Military

Not just nude photos: Sexual assault on the rise at West Point, Annapolis military academies

Official reports of sexual assault rose at two of the three US military academies, while an anonymous survey of students suggested that unwanted sexual contact is also on the rise, according to new Pentagon data.

During the last academic year, which ran from June 1, 2015 to May 31, 2016, there were 26 reported sexual assaults at the US Military Academy at West Point in New York, 28 at the US Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland, and 32 at the US Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs, Colorado.

his represents an increase of nine more incidents than the previous year for West Point and three more at the Naval Academy, while the Air Force Academy saw a decrease of 17 complaints, according to an annual report on sexual harassment and violence at the service academies published Wednesday by the Pentagon’s Sexual Assault Prevention and Response Office (SAPRO).

Overall, the last academic year represented a drop in five cases from the previous year’s record high of 91.