President Joe Biden gave final approval on Friday to the biggest reshaping in generations of the country’s Uniform Code of Military Justice, stripping commanders of their authority over cases of sexual assault, rape and murder to ensure prosecutions that are independent of the chain of command.

By signing a far-reaching executive order, Biden ushered in the most significant changes to the modern military legal system since it was created in 1950. The order follows two decades of pressure from lawmakers and advocates of sexual assault victims, who argued that victims in the military were too often denied justice, culminating in a bipartisan law mandating changes.

In a statement, the White House called the changes to the military justice system “a turning point for survivors of gender-based violence in the military” and said they kept promises Biden made as a candidate.

“He’s made clear that our one truly sacred obligation as a nation is to prepare and equip those we send into harm’s way, and to care for them and their families both while they are deployed and when they return home,” the statement said. “The reforms implemented through today’s executive order do just that.”

The changes had for years been opposed by military commanders. But they were finally embraced by the Pentagon in 2021 and mandated by a law spearheaded by senator Kirsten Gillibrand, Democrat of New York. Biden signed the landmark legislation into law two days after Christmas that year.

The law set up a two-year process for the defence department to create a cadre of special prosecutors to handle sexual assault and a handful of other high-profile crimes. The Offices of Special Trial Counsel, as they will be called, will be staffed by experienced military prosecutors who will report to the civilian leaders of the military’s branches.

The final step needed to change the Uniform Code of Military Justice under the law was a presidential executive order. Lawmakers directed Biden to issue it by December 2023. White House officials said Biden would do so on Friday, more than five months ahead of the deadline.

Under the rules established by Biden’s order, commanders in the military will no longer have the authority to decide whether to pursue charges in cases of sexual abuse and a handful of other serious crimes. Instead, that decision will fall to the new, specialised lawyers, White House officials said.

The decisions by those special prosecutors will be final and binding, and cannot be overridden by military commanders.

New York Times News Service