COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (AP) — Sexual assault reports have more than doubled since 2013 at Fort Carson, Colorado, according to a report released Friday by the Pentagon.
The Colorado Springs Gazette reports 116 sexual assault reports were made at Fort Carson in 2016, up from 43 reports in 2013.
The post has nearly 25,000 soldiers. Sexual assault reports there peaked in 2015 at 125.
Fort Carson’s chief of staff Col. Miles Brown said the number of reports suggests that people are confident they will be treated well.
“I think the confidence comes from the fact it is a commander’s program,” Brown said. “We lead our way through this every day and every month.”
Brown says Fort Carson commanders are determined to stop predatory behavior and ultimately want to eliminate sexual assault and harassment.
“It’s fratricide, plain and simple, and that’s why commanders have to minimize that risk,” he said.
The Pentagon report categorizes totals based on the base where a service member reported an assault but it may have happened elsewhere. Brown said some cases are decades old but any reporting victim has access to counseling and medical attention while the report is investigated.
The Pentagon report showed smaller increases at Colorado Air Force bases. Peterson had 15 reported sexual assaults in 2013 and 21 last year. Schriever received 14 reports in 2013 and 15 last year.
The Department of Defense previously released sexual assault report totals for military academies but included other installations in counts by service. The report this week shows “installation by installation, where service members are getting assistance with their sexual assault reports,” the Pentagon said in a news release.
