President Joe Biden on Friday will sign an executive order revamping the way sexual assault and other crimes are handled in the military, the White House said.
The order implements legislative changes to the Uniform Code of Military Justice wrapped into the fiscal 2022 National Defense Authorization Act. Under the changes, prosecution of sexual and related crimes will be handled by special victims units in the services, outside the military chain of command.
“This is a turning point for survivors of gender-based violence in the military, and represents the most significant transformation of the military justice system since the UCMJ was established in 1950,” a senior administration official told reporters Thursday.
