EMBARGOED UNTIL 4 P.M., UNLESS SECRETARY JAMES MENTIONS IT EARLIER
Air Force civilians who become victims of sexual assault will now have the same resources available to them as uniformed airmen.
Maj. Gen. Gina Grosso, head of the Air Force's sexual assault prevention and response efforts, has signed a policy memo that gives Air Force civilians the right to file both unrestricted and restricted reports and gives them access to sexual assault response coordinators and victim advocates.
"We knew we could do more to help our civilian airmen, so we sought an exception to policy to allow the Air Force to extend the same care and support to civilian victims as we do to our military airmen and their families," Grosso said Monday in a statement.
Under the Defense Department policy for which the Air Force received an exemption, Previously under Defense Department policy, Air Force civilians who went to SARCs for help were referred to off-base authorities, such as local police and rape crisis centers, said Maritza Sayle-Walker, a senior policy analyst in the Air Force Sexual Assault Prevention and Response office.
Civilians stationed outside the U.S. previously had the option of filing unrestricted reports — which launch an investigation — but not restricted ones, for which victims do not launch an investigation at the time but receive medical treatment and mental health care, Sayle-Walker told Air Force Times.
The issue came up when Air Force civilians trained on how to interact with the military to deal with sexual assault cases, she said. The Air Force realized that civilians did not have the same on-base resources as uniformed airmen.
"We wanted to provide the best care to the total force – to all of our airmen," Sayle-Walker said. "Our civilians are very valuable members of our team, and so we wanted to ensure we could provide them with support when they came forward through both reporting options. So if they wanted to come forward and just talk to someone and do a restricted report, they could get advocacy services right at the installation and not have to go elsewhere."
Giving civilians the ability to file restricted reports allows the Air Force to provide sexual assault victims with the care and advocacy services they need to "get them into a better state of mind," so they can decide later if they want to contact law enforcement, she said.
The issue came up when Air Force civilians trained on how to interact with the military to deal with sexual assault cases, she said. The Air Force realized that civilians did not have the same on-base resources as uniformed airmen.
The Air Force currently has 118 nationally certified SARCs, 79 full-time victim advocates and 2,248 military and civilian volunteer victim advocates, said service spokeswoman Maj. Erika Yepsen.
"At this time, we do believe we have a sufficient amount of SARCs and our full-time SAPR victim advocates as well our volunteer victim advocates," Sayle-Walker said. "We don't anticipate needing an increase."
The changes are meant to demonstrate to Air Force civilians that the service can help them at any time and "they're not on their own," she said.
"Regardless of where you are stationed, you can speak with a SARC, get advocacy services and file a restricted or unrestricted report, just as our service members can do," Sayle-Walker said.
