Reported Cases Of Sexual Assault In Military Increase

Military criminal organizations in 2004 received 1,700 reports of alleged cases of sexual assault, which includes rape, nonconsensual sodomy, indecent assault as well as attempts to commit those offenses.
In 1,275 of the reported cases, service members were alleged victims -- an increase of 25 percent over the number determined by a Pentagon task force in 2003, and 41 percent over the 2002 figure. The overall 2004 figure also included 425 cases in which service members allegedly assaulted or attempted to assault civilians -- a category not included in earlier years' totals.
Victim advocates said the increase could mean that incidents of sexual assault are actually rising in the military, as larger numbers of servicewomen are mobilized for today's conflicts, or that more victims are coming forward to report the assaults -- or a combination of both.