STOP Act of 2019

I 116TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION H. R. 3148 To improve protections for victims of sexual assault in the Armed Forces, and for other purposes. IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES JUNE 5, 2019 Mr. TURNER (for himself and Mrs. DAVIS of California) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Armed Services A BILL To improve protections for victims of sexual assault in the Armed Forces, and for other purposes. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa- 1 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 2 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 3 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Sexual Trauma Ongo- 4 ing Protections Act of 2019’’ or the ‘‘STOP Act of 2019’’. 5 SEC. 2. COMMAND INFLUENCE UNDER THE UNIFORM CODE 6 OF MILITARY JUSTICE. 7 (a) ARTICLE 37.—Section 837 of title 10, United 8 States Code (article 37 of the Uniform Code of Military 9 Justice), is amended— 10 VerDate Sep 11 2014 19:16 Jun 15, 2019 Jkt 034408 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3148.IH H3148 pbinns on DSK79D2C42PROD with BILLS 2 •HR 3148 IH (1) in the heading, by striking ‘‘Unlawfully 1 influencing action of court’’ and inserting 2 ‘‘Command influence’’; 3 (2) in subsection (a)— 4 (A) by striking ‘‘(a) No authority con- 5 vening a general, special, or summary court- 6 martial’’ and inserting ‘‘(a)(1) No court-martial 7 convening authority’’; 8 (B) in paragraph (1) (as designated by 9 subparagraph (A) of this paragraph), by strik- 10 ing ‘‘proceeding. No person’’ and inserting the 11 following: ‘‘proceeding. 12 ‘‘(3) No person’’; 13 (C) by inserting before paragraph (3) (as 14 designated by subparagraph (B) of this para- 15 graph) the following new paragraph: 16 ‘‘(2) No court-martial convening authority, nor 17 any other commanding officer, may deter or attempt 18 to deter a potential witness from participating in the 19 investigatory process or testifying at a court-martial. 20 The denial of a request to travel at Government ex- 21 pense or refusal to make a witness available shall 22 not by itself constitute unlawful command influ- 23 ence.’’; 24 (D) in paragraph (3) (as so designated)— 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 19:16 Jun 15, 2019 Jkt 034408 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3148.IH H3148 pbinns on DSK79D2C42PROD with BILLS 3 •HR 3148 IH (i) by inserting ‘‘attempt to’’ before 1 ‘‘influence’’; 2 (ii) by striking ‘‘with respect to his ju- 3 dicial acts’’ and inserting ‘‘or preliminary 4 hearing officer with respect to such acts 5 taken pursuant to this chapter as pre- 6 scribed by the President’’; and 7 (iii) by striking the second sentence; 8 and 9 (E) by adding at the end the following new 10 paragraphs: 11 ‘‘(4) Paragraphs (1) through (3) shall not apply 12 with respect to— 13 ‘‘(A) general instructional or informational 14 courses in military justice if such courses are 15 designed solely for the purpose of instructing 16 members of a command in the substantive and 17 procedural aspects of courts-martial; 18 ‘‘(B) statements regarding criminal activ- 19 ity or a particular criminal offense that do not 20 advocate a particular disposition, or a par- 21 ticular court-martial finding, or sentence; or 22 ‘‘(C) statements and instructions given in 23 open court by the military judge or counsel. 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 19:16 Jun 15, 2019 Jkt 034408 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3148.IH H3148 pbinns on DSK79D2C42PROD with BILLS 4 •HR 3148 IH ‘‘(5)(A) Notwithstanding paragraphs (1) 1 through (3), but subject to subparagraph (B)— 2 ‘‘(i) a superior convening authority or offi- 3 cer may generally discuss matters to consider 4 regarding the disposition of alleged violations of 5 this chapter with a subordinate convening au- 6 thority or officer; and 7 ‘‘(ii) a subordinate convening authority or 8 officer may seek advice from a superior con- 9 vening authority or officer regarding the dis- 10 position of an alleged offense under this chap- 11 ter. 12 ‘‘(B) No superior convening authority or officer 13 may direct a subordinate convening authority or offi- 14 cer to make a particular disposition in a specific 15 case or otherwise substitute the discretion of such 16 authority or such officer for that of the subordinate 17 convening authority or officer.’’; 18 (3) in subsection (b)— 19 (A) by striking ‘‘to be advanced, in grade’’ 20 and inserting ‘‘to be advanced in grade’’; and 21 (B) by striking ‘‘accused before a court- 22 martial’’ and inserting ‘‘person in a court-mar- 23 tial proceeding’’; and 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 19:16 Jun 15, 2019 Jkt 034408 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3148.IH H3148 pbinns on DSK79D2C42PROD with BILLS 5 •HR 3148 IH (4) by adding at the end the following new sub- 1 sections: 2 ‘‘(c) No finding or sentence of a court-martial may 3 be held incorrect on the ground of a violation of this sec- 4 tion, or the doctrine of apparent unlawful command influ- 5 ence, unless the violation materially prejudices the sub- 6 stantial rights of the accused. 