Two years after US Army National Guard Staff Sgt Morgan Robinson committed suicide following sexual assault and gang rape by fellow soldiers, her mother said that the military took away her daughter's soul. Robinson, who was posted in Kuwait and Afghanistan when the gruesome incidents took place, died in August 2018.
The Daily Mail reported that a survey revealed that over 20,000 service members had spoken about being subjected to sexual assault. The survey also revealed that 21 percent of the women who reported a sexual assault believed that they suffered some type of retaliation aimed at stopping them from making a complaint.
'They Wanted Her Body. And They Took Her Soul'- Debbie Robinson
In an interview with CBS News, Debbie Robinson, mother of the dead soldier, said that despite complaints against the sexual assault and gang rape, the military branch did nothing to help Robinson. "To think that that's what took her life — that's what broke her. They wanted her body. And they took her soul," said the devastated mother.
The outlet reported that the first assault took place two years before Robinson's suicide during her posting in Kuwait. One of her supervisors allegedly sexually assaulted and harassed Robinson multiple times following which she reported the higher authorities, who did nothing, according to her mother.
After Robinson was sent to Afghanistan, she was gang raped by multiple soldiers leaving her scared and disillusioned. "Morgan was afraid to report what happened in Afghanistan. She was very scared. Because they threatened her, number one. And number two, she knew that it would not go anywhere. Nothing happened in Kuwait with the sexual assault and the harassment, so why would they do something, you know, in Afghanistan?" Debbie told CBS. Four months later, Robinson committed suicide in August 2018.
Robinson's Assaulter was Given Written Reprimand
Much to the dismay of the Robinson's mother, almost eight months after the suicide, the military authorities gave a written reprimand to the officer who had sexually assaulted Robinson in Kuwait.
In the inquiry reported conducted following Robinson's suicide, the unredacted pages stated, "Sergeant Robinson suffered sexual, physical, and psychological trauma while deployed. The sequela of this trauma was a factor in her death," reported the outlet.
"I just didn't understand how they could actually stand there and look me in the eyes, and hand that to me," Debbie said while talking about a copy of the heavily redacted AR 15-6 investigation given to her.
Blaming the military for not helping her daughter leading to her death, Debbie said that it failed to properly investigate her daughter's first sexual assault claim and "handle what happened."
"They can't police their self. How can you investigate yourself? You can't," Debbie said while demanding an external agency to probe the cases of sexual assaults in the Army.
