A new report finds that 10 of the military’s investigations into allegations of child sexual abuse were marred by “significant deficiencies.” The Pentagon’s internal watchdog is recommending that the cases be reopened. The report from the Department of Defense Inspector General’s office audited 163 cases closed in 2012. In most cases, the inspector general found that only “minor deficiencies” affected the outcomes, while roughly a third of the cases were properly handled with no errors found in the investigation. But in 10 cases—6 percent of the total under review—“significant deficiencies” were found, including failure to conduct sexual-assault forensic examinations and not collecting key evidence from the crime scene. Out of the six investigations sent to the Army’s Criminal Ingestigations Command for consideration, only four have been reopened. The Army’s Criminal Investigations Command “declined to pursue additional investigative activity for the two remaining cases because they believed it would not alter the outcome of the case or too much time had elapsed.”
