Congressman Gonzalez Cosponsors the Bipartisan I Am Vanessa Guillén Act of 2021

WASHINGTON – Congressman Vicente Gonzalez (TX-15) today announced that he was a proud original cosponsor of the bipartisan I Am Vanessa Guillén Act of 2021, which seeks to reform the military's response to sexual violence.

Since the tragic death of Spc. Vanessa Guillén in 2020, many servicemembers have come forward to share their experience and highlight the pervasive issue of sexual assault. This legislation would overhaul the way the military responds to these reports, encourage survivors to report sexual assaults and sexual harassment, more effectively bring justice for survivors, and strengthen the military's ability to protect those in uniform.

"The harassment and death of Spc. Guillén is a story that it is all too common and one we must prevent from ever happening again," said Congressman Gonzalez. "Congress has a responsibility to pass the I am Vanessa Guillén Act and ensure we hold those who commit these heinous crimes accountable, provide justice to the survivors of sexual violence in the military and honor the memory of Spc. Vanessa Guillén."

Based on recommendations from an independent review, this legislation will:

• Move prosecution decisions on sexual assault and sexual harassment cases outside of the chain of command to an Office of the Chief Prosecutor within each military service;
• Create a standalone military offense for sexual harassment;
• Establish trained sexual harassment investigators who are outside of the chain of command of the complainant and the accused;
• Require both DoD and GAO to conduct separate evaluations of the military services' Sexual Harassment/Assault Response and Prevention (SHARP) programs;
• Reform and professionalize the Army's SHARP program by establishing civilian leadership and ensuring that victim advocates and sexual assault response coordinators are full-time positions and report to an independent chain of command; and
• Establish a process by which servicemembers can make claims for negligence and seek compensatory damages against DoD in the case of sexual assault or sexual harassment.

More information can be found here.

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