Each time a sailor files an unrestricted sexual assault report, it sets off a chain of responses from the victim's command, counseling services and legal support. To ensure that every resource is made available in a timely manner, the Navy is implementing a new progress report for the first eight days after an allegation is filed.
The new Sexual Assault Incident Response Oversight report is to be compiled by commanding officers within eight days of an unrestricted sexual assault report, according to a NAVADMIN released Jan. 21 by the Chief of Naval Personnel Vice Adm. Bill Moran.
"Big picture, this creates greater accountability and helps ensure victims are being taken care of in a respectable time frame, helps tracking and improves our support moving forward," CNP spokesman Lt. Joseph Keiley told Navy Times.
The report is required in situations where an active-duty sailorervice member is either an alleged victim or offender, or when a complaint is made to a reporting official, i.e., a sexual assault response coordinator, a deployed resiliency counselor or a sexual assault prevention and response victim advocate.
The new eight-day SAIRO mandate is required by the 2014 National Defense Authorization Act, Keiley said. Previously, commanding officers were required for file a SAPR situation report within 10 days of a complaint.
The eight-day period begins once a commanding officers issues an initial incident report, typically either an OPREP-3 Navy Blue or OPREP-3 Navy Unit SITREP.
The SAIRO report includes:
- Victim's command and other identifying information.
- The date victim was referred to a reporting official.
- The date the victim's complaint form was filed.
- SAPR services offered to and accepted by the victim.
- Medical and mental health care offered to and accepted by the victim
- Whether the victim required High-Risk Response team or military protection order.
- Whether the victim asked for an expedited transfer from the command.
Once this information is compiled, the commanding officer must send the SAIRO to the installation command, the first O-6 and the first flag officer in the chain of command of both the victim and the alleged offender, Keiley said.
The vast majority of this information was also included in the previous 10-day report filed by commanding officers, Keiley added, but the new SAIRO beefs up that system.
"The SAIRO upgrades the reporting process by acting as a sexual assault incident checklist for commanders," he said. "Commanders can use the report as a reference to ensure all sexual assault incident first responders are involved to the appropriate degree and that the victim is aware of and receiving all available support services."
For complete details, refer to NAVADMIN 014/15.
Meghann Myers is the Pentagon bureau chief at Military Times. She covers operations, policy, personnel, leadership and other issues affecting service members.
