DEPUTY AG COLE'S REMARKS ON NEW POLICY FOR DOMESTIC VIOLENCE, SEXUAL ASSAULT, STALKING IN WORKPLACE

FROM:  U.S. JUSTICE DEPARTMENT 
Deputy Attorney General James M. Cole Delivers Remarks on New Policy to Address Domestic Violence, Sexual Assault and Stalking in the Workplace
~ Wednesday, November 20, 2013

Thank you, Bea [Hanson], for that kind introduction.  It’s a special privilege to join you in commemorating Domestic Violence Awareness Month, which we have extended into November this year, as a result of the shutdown.  Bea, I first want to recognize the leadership that you show in addressing domestic violence.  I’d also like to thank the dedicated team in the Office on Violence Against Women who continuously move this issue forward, and who never lose sight of its importance, regardless of the challenges.  I’d also like to acknowledge the work of our U.S. Attorneys’ Offices, the FBI, ATF, and so many others here in Main Justice who work hard to enforce the Violence Against Women Act.

As all of us know too well, domestic violence inflicts severe harm on our society.  So many women, men and children in our country – of every background, ethnicity, age, disability and sexual orientation – are damaged by this devastating crime.  According to the 2010 National Intimate Partner and Sexual Violence Survey, 1 in 3 women in the United States will experience rape, physical violence or stalking by an intimate partner at some time in their lives.

And the effects of domestic violence don’t just remain within the walls of the home.  They affect all of us who live and work with victims and survivors, their children, and other loved ones, and it takes a terrible toll on our communities.  That impact can be drastic, as is tragically clear from recent reports of violent domestic attacks in the workplace.  As just one example, in 2010 at the Emcore Corp. manufacturing plant in Albuquerque, New Mexico, a man reportedly shot and killed his ex-girlfriend outside the plant, then entered the plant where he shot and killed two other employees and injured four more, before taking his own life.

Unfortunately, this tragic incident is not just an isolated occurrence.  Nearly 33% of women killed in U.S. workplaces between 2003 and 2008 were killed by a current or former intimate partner.

That’s why, last year, President Obama issued a memorandum requiring federal agencies to develop policies to address the effects of domestic violence in the workplace and provide assistance to employees who are experiencing domestic violence.  Not surprisingly, the Department of Justice has always been at the forefront of these issues, starting with Attorney General Reno’s workplace domestic violence order issued in 1999. Building upon that foundation, I am pleased to say that I have approved – and we will announce today -- an extension of the Reno policy that fully responds to the President’s call to federal agencies, and that addresses not only domestic violence in the workplace, but also sexual assault, and stalking that find their ways to work.

The Department of Justice alone has approximately 114,000 employees.  It is our hope that our policy will serve as a model to other government agencies and to the private sector for addressing domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, and stalking, and their impacts on the workplace.

In addition to jeopardizing the safety of American workers, domestic violence, sexual assault, and stalking cost a tremendous amount of money in lost productivity.  Victims of domestic violence are often harassed at worked by repeated calls, texts, or emails from their abusers during the workday.  Even more daunting, abusers may show up at their victims’ worksites, and victims may miss work or reduce their performance as a result of these experiences.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates that the cost of intimate partner violence, which includes rape, physical assault, and stalking, totals nearly $8.2 billion each year, of which, the cost of lost productivity in the workplace accounts for nearly $1.8 billion annually.   The CDC has also reported that domestic violence victims, as a result of the violence they experience, lose a total of nearly 8 million days of paid work each year—the equivalent of more than 32,000 full-time jobs.   In addition to threatening victims’ peace of mind, which understandably distracts them from their work, victims often must take time off from work to go to court, to meet with lawyers, to obtain a restraining order, or to seek medical and mental health care.

That’s why the Department’s new workplace violence policy is vitally important.   For the last six months, the Office on Violence Against Women, the Office of Justice Programs, Justice Management Division, the Office of Legal Counsel, the Civil Rights Division, and the Civil Division, as well as other components in the Department worked to develop DOJ’s policy.  They worked closely with the interagency group that advised the Office of Personnel Management in developing guidance to federal agencies for crafting their own workplace policies.

Because of their work, I am proud to report that the Department is leading the federal response to this problem as the first major federal agency to submit a final workplace domestic violence policy in response to the President’s memorandum.  The new policy will allow components to improve the safety of the Department’s workplaces and will help us better support victims.  It makes clear that component heads are responsible for ensuring the prompt investigation of incidents of domestic violence, sexual assault, or stalking in the workplace that come to the attention of Department management.

