Biden signs order making sexual harassment an offense under military code

President Biden has signed an executive order to make sexual harassment an offense under the Uniform Code of Military Justice, and to improve the military's response to domestic violence and the unlawful distribution of intimate images.

Establishing sexual harassment as an offense under the code was called for by the I Am Vanessa Guillén Act in the 2022 National Defense Authorization Act. Guillén was only 20 when she was murdered in April 2020, allegedly by a fellow soldier. A U.S. Army report said officers at Fort Hood ignored her complaints of sexual harassment in the time leading up to her death. 

Mr. Biden has said he supports the military removing the investigation and prosecution of sexual assault cases from commanders' control, which would be a big change for the military criminal justice system.