7 ‘‘(d)(1) A superior convening authority or com- 8 manding officer may withhold the authority of a subordi- 9 nate convening authority or officer to dispose of offenses 10 in individual cases, types of cases, or generally. 11 ‘‘(2) Except as otherwise authorized by this chapter, 12 a superior convening authority or commanding officer may 13 not limit the discretion of a subordinate convening author- 14 ity or officer to act with respect to a case for which the 15 subordinate convening authority or officer has authority 16 to dispose of the offenses.’’. 17 (b) ARTICLE 53a.—Section 853a(b)(5) of title 10, 18 United States Code (article 53a of the Uniform Code of 19 Military Justice), is amended by striking ‘‘the President’’ 20 and inserting ‘‘the President, the Secretary of Defense, 21 or the Secretary concerned.’’. 22 (c) TABLE OF SECTIONS AMENDMENT.—The table of 23 sections at the beginning of subchapter VII of chapter 47 24 of title 10, United States Code, is amended by striking 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 19:16 Jun 15, 2019 Jkt 034408 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3148.IH H3148 pbinns on DSK79D2C42PROD with BILLS 6 •HR 3148 IH the item relating to section 837 (article 37 of the Uniform 1 Code of Military Justice) and inserting the following new 2 item: 3 ‘‘837. Art. 37. Command influence.’’. SEC. 3. ANNUAL REPORT ON MILITARY PROTECTIVE OR- 4 DERS. 5 (a) REPORT REQUIRED.—Chapter 80 of title 10, 6 United States Code, is amended by adding at the end the 7 following new section: 8 ‘‘§ 1567b. Annual report on military protective orders 9 ‘‘Not later than March 1, 2020, and each year there- 10 after through 2024, the Secretary of Defense shall submit 11 to the congressional defense committees a report that 12 identifies— 13 ‘‘(1) the number of military protective orders 14 issued in the calendar year preceding the year in 15 which the report is submitted; and 16 ‘‘(2) the number of such orders that were re- 17 ported to appropriate civilian authorities in accord- 18 ance with section 1567a(a).’’. 19 (b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sections 20 at the beginning of such chapter is amended by adding 21 after the item relating to section 1567a the following new 22 item: 23 ‘‘1567b. Annual report on military protective orders.’’. VerDate Sep 11 2014 19:16 Jun 15, 2019 Jkt 034408 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6211 E:\BILLS\H3148.IH H3148 pbinns on DSK79D2C42PROD with BILLS 7 •HR 3148 IH SEC. 4. CONSIDERATION OF APPLICATION FOR TRANSFER 1 FOR A STUDENT OF A MILITARY SERVICE 2 ACADEMY WHO IS THE VICTIM OF A SEXUAL 3 ASSAULT OR RELATED OFFENSE. 4 (a) MILITARY ACADEMY.—Section 7461 of title 10, 5 United States Code, is amended by adding at the end the 6 following new subsection (e): 7 ‘‘(e) CONSIDERATION OF APPLICATION FOR TRANS- 8 FER FOR A CADET WHO IS THE VICTIM OF A SEXUAL 9 ASSAULT OR RELATED OFFENSE.—(1) The Secretary of 10 the Army shall provide for timely determination and action 11 on an application for consideration of a transfer to an- 12 other military service academy submitted by a cadet who 13 was a victim of a sexual assault or other offense covered 14 by section 920, 920a, or 920c of this title (article 120, 15 120a, or 120c of the Uniform Code of Military Justice) 16 so as to reduce the possibility of retaliation against the 17 cadet for reporting the sexual assault or other offense. 18 ‘‘(2) The Secretary of the Army shall prescribe regu- 19 lations to carry out this subsection, within guidelines pro- 20 vided by the Secretary of Defense that direct the Super- 21 intendent of the Military Academy, in coordination with 22 the Superintendent of the military service academy to 23 which the cadet wishes to transfer, to approve or deny an 24 application under this subsection not later than 72 hours 25 after the submission of the application. If the Super- 26 VerDate Sep 11 2014 19:16 Jun 15, 2019 Jkt 034408 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3148.IH H3148 pbinns on DSK79D2C42PROD with BILLS 8 •HR 3148 IH intendent denies such an application, the cadet may re- 1 quest review of the denial by the Secretary of the Army, 2 who shall grant or deny review not later than 72 hours 3 after submission of the request for review. The Secretary 4 of the Army shall ensure that all records of any request, 5 determination, or action under this subsection remain con- 6 fidential.’’. 7 (b) NAVAL ACADEMY.—Section 8480 of title 10, 8 United States Code, is amended by adding at the end the 9 following new subsection (e): 10 ‘‘(e) CONSIDERATION OF APPLICATION FOR TRANS- 11 FER FOR A MIDSHIPMAN WHO IS THE VICTIM OF A SEX- 12 UAL ASSAULT OR RELATED OFFENSE.—(1) The Sec- 13 retary of the Navy shall provide for timely determination 14 and action on an application for consideration of a trans- 15 fer to another military service academy submitted by a 16 midshipman who was a victim of a sexual assault or other 17 offense covered by section 920, 920a, or 920c of this title 18 (article 120, 120a, or 120c of the Uniform Code of Mili- 19 tary Justice) so as to reduce the possibility of retaliation 20 against the midshipman for reporting the sexual assault 21 or other offense. 