Sexual assault

As in civilian society, sexual assaults within the military run far more rampant than reports indicate.

That's because victims of sexual assault within the ranks are hesitant to come forward for fear the incident will appear on their records.

A 2004 investigation conducted by the Government Accountability Office found that 52 percent of service members who had been sexually assaulted over the preceding 12 months had not reported the assaults, according to a story in the Army Times. The report was released July 31.

What is Fort Benning doing to prevent and respond to reported sexual assaults? What is the post doing to encourage victims to report? Do company commanders receive special training on how to handle such incidences? I e-mailed post spokeswoman Elsie Jackson this morning to ask these questions.

Stay tuned.

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