Your options

First, what classifies sexual harassment?

Sexual harassment is a form of gender discrimination that involves unwelcome sexual advances, sexual innuendo, request for sexual favors, and other verbal or physical conduct of a sexual nature.

Sexual assault and sexual harassment are not the same, although they are related to each other.

Two types of sexual harassment:

Quid pro quo

Refers to conditions placed on a person’s career or terms of employment in return for sexual favors.

Hostile environment

Sexual harassment occurs when a person is subjected to offensive, crude, unwanted, and unsolicited comments and behavior of a sexual nature that interferes with that person’s performance or creates an intimidating, hostile or offensive working environment.

What can I do?

In the event of sexual harassment:

In order to stop sexual harassment, the aggrieved is encouraged to make an informal sexual harassment complaint. Report the inappropriate behavior to your chain of command through your SHARP representative. If you are a civilian, report the behavior immediately to your supervisor, or to the Equal Employment Opportunity office.

If the behavior persists, file a formal sexual harassment complaint through your brigade SHARP representative. If you are a civilian, report the incident to your Equal Employment Opportunity office.

In the event of sexual assault:

1. Get to a safe place. If you are in need of urgent medical attention, call 911.  Brooks Army Medical Center (BAMC) at Fort Sam Houston and Methodist Transplant and Specialty Hospital in downtown San Antonio can also offer you immediate health care.

2. Contact your local SHARP representative, or call the Fort Sam Houston Sexual Assault Hotline at 210-808-7272.

3. To protect evidence, do not shower, brush your teeth, put on make up, eat, or drink, or change clothes until advised to do so. You, or your SHARP representative may report the crime to Army or local law enforcement.

Victims of sexual assault are encouraged to contact law enforcement.

Restricted sexual assault report:

We value your privacy. Restricted reporting offers Soldiers and Family members (except underage children) the option to report a sexual assault without having to notify law enforcement, chain of command, and protecting the identity of the victim.

This option is only available if you report the incident to your victim advocate, health care personnel, or sexual assault response coordinator (SARC).

Unrestricted sexual assault report:

Unrestricted Reporting is the military’s preferred reporting method because it provides the widest latitude to help and protect victims of sexual assault. Through the unrestricted option, details of the incident are kept confidential and are only disclosed to the chain of command on a need to know basis. An unrestricted report triggers an investigation so that offenders may be held accountable and the safety of the victim is ensured.

Entitlements (independent of the reporting option)

• Immediate Medical care
• Advocacy
• Counseling
• Pastoral care upon request
• Sexual assault forensic examination
• Special Victim Counsel
• Follow-up medical care

Unrestricted reporting victims are also entitled to:

• Request transer from their unit
• Law enforcement investigation into the incident
• Military protection order
• Civilian protection order
• Chain of command support