Where is paula coughlin now

It is unjust and inhuman to allow this broken and biased system to persist. It is un-American. This is about fairness, justice, and the right of every American—most especially those who have signed up to fight for our freedom—to have access to a transparent and legitimate system of justice worthy of our nation and in line with our values and constitutional rights.

Now is the time for a professional and objective system based on evidence and the rule of law. To suggest that our sons, daughters, brothers, and sisters should willingly accept anything less is a slap in the face to those who have fought so hard in service to this country. The calls from Military leaders and their supporters for more time ring hollow, and history shows that such promises are really just a veiled defense of the status quo.

No more excuses. No more delays. Congress must act now. They must listen to our servicemen and women, the victims who are directly impacted by this crime, who have raised their voices and are calling for an independent, impartial military justice system.

Leadership is clearly lacking, and current policies have proved inadequate to hold bad actors to account. A full investigation with severe consequences for everyone involved — including negligent commanders — is the first step, but can the Marine Corps brass step up? Who'd sign up to serve their country when leadership can't protect them from the worst elements within?

This is a failure for the victim and the command. The failure doesn't stop there for our servicewomen. And the suicide rate for female veterans is nearly six times the rate of civilian women. Confronting this culture of misogyny and discrimination against women is a moral obligation. It is time to show the country and the world how the U. Step up. Paula Coughlin is a former lieutenant in the Navy and serves on the board of directors of Protect Our Defenders.

She joined the navy in and became a helicopter pilot. She attended the Tailhook conference in September , organized by former navy aviators at the Las Vegas Hilton. Many of the attendees got raucously drunk. Coughlin was one of the first female attendees who reported being indecently assaulted by male attendees. Coughlin testified she feared being gang-raped when she was forced to "run the gauntlet".