Liberty - Protecting civil liberties, promoting human rights

What you can do – email your MP now

We want all service men and women to feel confident that if they are a victim of a crime, this will be properly investigated and appropriately addressed – and that if they don’t feel this has happened, they have somewhere else to turn to.

We are asking for three things to make this happen:

1. That sexual assault allegations be automatically referred for investigation by the Service Police and Director of Service Prosecutions (at the moment this doesn’t happen – sexual assault and certain other sexual offences are excluded from the list of crimes that must be referred to the police for investigation)

2. That the Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC) provide independent oversight of all of the Service Police forces - the Royal Military, Naval and Air Force Police

3. The creation of an Independent Armed Services Ombudsman who can independently review individual cases and make recommendations for further action

Email Your MP today and urge them to meet the above demands. Help stop second-rate justice for our service people. They deserve better.

Anne-Marie Ellement

In 2009, Royal Military Police officer Anne-Marie Ellement alleged that she had been raped by two colleagues, also RMP officers. An investigation was conducted by the Royal Military Police themselves following which a decision was made that no charges should be brought. Anne-Marie complained to her family and friends that she then suffered rape-related bullying, a lack of support and overwork. She committed suicide in October 2011.

A very brief inquest was held which did not examine any of these matters in any depth. Following a judicial review brought by Liberty acting for Anne-Marie’s sisters Sharon Hardy and Khristina Swain, a fresh inquest was ordered and will be held in February 2014.

We also asked that the rape investigation be re-opened because the first investigation had been severely lacking in many ways. Important forensic tests had not been conducted, medical evidence overlooked and there was an alarming lack of expertise. Most fundamentally of all, the investigation was not independent – it was the RMP investigating the RMP. Article 3 of the Human Rights Act (no inhuman or degrading treatment) required a competent and independent investigation. The investigation fell far short of those standards.

Liberty, acting for the sisters, demanded that a fresh investigation be conducted with service police from another branch of the military in conjunction with civilian police specialising in sex crime. Following threat of judicial review, the MoD agreed to refer the matter to the RAF Police who have now agreed to initiate a fresh investigation into the allegation of rape. They will be receiving civilian assistance and expertise from Bedfordshire Police.

Deepcut

Between 1995 and 2001 four young trainee recruits to the British Army were undergoing their initial training, at the Princess Royal Barracks in Deepcut, Surrey. They all died of gunshot wounds. Very serious questions about their deaths remain unanswered.

Liberty is representing the families of Cheryl James and Sean Benton. We have some serious concerns regarding the circumstances surrounding their deaths and how they were investigated which fell far short of basic human rights standards. We now seek fresh inquests into the deaths of Cheryl and Sean.

• Find out more about Liberty's Military Justice campaign