Importantly, if Department employees somehow are the perpetrators of these acts, the policy makes clear that every component head has a duty to take appropriate disciplinary action.  The policy also requires supervisors to take into account whether domestic violence, sexual assault, or stalking have affected an employee’s work, so that, to the extent possible, workplace policies do not further victimize employees targeted by these practices.

As another means to provide support, each component must maintain a list of resources for victims and make available to victims information on how to contact the Justice Protective Service, Federal Protective Service, or other appropriate security or law enforcement personnel, if victims wish to have a police report taken.

Perhaps most importantly, all Department employees will receive training on our new policy, to ensure each of us will know how to support a colleague if they are ever a victim of these crimes.

The Department shares the Administration’s deep commitment to ending domestic violence, sexual assault, and stalking and promoting a safe and healthy workplace.  The Department’s policy will help us provide an effective response to domestic violence, sexual assault and stalking when it affects the workplace.  And this policy will allow for such a response in a manner that fully supports victims and keeps all of us safe.

Before I finish, I want to take this time to thank all of the survivors, advocates, and organizations outside the Department who are the true heroes and leaders of this effort to finally end domestic violence.  Your contributions have made a real difference in helping to break the cycle of violence that destroys so many lives, families and communities.  We are grateful for your inspiration and for the opportunity to join you as partners in this important work.  Thank you.

DOD INCREASES PEER SUPPORT TO SEXUAL ASSAULT VICTIMS

FROM: U.S. DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE
DOD Adds Peer Support Chat Sessions for Sexual Assault Victims
American Forces Press Service

WASHINGTON, May 30, 2013 - In response to a need for peer support services identified by users of the Defense Department's Safe Helpline for sexual assault victims, Pentagon officials have launched the Safe HelpRoom, a new service that allows victims to participate in group chat sessions to connect with and support one another in a moderated and secure online environment.

The Safe HelpRoom is available at http://SafeHelpline.org, officials said, noting that the moderator can provide referrals as necessary and will ensure that chat postings adhere to all ground rules.

"Survivors of sexual assault have told us that being able to discuss their concerns with peers can provide a level of support not available through other means," said Jessica L. Wright, acting undersecretary of defense for personnel and readiness. "Safe HelpRoom is a groundbreaking development in the department's commitment to support military victims of sexual assault."

Safe HelpRoom sessions will begin immediately and are available twice weekly in two-hour sessions. The session schedule can be found at http://SafeHelpline.org, along with polls to determine session topics to address specific concerns.

The Safe HelpRoom and Safe Helpline are administered by the Defense Department and operated by the nonprofit organization Rape, Abuse and Incest National Network, the nation's largest anti-sexual-violence organization, through a contract with DOD's sexual assault prevention and response office, known as SAPRO.

"Safe HelpRoom was designed with unique safeguards to ensure a safe and welcoming place for survivors to connect," said Army Maj. Gen. Gary S. Patton, SAPRO director. "Safe HelpRoom is the first of its kind to require participants to commit to a series of 'ground rules' of acceptable behavior before entering a session. Additionally, each participant comment is reviewed to ensure it complies with the ground rules prior to posting for the group to see. Safe HelpRoom provides a secure and private environment for positive and supportive discussions."

When users visit Safe Helpline, the staff provides one-on-one tailored assistance and offers a variety of up-to-date service referrals for resources on and off military bases and installations, officials said in a statement announcing Safe HelpRoom's launch. Service referrals include information for sexual assault response coordinators, along with legal, medical, mental health, and spiritual military resources.

The referral database also houses information for local civilian and Veterans Affairs Department resources for helpline users seeking information and crisis support away from the military response system, they added.

CHAIRMAN JOINT CHIEFS SEES SEXUAL ASSAULT AS A MILITARY CRISIS

FROM: U.S. DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE

Dempsey: Sexual Assault Constitutes Crisis in Military
By Jim Garamone
American Forces Press Service

ABOARD A U.S. MILITARY AIRCRAFT, May 15, 2013 - Sexual assault in the force constitutes a crisis in the military, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff said today.

"We're losing the confidence of the women who serve that we can solve this problem," Army Gen. Martin E. Dempsey told reporters as he returned from NATO meetings in Brussels. "That's a crisis."

