Trump meets with Vanessa Guillen’s family
WASHINGTON – President Donald Trump met Thursday with the family of Spc. Vanessa Guillen, who disappeared from Fort Hood in April and whose remains were found this month.
“It’s an incredible story. It’s a terrible story,” Trump said to the family in the Oval Office. “So we’re going to look into it very powerfully. We already have started, as you know, and we’ll get to the bottom of it. Maybe things can come out that will help other people in a situation like Vanessa. We’ll be in touch with you constantly.”
A funeral has not been held because Guillen was dismembered and relatives are awaiting her remains, the family’s lawyer, Natalie Khawam, told Trump.
“If I can help you out with the funeral, I’ll help you out, financially, I’ll help you,” Trump said.
Also Thursday, the Army named an independent panel of five experts to investigate whether personnel at Fort Hood and the surrounding community have allowed a climate of sexual harassment and discrimination to flourish.
The independent review will be led by Chris Swecker, a lawyer and former assistant director of the FBI’s Criminal Investigative Division.
The Army has been under fire for its investigation into the disappearance and death of Guillen, 20.
Days after she went missing, investigators had focused on Spc. Aaron Robinson as the primary suspect.
It took two months to develop evidence to lock him up, and he fled before he could be detained and died by suicide.
“The Army is committed to taking care of our soldiers, civilians, families, and soldiers for life, and this independent review will explore the current command climate and culture at Fort Hood,” Army Sec. Ryan McCarthy said in a statement.
Guillen’s mother, Gloria Guillen, said she was angry to hear McCarthy say her daughter was not sexually harassed. She said she had spoken to her daughter about the harassment, but Gloria Guillen did not detail what her daughter said.
This month, Army officials disclosed that Guillen may have been harassed in an unrelated matter to her disappearance and murder. That matter is under investigation.
Before meeting with Trump the family marched with supporters of the #IAmVanessaGuillen bill, which would allow active duty service members to file sexual harassment and assault claims to a third-party agency instead of their chain of command.
“My sister is gone, she’s in a better place, but other survivors are here with their families ... her leadership needs to be held accountable,” said Guillen’s younger sister Lupe to marchers ahead of the rally.
Groups from around the country attended the march, including members of the NoMàs Movement, a community organization dedicated to combating military sexual assault.
Rep. Sylvia Garcia, D-Texas, attended the march, writing on Twitter that “We cannot stop until Gloria Guillén and the rest of the Guillén family receive #JusticiaPorVanessaGuillén.
“Today it is about Vanessa Guillén and her legacy.”
U.S. Reps. Markwayne Mullin, R-Okla., and Tulsi Gabbard, D-Hawaii, are sponsoring the bill.
Rep. Jackie Speier, D-Calif., a member of the Armed Services Committee, is preparing legislation to reform prosecution of sexual assault cases in the military.
The measure would also direct the Government Accountability Office to examine the Pentagon’s sexual harassment and assault prevention and response programs and its procedures for responding to missing troops.
Speier held a hearing Wednesday on issues related to Guillen’s case.
More than one-third of women soldiers at Fort Hood have reported sexual harassment in a survey last month, Army officials told Speier’s subcommittee on personnel on Wednesday.