Summary: There were 116 reports of sexual assault at Washington state military installations during 2010. Experts and Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta agree that the actual rate of sexual assault in the military is likely six times higher. That would put the national figure for military sexual assaults in 2010 close to 19,000. Since being appointed as Secretary of Defense in late 2011, Panetta has taken the issue head on. In January, he took the unusual step of publicly addressing victims. Panetta: "I deeply regret that such crimes occur in the US military. And I will do all I can to prevent these sexual assaults from occurring in the Department of Defense." But as KUOW's Patricia Murphy reports, reducing sexual assault in the military is a formidable task. Many say it requires a cultural sea change for an institution long dominated by hyper–masculine beliefs and victim stigma.
