ACTIONABLE. CREDIBLE. DENIED.
How Hegseth’s New Standard for Sexual Assault Claims Silences Survivors
TL;DR: In 2025, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth introduced a policy requiring "actionable, credible evidence" for assault complaints—without defining what that means. This is what that kind of policy does to survivors. A personal story—and a political reckoning.
The Policy That Broke the Silence
They called it “balanced accountability.” Pete Hegseth, the newly confirmed Secretary of Defense, told military leaders to dismiss complaints that didn’t include “actionable, credible evidence.”
No one explained what that meant.
There was no definition. No criteria. Just a memo—cold and vague—sent down the chain of command.
And with it, everything survivors had fought for over the last two decades was quietly undone.
No senior prevention official was appointed, despite Hegseth promising Senator Joni Ernst that he would do just that. Sexual Assault Prevention and Response (SAPR) training was paused. Prevention staff hiring was slashed. And survivors were told their stories weren’t enough.
“Actionable. Credible.” They turned those words into a wall.
A Story You’ve Heard Before (But Maybe Not Like This)
My welcome aboard briefing in the Navy started with this: “If you can’t stand the heat, get out of the kitchen.”
That was how my Chief talked about sexual harassment. It wasn’t a problem. It was the environment. And if you couldn’t take it, *you* were the problem.
So when I was assaulted, I knew what to do.
Keep my mouth shut. Work harder than everyone else. Get promoted. Don’t give them a reason to look at me twice.
I buried it deep. When it came back, I repeated the story I told myself: It never happened. I said it so often I believed it.
But the assault wasn’t the only thing. It was the comments, the touches, the power games. It was the exhaustion. It was how one inappropriate “ride home” became a months-long pattern. It was my Lieutenant grinding on me at the squadron Christmas party. It was my Chief showing me pictures I never asked to see. It was a man I’d served with for years, who had never disrespected me, looking me in the eye and saying: “Why don’t you get in here and suck my d***?” as his parting words before transfer.
It didn’t matter how many medals I earned. To them, I was a body.
That was 1990.
Nine months later, the Tailhook scandal hit the news. I wasn’t surprised. I was just angry it took that long.
Tailhook then. Tailhook now.
What was the Tailhook scandal?
In 1991, over 80 women and several men were sexually assaulted or harassed by Navy and Marine Corps officers during a convention in Las Vegas…
The Cost of Policy Without Humanity
Now imagine being a young female or male or queer service member in 2025, experiencing that same culture—and then learning that your case won’t go anywhere unless you bring “actionable, credible” evidence with you.
Most assaults happen in private.
Witnesses are rare.
Reporting is delayed—because trauma is real.
Under this policy, that’s all a liability.
It isn’t just a cruel standard—it’s a strategic retreat.
It’s easier to count victims than to protect them.
What Hegseth Promised—and What He Delivered
He promised a senior prevention official. We’re still waiting.
He paused training.
He cut staff.
He told the press that the standards for sexual assault investigations hadn’t changed.
But the message to survivors was clear: unless you can bring a file folder full of evidence and a backup witness, your case is not “credible.”
This is Tailhook logic in a new uniform.
And just like before, those at the top will say they didn’t know. Or that it wasn’t systemic. Or that the problem is solved now.
But it’s not.
It’s getting worse.
If You’ve Been Through It
You are not alone.
Even if you never reported it.
Even if you still can’t say the words.
Even if you’re only now starting to remember—what happened to you matters.
If you or someone you know is struggling, the VA’s Veterans Crisis Line is available 24/7: call 988 and press 1, or visit www.veteranscrisisline.net.
And if you’re angry? You should be.
Because this didn’t happen by accident.
It happened because a Secretary of Defense used his power to silence the very people he was charged with protecting.
And no memo can erase that truth.
✍️ Thanks for reading. Writing this wasn’t easy. Publishing it was harder.
If you want to walk this road with me—messy, honest, and unfiltered—join Tbird’s Quiet Fight: https://tbirdsquietfight.com