Air Force releases sexual assault convictions

  • Published
  • By Air Force Global Strike Command Public Affairs
BARKSDALE AIR FORCE BASE, La. --  The Air Force has made available online a listing of the service's sexual assault convictions with offenders' names, to further emphasize that this criminal conduct is not tolerated.

Anyone can view the site, which contains more than 100 sexual assault convictions from across the Air Force listed by base.

This is a significant deterrent to potential offenders and lets Airmen know that our commanders take this crime seriously, according to Col. Ronald Ratton, AFGSC staff judge advocate.

Some of the cases involve Airmen assaulting fellow Airmen. Many times these victims were co-workers - people who trusted their assailant. These offenders violated that trust and were punished accordingly.

"This is the latest initiative undertaken by the Air Force to aggressively combat the problem of sexual assaults - further underscoring there is absolutely no tolerance for this crime in our ranks," Vicki Shepherd, AFGSC Sexual Assault Prevention Response coordinator, said.

As required by many state laws, convicted Airmen must also register in their jurisdiction's sexual assault registry. These sex offender lists include the names and addresses of convicted sex offenders and are publicly available online.

Airmen convicted of sexual assault will be held accountable by military judges and court-martial panels. Punishments often include jail time, rank reductions and punitive discharges. Airmen are encouraged to visit the website and review the facts of each case, then educate and warn fellow Airmen about the consequences of committing these crimes.

"If someone observes something unfolding they should be a good wingman and safely intervene," Shepherd said. "A few words of intervention can be the best remedy and prevention."

There are a number of prevention resources available to include awareness training, education, victim advocacy, response, reporting and accountability: http://www.afpc.af.mil/library/sapr/index.asp.

U.S. Air Force Sexual Assault convictions online: http://www.afjag.af.mil/sexualassaultprosecution/index.asp