Stacey Thompson, a Marine veteran, was... - Veterans Coming Home | Facebook

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This is the face of military sexual assault. Despite programs for awareness, this continues to happen. This shows one of the reasons that assaults might not be reported. I wonder who the rapist was and if he was a superior performer at work, hiding behind his appearance and connections. Four years she fought just to get the character of her discharge changed.

Every day, every night. She wonders exactly what happened when she was drugged. For those of you asking "how did she put herself in this position?" I suggest she did not have an expectation of rape and assault when she arrived at the location where this occurred. It took four years to get her discharge reclassified.

Guess how long it takes to get disblity for MST? The burden of proof is placed on the victim. There must be evidence that points to the MST as the cause. If there are no medical records (for various reasons) documenting the assault, the next step is having people who were aware of the assault testify on her behalf. Where are those people? Transferred to another assignment with no forwarding address. They may be nameless. Would you be willing to testify against a unit member if you knew that he/she had been the perpetrator or a casual observer? When someone is drugged, how are the details recorded?

I worked as a Sexual Assault Examiner in the civilian population. I cared for all ages and sexes. Those rape kits are collected, sealed and turned over to law enforcement and the forensic labs. How long do they sit on the shelf before funds become available to process them? And what is the priority at the forensic lab when there are murder weapons and other evidence from other crime scenes getting attention? What if there is no other profile of the DNA that is found during the course of an exam? A "firstimer" as though this type of thing does not happen within our ranks? Multiple sources indicate that a single assault develops into a pattern that is repeated. Because what are the probabilities that the abuser will be identified in a timely manner and this won't be swept under a rug?

Meanwhile, before her reclassification she was not even eligible for care in the VA system. Currently, the policy is if there is an MST complaint, care and meds and counseling are available for those eligible for VA care regardless of disability rating. But how to access that care?

Asking the questions is a starting place. I don't expect resolution in this forum. I would like you to ponder this topic. Because the victim might be you or a coworker who is ashamed or threatened. It may be your daughters, your wives, your children, your brothers, your mothers. No population is immune.

We have annual briefings in place at some units. Do you listen? Do you take action? Do you create a safe way to bring this up your chain of command? Should we turyn assault investigation over to civilian authorities or keep it within the military?

There are a multitude of reasons to become one of the 22. This is a huge one. Thoughts? Please comment.