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Appeals Court Holds That Cadets at Military Academies Must Look Solely to Military Law to Resolve Complaints of Sexual Misconduct  


Author:  Ralph Gerstein.; Lois Gerstein.


Source: Volume 11, Number 03, Winter 2019 , pp.71-72(2)




Family & Intimate Partner Violence Quarterly

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Abstract: 

Ralph and Lois Gerstein turn their experienced eyes to the examination of the handling of sexual assault complaints by officials of military academies. They discuss the case of Ms. Doe, who reported a sexual assault perpetrated by a fellow cadet at West Point. Ms. Doe sued the West Point Superintendent and Chair of the Sexual Assault Review Board, and the Commander of Cadets for creating an environment that allowed for sexual discrimination against her and the other female cadets. The court dismissed the suit on the grounds that civilian courts are not responsible for the lives of soldiers and are ill-equipped to second-guess military commander’s decisions about discipline and supervision of their troops.

Keywords: Doe v. Hagenbeck, 870 F.3d 36 (2d Cir. 2017)

Affiliations:  1: Attorney at Law; 2: Campus Safety & Student Development.

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