'Zero tolerance' in military does not eliminate the need for due process

Regarding Ms. Dellamalva's editorial piece on February 19 about military sexual harassment ("Tolerance for sexual harassment in military is more than zero,") I cry foul on two points. First, the Citadel is an agency of the state, not the "military," so take that case up with the appropriate governor. Second, in all your examples dealing with the REAL military, you overlooked the catchy phrase "due process." "Zero tolerance" does not mean "instant retribution." The Department of Defense policy is very clear on what is harassment, remedy and punishment. If due process is not followed, we degenerate to the point where accuser, judge, jury, and executioner are the same person, and where anyone with a lawyer can undo a judgment.

The Navy appropriately punished every officer proven, not alleged, guilty. Sergeant Major of the Army McKinney stepped down from a sexual harassment commission to eliminate the appearance of a cover-up: what would any sensible person think if he stayed in charge of the commission? Sergeant Major (retired) Hoster was given standard instructions used in any suspected sexual harassment case, which, when selectively quoted by her lawyer, do sound callous. What was the resolution of McKinney's case? Did it not fit in with your theme? The soldiers at Aberdeen and Ft. Leonard Wood are receiving dishonorable discharges and prison sentences, under due process. The Aberdeen CID office is investigating over 500 cases from the mentioned hot line. But, for Ms. Dellamalva, this is insufficient: we must punish the accused as well as the guilty.

Ms. Dellamalva cites four incidents over a period of 6 years (actions of about 100 people) as proof-positive that the military is incompetent. In one year in Tucson alone, how many cases of harassment, abuse, or rape are there? The Tucson metropolitan area, with about 750,000 people, compares with about 70 percent of the Army and Navy alone: there are still the Air Force, Marine Corps, and DOD civil service. Ms. Dellamalva's piece of fiction borders on libel; the military maintains a tolerance of sexual harassment as close to zero as human error and the laws of a democratic nation will allow.

By Joe Carmody (letter)
Arizona Daily Wildcat
February 27, 1997