Report Finds Marine Corps Has Failed To Cut Down On Sexual Assaults
LOS ANGELES (CBS) — The Marine Corps has admitted its failure to cut down sexual assaults within its ranks.
Just last year, there were 88 reported sexual assaults at Camp Pendleton and 24 at Twentynine Palms' Air Ground Combat Center, according to a Marine Corps report cited by the Los Angeles Times.
In spite of an aggressive assault prevention program – which includes better training for all ranks, a better reporting system for victims and setting a "command climate" that discourages assaults – there were 333 sexual assaults in all in the Marine Corps, with a total of 346 victims.
In most of the reported assaults, the victim knew the attacker and one or both had been drinking, the report said.
According to Stars and Stripes newspaper, sexual assault reports in the Marine Corps "are often immediately dismissed as false and focus on the victim's behavior and reputation rather than the conduct of the offender."
A documentary called "The Invisible War," details the problem of sexual assault in the U.S. military and is set to open in theaters this weekend.
