A monthslong investigation into allegations that leaders of an Illinois-based Army Reserve unit mishandled sexual assault complaints has ended with the reprimand of 12 soldiers, the unit's general relinquishing command and unknown disciplinary actions against two senior leaders and three civilian employees, Army Reserve officials said.
The Army launched a review of the 416th Theater Engineer Command in January 2020 at the request of Illinois Sens. Dick Durbin and Tammy Duckworth. The senators cited an Associated Press story about allegations of improper internal investigations into sexual assault complaints within the unit and retaliation against a whistleblower.
“This investigation revealed that leaders throughout the 416th TEC chain of command lack basic knowledge and understanding regarding core tenets of the Army SHARP (Sexual Harassment and Assault Response) Program," investigators wrote in a report released Tuesday.
Seven officers were reprimanded and five other soldiers were given counseling statements, Maj. Gen. Gregory Mosser, the Army Reserve's deputy commanding general, told reporters Monday. Action to address findings involving three civilian employees is pending, he added. He declined to name any of the soldiers or civilians, explain their violations or what discipline the civilians might face.
The Pentagon issued a news release Tuesday noting that “administrative actions” have been taken against two senior leaders for “performance failures.” The release did not elaborate, citing the individuals' privacy.
The Army Reserve suspended the 416th's commander, Maj. Gen. Miyako Schanely, last summer as the investigation was proceeding. Mosser refused to answer questions about her status. The Pentagon news release said the investigation found Schanely failed to properly implement the Army's sexual harassment and assault program and she has relinquished her command.
The investigation found that Schanely failed to publish an updated sexual assault policy for the 416th for more than two years; didn't convene a sexual assault review board for 15 months even though the Department of Defense requires such meetings be held monthly; left a sexual assault response coordinator position vacant for nine months; and failed to conduct a survey of the unit's command climate.
The 416th, based in the Chicago suburb of Darien, provides technical and engineering support for U.S. military forces and serves as the headquarters for nearly 11,000 soldiers in 26 states west of the Mississippi River.
Amy Braley Franck, a civilian sexual assault victim advocate with the 416th, has alleged that commanders launched internal investigations into at least two sexual assault cases, one in 2018 and another in 2019. Federal law and Department of Defense policy require that commanders refer sexual assault complaints to criminal investigators in their respective branches to avoid biased investigations. Commanders who don't follow the proper channels can face reprimand, removal from command or a court martial.
Braley Franck also alleged that the 416th went months without holding a sexual assault management meeting and unit commanders placed a woman on the firing range with someone she had accused of sexually harassing her, causing her to fear for her life. Braley Frank's commanders suspended her in November 2019 in what she believes was retaliation for alerting Army criminal investigators to the internal probes.
The Wisconsin National Guard’s top commander, Adj. Gen. Donald Dunbar, resigned in December 2019 after a federal review found he ran internal sexual assault investigations rather than forward complaints to the National Guard Bureau.
The reprimands and counseling statements the Army Reserve handed down against the 12 soldiers in the 416th don't carry a reduction in rank, pay cuts or a loss of benefits.
Rachel VanLandingham, a retired U.S. Air Force lieutenant colonel who teaches national security law at Southwestern Law School in Los Angeles, said generals could decide to remove a reprimand from a soldier’s file if their behavior improves, or use it to justify tougher punishment if problems continue. They also could place the reprimand in the soldier’s permanent human resources file, which could hurt an officer’s chances at promotion, she said.
She described counseling statements as a “tiny slap on the wrist” and called them “practically meaningless.”
Mosser acknowledged to reporters that the Reserve's hiring process for its sexual assault victim support programs aren't very rapid and sometimes civilian positions end up remaining vacant for longer than commanders like.
Aides for Durbin and Duckworth didn't immediately respond to emails seeking comment.
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