I was a VA and then a SARC - and it just made me even more jaded on it. There was a case of a SSG (M) sexually assaulted a SPC (F). In fact, he actually groomed her to trusting him to get to that point in hindsight. I was the BN SARC at the time and she first reported he was sending her inappropriate texts and she just wanted him to stop. She didn't want to file a report or anything, just wanted him to stop. The BDE SARC had him come to his office. I was there. And he said leave her alone. Delete her number. Stop texting her. He denied it. "Oh I'm married I would never." I said I saw the texts. His face changed in that instance "Well it was consensual." I said no it wasn't. You out rank her, for one. So it can't be consensual with the position of power you hold and 2 she repeatedly said stop. He sat there and I could just see it in his face he's a predator. And he finally said he would and walked out slamming the door. But he didn't and he ended up somehow convincing her to let him come to her house on base. And then assaulted her.

It ended up going to court martial and he got found not guilty somehow. She ETSed by that point and had to come back from out of state for it. His wife was there she told me (I had PCSed by then). His mom. Well then a few years later at the unit I went to someone showed up and found out he was in that unit it happened and we were talking about how toxic and messed up it was. I brought that up - not mentioning a name. I said a SSG who was in S3 at the time. "Oh I know who that is. He would brag about how he got away with it." Oh and I found out later he had a GOMAR for sexual harassment prior to that in a different unit.

I also had cases where they were unsubstantiated because the victim didn't report right away so no physical evidence and nothing is more heartbreaking than looking someone in the eyes and saying that nothing is going to happen to the perpetrator.

There are just too many cases like all these. This is one reason I will never encourage anyone to join the military. If any of my nieces or nephews ever ask me about the Army, I'll be honest with them. Especially nieces. Thank goodness my daughter can never join any branch.

SFC Kelly Fuerhoff - I was the one of the BN VA down at Soto Cano, and received a complaint of an assault. At first, the client didn't want to do an official report. After talking with her, going over the form and her rights, she decided to keep it as an Informal Complaint.

To make matters worse, I knew personally both the client and the assailant. To make THAT even worse, they were both due to PCS to the same duty station down the road, just months apart from each other. She promised me that if he attempted to make contact in any way, she would turn the Informal to Formal. This was just last year. I don't know what became of everything.

MSG (Join to see) - The victim with the SSG - I knew her. She had been my soldier for a little bit. We're still friends. She told me she had to go back and I said be prepared for his lawyer to rip you apart. She told me after that happened. I said yep that's what any defense lawyer does.

Was this early in SHARP? I don't recall there ever being "informal" or "formal" complaints. I thought that was EO. There's Restricted and Unrestricted. You can start Restricted and go Unrestricted. But you can never go Unrestricted to Restricted. I started as a company VA (when they had them at first) in 2013. Then I was the BN alternate VA - then I was bumped to BN primary VA when the guy who was primary got accused of SH. Then they started calling primaries SARCs and alternates VAs. Then I was BDE SARC for about four or so months because then I did the compassionate for my daughter and had to PCS.

I know one victim I took to the police off base as it happened off base and after cop takes her statement asks to talk to me in the hall. "Do you believe she's telling the truth?" Something like that. I said well that's your job to investigate, not mine. I'm here to support her for whatever she needs. They quickly called it unfounded and then it went to CID and they took longer but unfounded. Anyone who came to me or was sent to me I just listened. I didn't judge. I didn't wonder anything. That wasn't up to me.