, the Senate aide said, though the bill was already in the works before the news of the gynecologist\u2019s alleged misconduct came to light.\n <\/p>\n

\n The proposed bill would allow a lawsuit to be brought forward when a service member claims sexual assault was committed, or that the military failed to prevent or investigate misconduct.\n <\/p>\n

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\n Currently, a 1950 Supreme Court decision stands in the way of US service members suing the military for injuries arising from military service. In 2019, that law was successfully challenged when Congress passed the SFC Richard Stayskal Military Medical Accountability Act, allowing service members to sue the US for injury and death caused by improper medical care. Sgt. 1st Class Richard Stayskal is an Army Special Forces soldier with terminal lung cancer, which was misdiagnosed by Army medical providers.\n <\/p>\n

\n \u201cI think the biggest issue that we\u2019re going to face is that this is potentially going to cost the government a lot of money, and our answer to that is, it\u2019s a problem \u2026 that the score would be so high,\u201d the aide said. That concern has come up in staff-level conversations with the Defense Department about this bill, they added.\n <\/p>\n

\n But service members having the ability to \u201cpursue every possible avenue for legal recourse\u201d is a necessary step to \u201croot out the negligence\u201d resulting in sexual assault and harassment, Shaheen said in a statement to CNN.\n <\/p>\n

\n \u201cIt makes no sense that civilians can seek justice from the government when the warriors who have sacrificed everything to protect our nation cannot,\u201d she said.\n <\/p>\n

\n Kennedy similarly said service members \u201cshould not have to give up their right to hold the government accountable when its negligence contributes to sexual assault or harassment.\u201d\n <\/p>\n

\n \u201cOur brave men and women in uniform deserve real accountability,\u201d he said, \u201cnot excuses.\u201d\n <\/p>\n

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A pair of senators have introduced bipartisan legislation that would allow US service members to sue the military over sexual assault in what would be a significant development in the fight against sexual misconduct in the armed forces.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":3903,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-3904","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-politics"],"yoast_head":"\nService members would be able to sue the military over sexual assault and harassment under bipartisan bill - Relocation Times<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/relocationtimess.com\/?p=3904\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Service members would be able to sue the military over sexual assault and harassment under bipartisan bill - 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