Veterans

Today, Representatives Judy Chu, Elijah E. Cummings, Mike Honda, and other House Members are introducing legislation to prevent hazing in our armed services.

WASHINGTON, DC – Today, on the one year anniversary of Lance Corporal Harry Lew’s death from hazing, the chairs of the Congressional Black Caucus (CBC) and Congressional Hispanic Caucus (CHC) joined Congresswoman Judy Chu (CA-32), Chair of the Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus (CAPAC) in sending a letter to the House Armed Services Committee calling for action to prevent hazing. As the Committee drafts the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2013, the chairs call for the legislation to make hazing a crime under the Uniform Code of Military Justice, implement a GAO study on each service’s hazing training and prevention policies and develop of a national hazing database to track hazing incidents and report annually to Congress. Congresswoman Judy Chu (CA-32), CAPAC Chair, released the following statement:

WASHINGTON, DC – Congresswomen Judy Chu (CA-32) co-sponsored legislation yesterday to protect veterans’ rights to obtain mental healthcare treatment and services. The just introduced Veterans Mental Health Accessibility Act would eliminate a five year limit to seek mental health treatment, allowing current and previous generations of veterans to seek treatment for service-connected mental illnesses, regardless of when their conditions manifested themselves. Congresswoman Chu released the following statement about the bill:

WASHINGTON, DC – Today, Congresswoman Judy Chu (CA-32) joined the House Armed Services Subcommittee on Military Personnel for a hearing entitled “Hazing in the Military.” The hearing was a direct result of Congresswoman Chu’s year-long campaign to hold the military accountable after her nephew, Lance Corporal Harry Lew, was killed in a hazing-related incident in Afghanistan last April.

WASHINGTON, DC – Today, Congresswoman Chu (CA-32), Chair of the Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus (CAPAC) joined the Congressional Black Caucus (CBC), the Congressional Hispanic Caucus (CHC), Ranking Member Elijah E. Cummings (MD-07), and Senator Ben Cardin (MD) in hosting a forum to address hazing in the military and receive a status update on the implementation of diversity recommendations provided by the Military Leadership Diversity Commission in March of 2011. Following the briefing, Congresswoman Chu released the following statement:

WASHINGTON, DC – Yesterday, the second marine of three being held in the Lance Cpl. Harry Lew military hazing case was found innocent of all charges. The not guilty verdict for Sgt. Benjamin Johns comes just weeks after Lance Cpl. Jacob Jacoby received minimal sentencing in the same case, leaving family members of the victim – including Congresswoman Chu (CA-32), who was Harry’s aunt – to question the Marine Corps’ commitment to delivering justice. Following the verdict, Congresswoman Chu released the following statement:

WASHINGTON, DC – Following recent high-profile military hazing cases, members of the House of Representatives, family members of victims, and a community advocate joined forces today to call for immediate action from the highest levels in the military to stop hazing. Members also called for Congressional hearings on the military’s effort to prevent hazing. Representatives Judy Chu (CA-32), Adam Smith (WA-09), Mike Honda (CA-15), and Barbara Lee (CA-09) were joined on Capitol Hill by Tom Hayashi, Interim Executive Director of the Organization of Chinese Americans (OCA). Carmen Lew, sister of Lance Corporal Harry Lew, who took his own life after enduring hazing and aggressive treatment from fellow marines while serving in Afghanistan, spoke at the conference by phone. Congressional leaders released the following statements about today’s event:

Congresswoman Judy Chu (CA-32) along with 12 other Members of Congress sent a letter Friday to the House Armed Services Committee and House Oversight and Government Reform Committees requesting a hearing on the military’s hazing and harassment prevention polities.