22 ‘‘(2) The Secretary of the Navy shall prescribe regu- 23 lations to carry out this subsection, within guidelines pro- 24 vided by the Secretary of Defense that direct the Super- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 19:16 Jun 15, 2019 Jkt 034408 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3148.IH H3148 pbinns on DSK79D2C42PROD with BILLS 9 •HR 3148 IH intendent of the Naval Academy, in coordination with the 1 Superintendent of the military service academy to which 2 the midshipman wishes to transfer, to approve or deny an 3 application under this subsection not later than 72 hours 4 after the submission of the application. If the Super- 5 intendent denies such an application, the midshipman may 6 request review of the denial by the Secretary of the Navy, 7 who shall grant or deny review not later than 72 hours 8 after submission of the request for review. The Secretary 9 of the Navy shall ensure that all records of any request, 10 determination, or action under this subsection remain con- 11 fidential.’’. 12 (c) AIR FORCE ACADEMY.—Section 9461 of title 10, 13 United States Code, is amended by adding at the end the 14 following new subsection (e): 15 ‘‘(e) CONSIDERATION OF APPLICATION FOR TRANS- 16 FER FOR A CADET WHO IS THE VICTIM OF A SEXUAL 17 ASSAULT OR RELATED OFFENSE.—(1) The Secretary of 18 the Air Force shall provide for timely determination and 19 action on an application for consideration of a transfer 20 to another military service academy submitted by a cadet 21 who was a victim of a sexual assault or other offense cov- 22 ered by section 920, 920a, or 920c of this title (article 23 120, 120a, or 120c of the Uniform Code of Military Jus- 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 19:16 Jun 15, 2019 Jkt 034408 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3148.IH H3148 pbinns on DSK79D2C42PROD with BILLS 10 •HR 3148 IH tice) so as to reduce the possibility of retaliation against 1 the cadet for reporting the sexual assault or other offense. 2 ‘‘(2) The Secretary of the Air Force shall prescribe 3 regulations to carry out this subsection, within guidelines 4 provided by the Secretary of Defense that direct the Su- 5 perintendent of the Air Force Academy, in coordination 6 with the Superintendent of the military service academy 7 to which the cadet wishes to transfer, to approve or deny 8 an application under this subsection not later than 72 9 hours after the submission of the application. If the Su- 10 perintendent denies such an application, the cadet may re- 11 quest review of the denial by the Secretary of the Air 12 Force, who shall grant or deny review not later than 72 13 hours after submission of the request for review. The Sec- 14 retary of the Air Force shall ensure that all records of 15 any request, determination, or action under this sub- 16 section remain confidential.’’. 17 SEC. 5. TIMELY DISPOSITION OF NONPROSECUTABLE SEX- 18 RELATED OFFENSES. 19 (a) POLICY REQUIRED.—Not later than 180 days 20 after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary 21 of Defense shall develop and implement a policy to ensure 22 the timely disposition of nonprosecutable sex-related of- 23 fenses in accordance with subsection (b). 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 19:16 Jun 15, 2019 Jkt 034408 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3148.IH H3148 pbinns on DSK79D2C42PROD with BILLS 11 •HR 3148 IH (b) ELEMENTS.—The policy developed under sub- 1 section (a) shall require the following: 2 (1) Not later than seven days after the date on 3 which a court-martial convening authority declines 4 to refer a nonprosecutable sex-related offense for 5 trial by general or special court-martial under chap- 6 ter 47 of title 10, United States Code (the Uniform 7 Code of Military Justice), the convening authority 8 will forward the investigation to the commander of 9 the accused. 10 (2) Not later than 90 days after the date on 11 which the commander of the accused receives the in- 12 vestigation under paragraph (1)— 13 (A) the commander will determine whether 14 or not to take other judicial, nonjudicial, or ad- 15 ministrative action in connection with the con- 16 duct covered by the investigation, including any 17 lesser included offenses, as authorized under 18 section 815 of title 10, United States Code (ar- 19 ticle 15 of the Uniform Code of Military Jus- 20 tice); and 21 (B) in a case in which the commander of 22 the accused decides to take additional action 23 under subparagraph (A), the commander take 24 such actions as appropriate. 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 19:16 Jun 15, 2019 Jkt 034408 PO 00000 Frm 00011 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3148.IH H3148 [Text truncated for display. 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