WASHINGTON – A new Army report says the number of suicides among soldiers has been leveling off, but there has been a dramatic jump in domestic violence, sex crimes and other destructive behavior in a force that has been stressed by a decade of war.
Army Vice Chief of Staff Gen. Peter Chiarelli said Tuesday that violent sex crimes and domestic violence have increased more than 30 percent since 2006 and child abuse by 43 percent. Chiarelli was releasing a 200-page report on the health of the troops and the Army’s efforts to address the problem.
It said that 278 soldiers in the active duty, Guard and Reserve committed suicide in the budget year ended in September, compared to 304 the previous fiscal year.