Dempsey has actively been researching this issue since he became the Army's Training and Doctrine Command chief in 2008. He continued the research as Army chief of staff, and now as chairman.

"I tasked those around me to help me understand what a decade-plus of conflict may have done to the force," he said. "Instinctively, I knew it had to have some effect."

The chairman still cannot articulate what 10 years of war has done to the force, but he does think the increase in sexual assaults, the rise in suicides, and the increase in instances of misconduct and indiscipline are in some way related.

"This is not to make excuses," he said. "We should be better than this. In fact, we have to be better than this."

All of the Joint Chiefs share his concern, Dempsey said, which was why the chiefs issued direction to the Joint Force on Sexual Assault Prevention and Response in May 2012.

"That's why we are very open to some of these legislative recommendations on changing the [Uniform Code of Military Justice]," he said. "I just want to make sure I understand the second- and third-order of effects of them."

Dempsey said the Joint Chiefs of Staff will work with all parties to find solutions to this crisis.

"But we also are trying to look at this in the broader context of what we've asked this all-volunteer force to do," he said. We've asked this all-volunteer force to fight a decade-long conflict, and we've asked them to deploy repeatedly. We need to understand the effect on the health of the force."

Meanwhile, the service branches are studying the effects of multiple and prolonged deployments on their military members.

"I would like each service to look at this and then bring back to the Joint Chiefs to see what we can learn among us all," he said.

Dempsey has a letter from the chairman and minority leader of the Senate Armed Service Committee to assess the various legislative proposals geared to prevent sexual assault in the military.

"There are a lot of good ideas out there. There are some I don't think are good ideas, and there are some I really don't understand," he said. "I'm hoping to provide my best advice back to those making the proposals. But I assure you that we are open-minded to see if there are opportunities to do better out there."

SECRETARY OF DEFENSE HAGEL ORDERS RETRAINING OF SEXUAL ASSAULT RESPONDERS

FROM: U.S. DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE

Hagel Orders Retraining of Recruiters, Sexual Assault Responders
American Forces Press Service

WASHINGTON, May 15, 2013 - Amid a spate of allegations of criminal behavior by military recruiters and service members involved in the Defense Department's efforts to prevent sexual assaults and help that crime's victims, Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel has ordered the services to retrain, re-credential and rescreen all sexual assault prevention and response personnel and military recruiters.

In a statement, Pentagon Press Secretary George Little said Hagel was informed yesterday about allegations of criminal behavior against an Army sergeant first class who was a sexual assault prevention and response coordinator at Fort Hood, Texas.

"I cannot convey strongly enough his frustration, anger and disappointment over these troubling allegations and the breakdown in discipline and standards they imply," Little said.

Hagel met with Army Secretary John M. McHugh and directed him to fully investigate the matter rapidly, to discover the extent of the allegations, and to ensure that all of those who might be involved are dealt with appropriately, the press secretary added.

Little said Hagel directed the retraining, re-credentialing and rescreening to address the broader concerns that have arisen out of these allegations and other recent events.

"Sexual assault is a crime, and will be treated as such," the press secretary said. "The safety, integrity, and well-being of every service member and the success of our mission hang in the balance. Secretary Hagel is looking urgently at every course of action to stamp out this deplorable conduct and ensure that those individuals up and down the chain of command who tolerate or engage in this behavior are appropriately held accountable."

Army officials announced yesterday that the Army Criminal Investigation Command is investigating the Fort Hood soldier for pandering, abusive sexual contact, assault and maltreatment of subordinates.

In a statement, Defense Department officials said the soldier had been assigned as an equal opportunity advisor and sexual harassment and sexual assault response and prevention program coordinator with a 3rd Corps battalion at Fort Hood when the allegations surfaced. The soldier was immediately suspended from all duties by the chain of command once the allegations were brought to the command's attention, officials said, adding that charges had so far not been filed or preferred.

During testimony last week before the House Appropriations Committee's defense subcommittee, McHugh expressed anger over sexual assaults and sex abuse crimes in the military.

"This is so contrary to everything upon which the Army was built," he said. "To see this kind of activity happening in our ranks is really heart wrenching and sickening."

McHugh told members of Congress that Army leaders are focused on efforts to prevent sexual assaults.

"As I said to our new brigadier general corps when I spoke to them about two weeks ago, 'You can do everything from this point forward in your military career perfectly, but if you fail on this, you have failed the Army,'" he said.