Vanessa Gillen, Fort Hood Soldier Found Dead: Family Seeks $35 Million in Damages

The case, which ran from October 1, 2019 to April 22, 2020, states that “Gillen has suffered emotional pain, fear, emotional distress, and physical suffering as a result of sexual harassment, rape, sodomy, and physical assault. Injuries and deaths have been claimed.” The family is seeking $10 million for Gillen’s wrongful death and $25 million for personal injury claims.

“Historically, the 1950 Supreme Court decision, the Ferez Doctrine, did not include or address sexual assault, but the Pentagon continues to escape accountability,” Kawam said. told CNN. “This week, the Ninth Circuit determined that sexual assault is not incidental to military service, so the Pheles Doctrine should not apply to military personnel who have been sexually assaulted.”

“Our military personnel deserve the same rights and protections we all have. They have been denied these basic protections for too long. Signed to take bullets for the country and to avoid being sexually assaulted while serving.The 9th Circuit Court’s ruling is for Vanessa and all victims of sexual assault to seek justice. “It’s a big step,” she added.

U.S. Army Sergeant when asked for comment on Saturday. “As a matter of policy, the Army does not comment on ongoing litigation,” Pablo Saez said.

Gillen’s death was not only allegedly murdered by another soldier at Fort Hood, but also because her assailants transported her body to another location, miles away, where it was not found for more than two months. attracted a lot of attention. Gillen, 20, went Missing April 2020 According to the U.S. Army Criminal Investigative Command, the body was found on June 30 of that year after being last seen in the Fort Hood barracks parking lot.

The incident has resulted in outrage that the Army initially did not fully address the sexual harassment she reported experiencing and the lack of attention to her case after she went missing. .

a Report following Army fact-finding The incident shows that Gillen reported being sexually harassed on at least two occasions, but his superiors did not report it and other leaders failed to act appropriately. Her report found no evidence that she was harassed by her Spc. Aaron Robinson, her murder suspect.

Robinson allegedly murdered Gillen beat her to death with a hammer in the armory where she worked. The report also reveals that Army officials attempted to detain Robinson in a room at the base, violating Covid-19 restrictions, but said he simply fled. He later committed suicide because he was trying to

CNN’s Aaron Perrish, Barbara Starr, Amir Vera, Lori Daniel and Caroline Kelly contributed to this report.