Rep. Mike Turner (R-OH) has added an amendment to the FY2010 defense authorization bill that aims to improve the response and investigation of allegations of sexual assault. The amendment was a direct result of the murder of Lance Corporal Maria Lauterbach. I’ve covered her death, the subsequent manhunt for ex-Corporal Cesar Laurean, and his court appearances over at A Soldier’s Perspective and I high encourage you to read those articles for background on why the case strikes very close to home.
Here is one portion of section 592 that grabbed my attention.
(2) INFORMATION TO MEMBERS- The Secretary of Defense shall ensure that, when a military protective order is issued to protect a member of the Armed Forces, the member is informed of the right of the member to request a base transfer from the command.
The language is a bit vague on what constitutes a “base transfer from the command.” I am going to assume that the base transfer does not have a minimum distance from the previous base since it is not listed specifically in the bill. This could lead to many problems.
For example, Lauterbach was stationed at Camp Lejeune. Literally down the road is New River, and within 30 minutes of Camp Lejeune is Cherry Point. The point of an MPO is to prevent contact between the alleged victim and perpetrator of a crime. Will the DoD decide what is an appropriate distance or will each branch?
I’m certain there are other areas of the amendment that will be flushed out and explained if it does in fact become law. Sexual assault is a serious matter and hopefully this amendment will help prevent future cases.
